Optimal Server Settings Continued

	Optimum Server Settings

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Continued

Network Operating System (NOS).
You will need to install a server operating system. This allows you to have more control over your network, but that is for another article. These network operating systems support multi-processor systems. Common NOSs include Windows NT Server, Windows 2000 Server, Windows Server 2003, Novell Netware 3.x, 4.x, 5.x, Mac OS X Server, and finally last but not least UNIX. If Netware 3.x is installed, the IPX/SPX protocol must be used.

Multi-processor Systems
I would have at least two processors in my nerver.

Prioritization
First, data redundancy. At least do RAID 1. Also, provide a back-up NIC and back-up power supply. Also, be sure to use an Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS).

Maintenance
Do continual disk defragmentation on your hard drives. This allows the read and write heads to move across less space, decreasing on hardware tear. Second, clean out the server continually using compressed air. Make sure to do continual virus scans with up-to-date definitions on your server.

Back-ups
If more than one hard drive fails in your RAID array, all data is lost. For this reason, it is important to do daily back-ups. It is recommended to do a full back-up once a week, and then do incremental or differential back-ups every day. Then, you want to store the back-ups offsite in a fireproof safe. Like I said before, data is no joke.

The recommended media for back-ups are tapes. Tapes are the oldest form of portable media for the PC. They can store a lot of information, and they are cheap. It is wise to rotate out the tapes that you use, so you make sure the tapes don’t go bad and you lose your backed-up data. Make sure to check your back-up data every once in a while to make sure that data isn’t bad. Most tape drives have to be put in a SCSI chain.

Full Back-up
This back-ups your entire disk partition.

Incremental Back-up
When data is backed-up, the archive bit is turned off. When data is written, the archive bit is turned on. The incremental back-up backs-up everything that has the archive bit turned on. It then turns off the archive bit.

Differential Back-up
This is basically an incremental back-up, but the archive bit remains on.

If you follow these procedures, you can prevent your business from going out of business and prevent the company from losing money. You don’t need to go all out for a print server. But if you plan to put a lot of serving software on one server, it is wise to put more resources on that machine. One server, can be a print, file, web, and email server! And you can add more to it! So the more services, better the hardware.

Jon Brengle
Director of Web Communications
Certified A+, N+ Technician

Optimum Server Settings