Topic: Some questions while evaluating SME Server for a mixed environment

[jstarek]

Hello everyone,

I am setting up the network for a classroom-/lab-like amateur science project. We will need to support few dozens of users and workstations in a mixed environment with Windows and Linux workstations (which need fixed names and adresses) and users' laptops.

I've been testing SME server as a replacement for the Debian server that I currently use. After reading the wiki and experimenting with a VirtualBox-based setup, there are some questions I could not find an answer for:

• For connecting Linux clients, I refered to http://wiki.contribs.org/Client_Authentication:Ubuntu which uses Samba instead of the more traditional LDAP/NFS-combination. Are there any important advantages to any of the two? How do other SME users attach their Linux boxes?
• I'd like to provide laptop users with some information through DHCP, e.g. using the SME server box as an additional name server for internal name resolution. Where can I configure that?
• In *nix, there is the directory /etc/skel/ for everything that should be present in a newly created home directory. I suppose Windows has a similar mechanism. Where do these files go on the server? And while I can configure the users' desktops with text files under Linux (which I put in /etc/skel/), how can I do this for Windows clients?
• Maybe it's because I'm not too familiar with windows, but the batch file provided on http://wiki.contribs.org/SME_Server:Documentation:Administration_Manual:Chapter7#Setting_up_network_drives only provides my Windows client with a network drive. "Documents and Settings" is still local. Shouldn't it be on the server and mounted into the directory tree under c:?
• As my Linux clients are Debian or Ubuntu only and our network connection is rather slow, I'd like to keep an instance of approx, a specialized APT proxy, on the server. What's the proper way to do that, can I just compile from source or do I have to write a contrib?
• And finally, a non-technical question: Do you think it's a good idea to migrate from the existing, almost-completely working Debian setup to SME? With Debian, I'm often annoyed at how complicated some config changes can become, however I'm afraid that if I have to use an out-of-date contrib, there will be just as much to do... Thoughts?

Most of this was probably already answered elsewhere, but I did not find anything while searching. So feel free to just throw URLs at me


Many thanks in advance

  Jürgen

[Stefano]

Hello everyone,

Hi Jürgen, welcome here

I am setting up the network for a classroom-/lab-like amateur science project. We will need to support few dozens of users and workstations in a mixed environment with Windows and Linux workstations (which need fixed names and adresses) and users' laptops.

I've been testing SME server as a replacement for the Debian server that I currently use. After reading the wiki and experimenting with a VirtualBox-based setup, there are some questions I could not find an answer for:

• For connecting Linux clients, I refered to http://wiki.contribs.org/Client_Authentication:Ubuntu which uses Samba instead of the more traditional LDAP/NFS-combination. Are there any important advantages to any of the two? How do other SME users attach their Linux boxes?

samba auth approach is the only way you have to auth users atm.. on SME8 there will be the possibility to use ldap AFAIR

• I'd like to provide laptop users with some information through DHCP, e.g. using the SME server box as an additional name server for internal name resolution. Where can I configure that?

will SME be your dhcp server? if not, it's not a SME's problem

• In *nix, there is the directory /etc/skel/ for everything that should be present in a newly created home directory. I suppose Windows has a similar mechanism. Where do these files go on the server? And while I can configure the users' desktops with text files under Linux (which I put in /etc/skel/), how can I do this for Windows clients?

well.. if you already use this feature on your debian server, you should know the answer (SME is linux, as Debian is.. some different path nut not more)
if you are not using it, please explain your need/problem

• Maybe it's because I'm not too familiar with windows, but the batch file provided on http://wiki.contribs.org/SME_Server:Documentation:Administration_Manual:Chapter7#Setting_up_network_drives only provides my Windows client with a network drive. "Documents and Settings" is still local. Shouldn't it be on the server and mounted into the directory tree under c:?

are you talking about roaming profiles or about changing default directories path? the first feature is available on SME, the second depends on windows configuration.. if your clients are windows xp and not vista/7, search for poledit (is a windows tool)

• As my Linux clients are Debian or Ubuntu only and our network connection is rather slow, I'd like to keep an instance of approx, a specialized APT proxy, on the server. What's the proper way to do that, can I just compile from source or do I have to write a contrib?

you should ask elsewhere such a question, I would start on google with "apt cache proxy on centos setup"

• And finally, a non-technical question: Do you think it's a good idea to migrate from the existing, almost-completely working Debian setup to SME? With Debian, I'm often annoyed at how complicated some config changes can become, however I'm afraid that if I have to use an out-of-date contrib, there will be just as much to do... Thoughts?

sincerely.. IMHO if your system is working, don't change it..

HTH

[chris burnat]

Moving to General Discussions.

[jstarek]

Hello Stefano,

thanks for the quick reply!

You write that if SME wasn't my DHCP server, passing information to it was irrelevant -- however, I actually plan to set it up that way. Is there a possibility to inject DHCP options into SME's server implementation? If possible, I'd like to keep this in the framework provided by SME and not hack the underlying implementation.

Then, you ask for more information about my /etc/skel/ problem. Put another way: How can I tell each new user account that's created "when you first log in on a Windows machine, use my wallpaper, put some icons on the desktop and set the browser's bookmarks to what I want"? That is what I currently use /etc/skel/ for on my Linux clients. -- I suppose this is something that must be configured in SME as it serves as the PDC, or am I wrong?

Regarding the question about home directories: I suppose the term would be "roaming profiles", yes. They are not discussed in the wiki -- can anyone give me a hint on how to use them? The corresponding action in the "workgroup settings" tab of SME is activated, do I have to do further configuration of the client?Edit:OK, I just read up on that myself. I expected to see similar behaviour as with an NFS home dir under Linux and, thus, was confused by what I was seeing. This stuff is done strangely on Windows... incredible.

Thanks again,

  Jürgen

[Stefano]

Is there a possibility to inject DHCP options into SME's server implementation? If possible, I'd like to keep this in the framework provided by SME and not hack the underlying implementation.

if SME is your dhcp server that kind of info is already passed to the clients..

I suppose this is something that must be configured in SME as it serves as the PDC, or am I wrong?

nothing to do with SME.. this is a windows issue.. so you should search out there

OK, I just read up on that myself. I expected to see similar behaviour as with an NFS home dir under Linux and, thus, was confused by what I was seeing. This stuff is done strangely on Windows... incredible.

nothing is incredible under windows