Best setup for a computer repair lab?

[Liam Proven]

On 24 October 2011 13:35, Amichai Rotman <amichai at iglu.org.il> wrote:
> Hello,
> I have a small computer repair lab. I deal mainly with small repairs and
> upgrades to PCs. I'd like to setup a Linux server in the LAN with the
> following roles:
>
> File Server - for applications installation files and customer's Data
> backups. FreeNAS or something similar, perhaps?
> Ghost Images repository - I heard about the FOG Project. Haven't looked into
> it yet, though.
> VirtualBox Headless Server - An image for each technician to be accessed via
> RDP from within the LAN and also WAN, so wach have our own preferred desktop
> setup.
> OpenVPN Server - using their OpenVPN Access Server - or is the Virtual
> Appliance a better choice?
>
> I have a bunch of old PCs I can make something of. What I mostly need is
> storage space. I have a lot of different sized IDE HDDs I would like to
> configure together. I think the best way would be to setup an LVM.
> Is there an out-of-the-box distro for this or do I install Ubuntu Server and
> add the relevant functionality after the install?
> Which version of the Ubuntu Server should I use?
> I'll appreciate your advice and any experience you can share...

For a general-purpose server, the easiest way is SME Server.
http://wiki.contribs.org/Main_Page

If you want something a bit more customisable, then you might want to
look at ClearOS (formerly ClarkConnect).
http://www.clearfoundation.com/Software/overview.html

The last of the 3 that I know of is the least mature, but it does
work, and it's Ubuntu-based, which you might prefer. It is Zentyal
(formerly eBox).
http://www.zentyal.com/

Ubuntu Server is, unlike Ubuntu desktop editions, /not/ a ready-to-use
OS - it's a toolkit from which you have to build your own
installation, select, install and then configure the components you
wish to use. Any of the 3 above will get you working much much faster.

-- 
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