Let's begin, need some advices

[Sampar]

Hi there,

Basicaly, I am a programmer but I got that kind of job where you take care of everything, including buying a new server and installing a fully working windows 2003 server.

I did install win2000advserv back in college, with dns and ads, but still, I don't remember much of it and as a matter of fact, I don't know a lot about servers at all.


I need some advice, here is the situation:

We got 4 servers:
1- Main server: Linux ::: Gateway, firewall, mails (pop3)
2- Web server: 2.8ghz, Windows 2000 server with IIS
3- Backup server: AMD 1.6ghz, backup file and web server and host Norton services (all that on a windows xp pro... sigh)

And the one to be replace:
4- File server: p2 400mhz on NT4server, Domain server, file and printer server.

Number of users: between 10 to 40 simultanously, working on different type of file from word to accounting to audio/video files

Our goal:
To have every1 working their files from the server so we can be asured that the backup will be done and all data in 1 well classified place. So my primary need is file serving.

What I planned:
Buying a new server to replace #4 with a single/dual xeon/opteron with around 300gig on scsi320 10/15k

(all those / means that I got a question about it )

also, I would keep this server as the DNS server, file, printer and eventualy, host norton services, and maybe more..

-------------------------------

Question #1
Is it possible to merge that web server into that dms/file server? Can I install dns, ads and iis on the same machine without any problem??? What if I would also want to add a exchange server?

Question #2
Considering my needs and the fact that this is not an application server, would it be a waste of money to buy a dual cpu server?

Question #3
Considering that those servers will run on 1000mbits lan, is it mandatory to have raid5 in order to reach the network potential or is a (or multiple10krpm or 15krpm enough?

Question #4
Any good book I can buy to learn more about win2003, dns, ads, iss, exchange and any other usefull services? You see, I dont't know much yet, but I will learn



Thx to every1 who will take the time to help and gives comments and opinions.


Best regards,

Samuel

 

[mrdenny]

1. While yes you can put the IIS on the file server. I'd recommend keeping it separate for security purposes. DNS and AD can be on the same machine with no problem. If you want to add exchange while you could leave it on the same machine it's better if it's on it's own server.

2. Keep the dual chip. It will make virus scans run faster. You don't want to skimp on CPU power since this server will be your domain controller. It's cheaper to over purchase now, then to have to upgrade later.

3. Keep the RAID 5. You'll want the redundancy as well as the speed. A single SCSI3 Ultra can peak at ~320MB per second. Your NIC can peak at 1024MB per second. While you will never hit that mark, the disks will be the theororetical bottle neck.

4. No idea. My experience is all from OJT.

Denny
MCSA (2003) / MCDBA (SQL 2000)

--Anything is possible. All it takes is a little research. (Me)

http://www.mrdenny.com

(Not quite so old any more.)

 

[Sampar]

About SCSI drives, my research told me that a HD can reach 72to92mbytes/sec (500-700mbits/sec).

Knowing that the lan limit is 1000mbits (well.. spec speaking), if I get 1 hd for OS and apps and more hds for storage and user needs, wont it be enough? Raid5 cost easily 500-800$ more. How much more will it get faster? Oh and of course, redundancy is great but we got backup server who do his job everyday, isn't enough? I mean, hmmm? I wonder.. I have to admit that I was very interested in Raid5 system, but should I get better cpus or more ram instead? Also, does it worth it to get 15k scsi? Better to have raid5 on 10k hd or get some 15k?

I am confused...

Thx for the advice and please, for any1 else who want to add some comments, go ahead

 

[mrdenny]

In a production server never use a single hard drive. Everything should be some sort of RAID level. Especially if the server will be your domain controller.

Having a backup is great, but what happens if your only domain controller dies because a hard drive failed. How much time and money will be lost because you didn't purchase an additional $500-$1000 hard drive? I'll bet it's more than the cost of the drive. You'll need to remember that if the drive fails and the server goes down, yes you'll have a backup of your data, but without a domain controller no users can access that data until you rebuild the server. We'll assume that there are 20 users working that day. And it takes you 4 hours to rebuild the server. 80 Man hours have been paid to the staff when they can't work because the server was down. Assuming they all make $10 per hour, that's $800 lost. If all 40 people are one site, that's 160 hours and $1600 lost. If your staff makes more than $10 per hour then the costs just keep going up. And I'm being generous with 4 hours to rebuild the server, patch it, and restore Active Directory.

If it was me building this server, here's the disk setup I'd use.

a RAID 1 array for the OS with 36 Gig 10k drives.
a RAID 5 array for the users data with 300 Gig 10k drives.
If I could afford it I would also purchase hot spares for each array so that when a drive blows it will rebuild to the spare automatically so when I pull the drive the array is already rebuilt and the data is safe.

Backups are not a substitute for proper hardware setup and redundancy. Not having a redundant drive also requires that the Active Directory backup and restore works perfectly. What happens if it doesn't. Now you need to rebuilt the Active Directory from scratch by hand. At this point you are looking at a couple of days down until you are finished.

Don't worry about maxing out the nic. It's not going to happen. Make sure that the server is up and running, and that it stays running even if hardware dies.

You'll notice that I didn't say if the hardware dies, but when. Drives fail. It's part of using computers. They have moving parts, and they will wear out. It's best to prepare for it ahead of time, instead of reacting to it after it happens.

Denny
MCSA (2003) / MCDBA (SQL 2000)

--Anything is possible. All it takes is a little research. (Me)

http://www.mrdenny.com

(Not quite so old any more.)

 

[Sampar]

Hmmm, to me, you are god damn right.

I didn't realised all the advantage of redundancy.

thx again, these are good advices!

 

[mrdenny]

no problem.

Denny
MCSA (2003) / MCDBA (SQL 2000)

--Anything is possible. All it takes is a little research. (Me)

http://www.mrdenny.com

(Not quite so old any more.)