Networking For Dummies. Doug Lowe

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      FIGURE 5-3: Let the System Information program gather the data you need.

To Dedicate or Not to Dedicate: That Is the Question

      One of the most basic questions that a network plan must answer is whether the network will have one or more dedicated servers or rely completely on peer-to-peer networking. If the only reason for purchasing your network is to share a printer and exchange an occasional file, you may not need a dedicated server computer. In that case, you can create a peer-to-peer network by using the computers that you already have. However, all but the smallest networks will benefit from having a separate, dedicated server computer.

      Assuming that your network will require one or more dedicated servers, you should next consider what types of servers the network will need. In some cases, a single server computer can fill one or more of these roles. Whenever possible, limit each server computer to a single server function.

      File servers

      File servers provide centralized disk storage that can be conveniently shared by client computers on the network. The most common task of a file server is to store shared files and programs. For example, members of a small workgroup can use disk space on a file server to store their Microsoft Office documents.

      File servers must ensure that two users don’t try to update the same file at the same time. The file servers do this by locking a file while a user updates the file so that other users can’t access the file until the first user finishes. For document files (for example, word processing or spreadsheet files), the whole file is locked. For database files, the lock can be applied just to the portion of the file that contains the record or records being updated.

      Print servers

      Sharing printers is one of the main reasons that many small networks exist. Although it isn’t necessary, a server computer can be dedicated for use as a print server, whose sole purpose is to collect information being sent to a shared printer by client computers and print it in an orderly fashion.

      Web servers

      A web server is a server computer that runs software that enables the computer to host an Internet website. The two most popular web server programs are Microsoft’s IIS (Internet Information Services) and Apache, an open source web server managed by the Apache Software Foundation.

      Mail servers

      A mail server is a server that handles the network’s email needs. It is configured with email server software, such as Microsoft Exchange Server. Exchange Server is designed to work with Microsoft Outlook, the email client software that comes with Microsoft Office.

      Most mail servers actually do much more than just send and receive email. For example, here are some of the features that Exchange Server offers beyond simple email:

      Database servers

      A database server is a server computer that runs database software, such as Microsoft’s SQL Server 2019. Database servers are usually used along with customized business applications, such as accounting or marketing systems.

      Application servers

      An application server is a server computer that runs a specific application. For example, you might use an accounting application that requires its own server. In that case, you’ll need to dedicate a server to the accounting application.

      License servers

      Some organizations use software that requires licenses that are distributed from a centralized license server. For example, engineering firms often use computer-aided design (CAD) software such as AutoCAD that requires a license server. In that case, you’ll need to set up a server to handle the licensing function.

Choosing a Server Operating System

      If you determine that your network will require one or more dedicated servers, the next step is to determine what network operating system those servers should use. If possible, all the servers should use the same network operating system (NOS) so that you don’t find yourself supporting different operating systems.

      Although you can choose from many network operating systems, from a practical point of view, your choices are limited to the following:

      For more information, see Chapter 11.