Choosing an OS for a home server

How it all began

It took me to build a small home server for the following tasks:

1. Print server
2. Backups of several home machines (a couple of laptops, one and a half desktop).
3. Photo archive storage
4. Music storage
5. Document storage

For the future, it may be picked up a few more USB-devices, such as webcams and thermometers, but this is so, for the future is strong ...

It will not be a router - another computer is doing this. And this server will handle only internal needs. Plus, for complete happiness, you will hang on another phase (and ideally - also connected via wifi n, but this is also for the future).

Iron

The train looks like this: Intel's motherboard on 330 atoms (dual-core), gigabytes of RAM, Inwin 639 ITX-case, a pair of screws - 250 gigabytes and 640 gigabytes (this is temporary, then replaced by more). Such iron was chosen because of its small size. The case allows you to put only two hard drives, but it will suit me - much large volumes are not expected. Even the current 640 + 250 is enough for a long time. But iron is not interesting, they constantly write about him. And all about the same thing. :)

I'd rather write about the server's software stuffing - that I chose, why I chose that. Well, about the impressions, too, I will write. Later. :)
')

OS selection

Variants.
Well, first free and open source:

1. FreeNAS . Free, but inside frya with all its flaws in terms of supporting iron. USB thermometers do not shine. :) Yes, and the functionality is not very interesting.
2. The ebox is undoubtedly an interesting piece that deserves attention, but inside it is neon Linux. I mean, either take what they give by default, or - a lot of manual work, because what they give by default rarely suits me in Linux ... For example, I don’t like Linux file systems.
3. Any Linux distribution. See previous item.

After I went through the open source, we went to proprietary options, but free (in my case):

1. Windows XP Home (rolls distribution with the sticker). I will not say anything here. Only from poverty or complete non-support of the necessary hardware by Linux. The rest is no better than Linux. The file system is more pleasant, except that (from the user's point of view, you can restore accidentally deleted files, for example :)). But if there was a choice of Linux or XP Home, I would choose Linux.
2. Windows Web Server 2008. I have 3 of them - MS distributed them in due time at every opportunity. Maybe it would have stopped on it, but WWS does not know how to share a printer, for example. Verified

Somewhere at this stage I remembered a product called Windows Home Server, promoted by MS just like an OS for home servers. After reading the description, I realized that this is almost what I need.

What in general is WHS: it is a server operating system from MS, based on Windows SBS 2003 SP2. That is, inside it is almost a full-fledged Windows Server with some additional features.

What I personally liked:

• Gathering information about all home computers is initially only a complaint from the security center, but this is expanded with the help of plug-ins.
• Automatic full backup of all home machines. That is, if the hard drive is covered, you can install a new one, boot from the CD, which will be transferred from the server backup and deploy it to the computer. To save space, identical files that are located on several computers are stored on the server in only one instance. Not very important data can not be backed up - there is an exception setting. Any svap-files, files of hibernation, etc. there are made immediately.
• Single storage (all disks are combined with a single array, something like JBOD). But there is one very useful feature - the replacement of disks in the array (Drive Extender). That is, you can connect a new disk, turn it on into an array, then poke a “Remove from array” button on one of the old disks and all the information from it will be automatically pushed out to all other disks. It can be said, for this alone in my eyes, WHS has no competitors - maybe Linux and you can finish it up with the necessary functionality (dig in the direction of LVM, mhddfs, etc.), but this is all the time, plus usability.
• The ability for important data to assign storage on two disks. Those. choose a daddy, click “Duplicate” in the properties - and it will be physically stored on two different disks. Those. upon departure of one of them information will not be lost. True backups are not duplicated. On the other hand, it rarely happens that both the original and the backup are covered at the same time.

There, of course, there is some other functionality, but in this case I needed this one.

OS mining

And here it is necessary to stop in more detail. I prefer to use legal software, because the torrents in this case were closed for me. You can try quite legally . 120 days, it seems.

But with buy there are some problems. Just come to the store and pay $ 100 does not work - it does not sell at retail (I am in Russia, if suddenly someone decides to tell the address of the store :)).

• Option One: Buy a piece of iron on the basis of WHS. It doesn’t fit - I don’t know the companies trading in such pieces of iron in Russia.
• Option Two: Order a piece of iron abroad. Stops the price of such pieces of iron (especially with regard to delivery and customs).
• Option three: Buy on ebay box (~ $ 130). It would be possible to try, but I still have not got a normal bank card.
• Option Four: www.softkey.ru . In principle, the most realistic and convenient, but not without pitfalls, whose name is the license for WHS, which allows it to be distributed only as part of ready-made devices. That is, buy, put on a self-assembly piece of iron and can not be used. The assembled computer must be sold. No problem. It is necessary - selling. Yourself. :)

A friendly company that sells iron is taken. Ask her to order in the WHS software (the cost is around 3800 rubles + delivery). Then you order from this company the assembly of a sistemnik of the components you are interested in. When you buy the same check, and WHS. Everyone is happy.

A couple of notes:
Completing, in principle, you can buy in another place, and the company just to give the receipts - pretend that they bought, then sell it to you. :)

WHS in softkey can only be paid to a legal entity, it is not given to a private person. After ordering, they called me out and warned me about the aforementioned licensing restrictions.

Conclusion

In principle, all about choosing and buying.
Description of the installation WHS meaning do not see - the server as a server. About iron already said everything.
But I will review the management interface (WHS Console) and the add-ons I liked.

Ps. Everything I write is my personal opinion. If somewhere I am mistaken - point to errors. But preferably not in the version “you are wrong, MS paid you”, and approximately “in this place you are wrong, here is a link”.