Setting up network with 1 server and 8 workstations?

Question

Hi, it's my first time setting up a network. We have Dell PowerEdge 2900 server with 2 Broadcom BCM5708C NIC's. Now server is connected to internet via one of these NIC's and an Actiontec router for FiOS. Now a 12 port unmanaged switch (HP ProCurve Switch 2312) is coming. We already have all computers hard wired to the place where switch will stand. What do I do next and how hard is it to connect all the workstations to the server?

Answer 1

Let's make this simple:
You don't want to be running all of the workstations connections through the server to access the Internet. It could be done this way, but requires more software, as already mentioned.

What you should do is purchase a broadband router with built in firewall functions, like the SMC barricade (http://www.smc.com/index.cfm?event=viewProduct&localeCode=EN_USA&cid=1&scid=17&pid=924) , Dlink router (http://www.dlink.com/products/?sec=1&pid=273), or Linksys router (http://www.linksys.com/servlet/Satellite?c=L_Product_C2&childpagename=US%2FLayout&cid=1123638171618&pagename=Linksys%2FCommon%2FVisitorWrapper).
This equipment will give you the capability to firewall your traffic and use the WAN side of the router to connect to your ISP/FiOS connection. Overall, the equipment is cheap - Between $50-$100
for the routers and you get the added advantage of having the switch ports built in. Some of them also have VPNs, which might be useful to you later.

The server should maintain the Active Directory or user accounts, print services, file sharing, DHCP, potentially e-mail, Anti-virus services, and DNS. It'll be plenty busy maintaining these services.

The reason I suggest doing it like this is because your infrastructure will probably continue to grow. There's no sense having to re-engineer it when your user base outgrows it's capabilities to not only provide domain services, but also maintain the Internet and security features that come with that.

Connecting workstations to the server is simple. Physically connecting cables is straightforward. Plug everything into the switch and they're good to go (barring any bad cables or cross-over cables). Next, you have to add the workstations to the domain on the server. They can then log on to the domain with the accounts setup on the domain controller. If you are planning on setting up AD, you should definitely check out Microsoft's site on how to do it.

If you do a peer-to-peer environment, most of that last paragraph doesn't apply. However, I don't recommend a peer-to-peer environment when you're already starting out with 8 clients. Peer-to-peer is as simple as setting everything up to the same workgroup name and assigning accounts on the server. If you choose this environment, make sure you store all of your files on the server and not on workstations, otherwise, maintaining the current version of a file can become tedious.

Good luck,
Don

Answer 2

You raise many more questions...

If you will be sharing your internet connection through the server, both the server and internet will run slow. The internet needs to go to the switch. That being the case, you will need to keep your desktops patched and firewalled (unless the switch functions as a firewall).

Connecting to the server: will you be using a domain style setup or a workgroup? What OS will run on the server? 2000 Server allows file and printer sharing pretty easily out of the box. 2003 Server requires a lot more setup. A domain will require more setup and administration time than a workgroup, but a domain is more secure when set up properly.

Answer 3

With your switch, every workstation can access any other workstation or server connected to the switch.

If you have the Internet connection going directly to the server, it better be running a proxy application (ISA server?) to share that functionality out to the rest of the network. You will need to configure each of the workstations to point to that server for proxy functionality. Both IE and Firefox have specific locations to configure this.

In addition, you will need to configure the TCP/IP configuration on each workstation. The server (or maybe the switch or router) should have DHCP running to provide IP addresses to all your workstations. The server should have a static IP, outside the DHCP scope, but in the same subnet. (like 192.168.1.2 for the server, 192.168.1.1 as the router or default gateway and a DHCP scope of 192.168.1.100 to 192.168.1.255, considering a subnet of 255.255.255.0). In your DHCP configuration, you can specify a DNS server. This can be your PowerEdge (if DNS is running and configured right) or your ISP router. DNS is required for name resolution on your network, and to the Internet.

Don't configure a default gateway on both nics, as this will confuse the server. "Which one is my default way out??" Only the internal facing one. Find out how to setup a static route on the server to get to non-private IP addresses (i.e. 192.168.x.x).

Good Luck!

Answer 4

XP Pro SP2

Answer 5

OK that,s how you have to create domain then if do want to
http://www.visualwin.com/AD-Controller/

than you can add users in to active dir.
you should be good after that .
good luck