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My Network (Technical Specs)Below is my network, built by my own hands (mostly) and running a variety of operating systems and peripherals. Except for my current workstation, everything was built piece by piece... (Actually, my PII-400 was mostly complete, but I did purchase the CDR separately, not to mention the different video and USB products) Contents
Recent Upgrades
10 Jul 2003: The entire network has been upgraded to Windows Server 2003, and Windows XP. I performed an in-place upgrade of the two domain controllers, plus I deployed a new server for inbound mail and some other functions. Windows Server 2003 is sweet! Fast and slick. I converted the old server to an XP system for the purpose of playing with Group Policy and RIS. I'll probably put FreeBSD on it when I'm done with those tests. I'm also going to be building an Exchange 2003 Server soon. I have to update this site, but I've been busy. :)
21 May 2003: There have been quite a few upgrades since the last report. I have just purchased a new server to replace (and consolidate) my SpamFilter server and my Network Monitoring server. That will allow me to put a Linux box back online. Also, I'll be upgrading all my Windows 2000 boxes to 2003 within a few weeks, so stay tuned for that.
11 May 2002: I recently obtained a new system as my primary desktop, and I'm in the process of repurposing my old desktop into a second Domain Controller. For the time being, my Linux box (which was up for 252 days) will be converted into a .NET Server for testing. When this round of upgrades is finished, I will be rid of Windows NT4. :) I'm still trying to plan a site upgrade as well...
23 Feb 2002: Well, I certainly haven't updated this page in a while... :) Lots of changes here, but for now, I'll just provide a summary and a new network diagram. BeOS is no longer on my network, as they're no longer in business. I have one Mandrake Linux box (that I need to upgrade to v8.1, and all my other client systems are running XP Pro. No more Win9x anywhere!!! As you might have noticed, the long-promised site redesign did not occur in 2001, and I'm not promising anything for this year, either. There'll be a few changes, but I don't know when. Been pretty busy with work and with the Knowledgebase...
08 Feb 2001: I have a lot of things to add here. I don't know exactly when I'm going to redesign this website, but it should be soon. Time... That's all I need... Time... I haven't updated this page in a while. Especially the diagrams...
May 2000: My LAN is almost exclusively Windows 2000 right now, and I have turned over dual-boot responsibilities to VMWare rather than have to reboot my entire system to switch to a different OS. I have a Win98 virtual partition for games, and a RedHat 6.2 virtual partition for playing around with Linux. Much, much more convenient than the reboot method. I haven't played with BeOS in a while, but it is up to version 5.0. It reminds me a lot of the Amiga, and I loved that platform a whole lot... We also have wireless Keyboard/Mice from Logitech. Really cool stuff...
My LAN (Description)I currently have 8 (eight) computer systems on my home LAN, with the slowest being an AMD K6-2/300 w/192MB of RAM, and the fastest being my new AMD XP 1800+ w/512MB of RAM (a recent replacement for my outdated Pentium II 400 w/256MB). I have a decent mix of Intel and AMD systems, but nothing in the SMP class as yet... I have made use of a variety of operating systems are on my machines, and have setup many multi-boot configurations:
As of 05/02, I'm only running the following operating systems:
Feb 2001: I've installed Wireless technology from SMC. I've also upgraded the 8-port Switch to a 16-port Switch (LinkSys). The upgrade cycle will be complete by end of March. I'll have an OpenBSD machine on the network, by that time, as well as a Print Server (from LinkSys, of course).
Mar 2000: Finally!!! So much for xDSL from Bell Atlantic... As of early November 1998, I have been enjoying lovely downloads from Comcast in the 1 - 3Mb/s range, and I am ESTATIC!! I'm still hanging on to my V.90 56K modem for backup purposes, but anemic analog is a thing of the (hopefully distant) past for me.... My LAN is Windows NT based (currently) with WINS, DHCP and DNS all running on an AMD K6-2/300 Server. My Internet access is via Cable Modem. Nuff said... My analog router (GT50 from OpenRoute) is sitting idly on the shelf, awaiting the day that it can be put to good use elsewhere (which, hopefully, is nowhere on this particular network). My POP3/SMTP server is VPOP3, and it is the coolest product of its type available for NT. Simple, powerful, and inexpensive. For LAN-to-Internet Connectivity, I'm currently using the LinkSys Cable/DSL Router. I was using WinRoute Pro, which I was extremely happy with, but there is a certain convenience with a hardware solution. Too bad the firewall on the LinkSys is not yet as flexible as the one in WinRoute. I had previously tested SyGate and found it more than acceptable. I'm using an 8-port, auto-sensing Dual-Speed 10/100 Switch from LinkSys (upgraded from a 10/100 Hub), along with their 10/100 EtherFast NICs. They work great, and didn't cost me a bundle. I recently got my hands on some NICs from NetGear, and they're also great! They work with lots of Operating Systems as well. For monitor sharing, I'm using two SwitchView products from Cybex -- a 4-port version, and a 2-port version. These products cannot be recommended enough!!
My LAN (Diagrams)08 Feb 2001: All of the LAN images can now be found here: Click on the images below to get a clearer picture of my LAN (pun intended)... Internet Connectivity via CableModem
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