Topic: Should I place the SME Server Inside or Outside of a Linksys

[John]

Since I have a BEFSR41 Linksys I have two options for, NAT, firewalling, and DHCP. Based on experience would you say that I would have a more stable and secure setup if I put the SME server outside the LAN and just operated the router as a switch? Or should I keep using the linksys as the entry point and relegate the SME server to 'server only' mode?

I will be taking most of the security precautions and remote login will be disabled.

I normally block WAN requests on the linksys except for specific ports that I forward to internal machines. I have 1 MAC machine, 1 W2K machine, and an occational W9X laptop.

I would be running:

1. Run HTTP and FTP as public services (currently on MAC)
2. Run File Sharing and DNS as private services

Any feedback is appreciated.

Just one last note. I love the SME server in the fact that I can now fileshare between my mac - server - PC. Yahoo no more FTP'ing! This linux thing really does work!

John
john_ells@hotmail.com

[Alexander Ziemann]

Hi,

if you are able to establish a sufficent internet connection directly from your SME, then you should put the SME in the gateway/server modus and let it stand in front of your private lan alone. It is faster. It is more secure. It is easier to manage than most "small" soho router with switching hub.

For these reasons i sold my hardware router at home .

Alex

[kitkat]

Same here,

I have a BFSR41 and only use it as a switch now, cause the SME is far better than the Linksys.

-Kit