LAn Hardware Set-Up

[KnightNo17]

Hi, first time poster, planning to set up a little home lan.
I got 2 pcs plus a mac, i am planning to hook it all up to a proxy/file/printer-server which will be a pentium II 200mhz, yet unknown ram, 40 gigs.
1. ok - i´ll be using a five port hub, so heres what i do: i hook all computers to the hub, incl. the server. the server also gets a second network card to hook up to my dsl modem. question is: can install two network cards in the server to get it to work that way?

2. the printer can be hooked up to the server, or do i have to hook it up to the hub?

3. will a 5 port hub be enough? 3 clients, plus one host, plus possibly a ps2 will be on the lan (4 clients+1 host=5 ports?) so i think it should.

4. i am planning to use the server as my mp3 player so the pc in my room doesnt have to be turned on ll the time (fan noise etc.)
can I remotely start mp3 files on the server (will be hooked up to the stereo in my room)? which programm is usefull (such as pcanywhere)?

5. how hard is it to get the mac in the lan? server will be running win2000pro edition.

i guess thats it for now, some of those are really easy to answer i guess, simple questions really but the sources on the web couldnt anser them :/
thx a lot for any input and/or help

[twwabw]

1. ok - i´ll be using a five port hub, so heres what i do: i hook all computers to the hub, incl. the server. the server also gets a second network card to hook up to my dsl modem. question is: can install two network cards in the server to get it to work that way?

Yes. What are you going to use for proxy software? Or are you just going to run ICS?

2. the printer can be hooked up to the server, or do i have to hook it up to the hub?

Yes- printer can be hooked to the server, and shared on the network. It can also be hooked to the hub, if you have a print server device like an HP JetDirect.

3. will a 5 port hub be enough? 3 clients, plus one host, plus possibly a ps2 will be on the lan (4 clients+1 host=5 ports?) so i think it should.

Yes- this should be enough.

5. how hard is it to get the mac in the lan? server will be running win2000pro edition.

MACs should be able to share with Appletalk. You will need to use TCP/IP as your network protocol, as MACs use this protocol to communicate. I am not well versed in MACs, so I'm sure others here will comment on the details for you.

[KnightNo17]

I havent decided on the proxy program yet - any suggestions?
I want it to be simple, no need for facy stuff, I just want my packages forwarded...

[twwabw]

Simplest and cheapest is to use ICS- it's included with Win2K. WinRoute works well too, and allows a lot more flexibilty and customization.

[C.M. Weaver]

For anything other than file/print sharing for the MAC's you can configure them to use TCP/IP to share the network connection. If you want to share file/printers though you will have to run a 3rd party program like Dave or PCMACLAN, a Linux box running SAMBA or Windows 2000 Server with AppleTalk support.

[KnightNo17]

Windows 2000 Server Edition with AppleTalk support?
As in: Windows 2000 Server Edition already has AplleTalk installed and I just need to plug the Mac in
or
Win200S.E. supports it and I just need to install AppleTalk for Win2000 and THEN plug in the Mac?

[C.M. Weaver]

Windows 2000 Server and Advanced Server have AppleTalk support. Unfortunately, it's not just as easy as plugging in the MAC and having things work. You need to have some knowledge of how AppleTalk works and it's configuration, not to mention how to configure it properly on the Win2k box.

There are some resources at Microsoft's site on how to setup and configure AppleTalk on a Win2k S and AS box.