[TriLUG] Debian any good?

[kevin]

Pete,


	The security minded part of me feels a need to speak up.  If it's your
firewall,email,etc server, you really shouldn't have desktop type
software installed.  The less that's installed the better, both for
security and for performance.  Given the role that you are saying that
you want this system to perform, I'd suggest that you look at some of
the "distros" that are just for that.  There are several, Clark Connect
(www.clark-connect.org), E-Smith (www.e-smith.org), smoothwall, and on.




Kevin

On Sun, 2004-02-01 at 00:32, Peter Long wrote:
> Hi,
> 
> Thanks for the advice. I did not realize that it was possible to install 
> Debian off the KNOPPIX CD! Actually I am busy using jigdo to build the 
> Debian3r2 iso's now. 7 CDs is a lot. Do I really need all of them?
> 
> Although I do use the machine primarily as my mail server and firewall 
> it does also see use as a Desktop machine from time to time. Its a bit 
> slow for heavy use(PII 350 w/256MB RAM). My RedHat 8 distro had KDE 
> 3.0.5 on it. I see that Debian Stable only has 2.2.something ancient. 
> That sounds a little more "stable" that I like. However I don't want the 
> machine crashing every ten minutes. Should I go for the "Testing" 
> release instead?
> 
> --
> Peter Long
> 
> joey at odoherty.net wrote:
> 
> > Hi Peter, 
> > 
> > Debian would be a great choice for the functions that you listed. My
> > only comment is that if you are not planning on using the computer as
> > a desktop machine (pardon me if I am assuming incorrectly) don't install
> > using Knoppix, rather do a plain Debian Stable installation. Mailserver /
> > firewall is one role where Debian Stable really shines in. Knoppix uses
> > a mix of software packages from Debian Testing, Unstable, and other sources
> > and it is my understanding that it leaves behind a fair ammount of "cruft."
> > Automagic soundcard detection is nice, but not so important for a server :)
> > 
> > All the software you mentioned is in Debian. You can check 
> > http://packages.debian.org to make sure the version numbers are recent
> > enough for your needs or to query other software.
> > 
> > cheers,
> > /joeyo
> > 
> > On Sat, Jan 31, 2004 at 11:12:32PM -0500, Peter Long wrote:
> > 
> >>Hi all,
> >>
> >>Since my harddisk is acting funny I have decided to upgrade the OS on my 
> >>RedHat 8.0 box (and replace the disk at the same time). I have been 
> >>using RedHat and Mandrake for the last 6 years so I think its time to 
> >>try something new. I tried KNOPPIX 3.3 earlier today when on Brian 
> >>Weaver's advice I used badblocks to check the disk (none found Brian). I 
> >>was very impressed with KNOPPIX. It found all my hardware and even had 
> >>the sound working without any tinkering on my part! I understand KNOPPIX 
> >>is based on Debian so I thought I would try it as the OS of my Linux 
> >>machine.
> >>
> >>However I thought it might be prudent to ask for advice from current 
> >>Debian users on the list. I mainly use the machine as a NAT gateway and 
> >>firewall as well as my mail-server. I use postfix and University of 
> >>Washington IMAP. I also plan to use shorewall as my firewall. At the 
> >>moment I just use IPtables on its own. I assume the Debian distro will 
> >>contain all these apps.
> >>
> >>Any tips or advice would be appreciated.
> >>
> >>--
> >>Peter Long
> >>
> 
> 
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