Small network setup. Please help.

Hello,

I am volunteering at a small school to help them set up a ~10 user office
network, and was hoping to get some advice from you folks before proceeding.
(Learning as I go here....)

Here is what we have on hand:

Hardware:

- About 8 Dell Desktops P4 2.2 Ghz and faster.
- A few laptops to be used at the office and at home.
- Two laser printers with attached NetGear mini-printservers.
- A SnapServer storage appliance.

I might be able to get funds for a cheap desktop to run as a "server", but
as I think a Windows Server license will not happen now, perhaps the point is
moot.

Software:

- Sufficient quantity of Windows XP volume licenses.
- Sufficient quantity of Office volume licenses.
- Sufficient quantity of Symantec Corporate AV licenses.
- Sufficient quantity of Symantec Ghost licenses.


Right now, all machines are in one room, but they need to expand to a 2nd
location in a different building. Both locations have broadband Internet
access, so I am planning to link them with a couple of SOHO VPN routers.
(Maybe a wi-fi link in the future... some complicating factors right now.)

The current setup has the SnapServer running in "peer-to-peer mode" with a
manually configured user account for each machine that needs access.
Microsoft Office is installed individually on each machine. Symantec
AV/Ghost are not installed yet.

I would like to wipe all machines and start fresh, but I am need of some
guidance to help me create a "maintainable" network.

Some sort of "traveling desktop" would be ideal, as there are more office
workers than machines. (The ability for uses to move to a different machine
would be a huge help, but I am unsure if this can be done without Windows
Server.)

I have free reign to redesign the network from the bottom up, and I would
like to do things right. So, the more detailed advice I can get, the better.

Thanks,
David

David wrote:
> Hello,
>
> I am volunteering at a small school to help them set up a ~10 user office
> network, and was hoping to get some advice from you folks before proceeding.
> (Learning as I go here....)
>
> Here is what we have on hand:
>
> Hardware:
>
> - About 8 Dell Desktops P4 2.2 Ghz and faster.
> - A few laptops to be used at the office and at home.
> - Two laser printers with attached NetGear mini-printservers.
> - A SnapServer storage appliance.
>
> I might be able to get funds for a cheap desktop to run as a "server", but
> as I think a Windows Server license will not happen now, perhaps the point is
> moot.
>
> Software:
>
> - Sufficient quantity of Windows XP volume licenses.
> - Sufficient quantity of Office volume licenses.
> - Sufficient quantity of Symantec Corporate AV licenses.
> - Sufficient quantity of Symantec Ghost licenses.
>
>
> Right now, all machines are in one room, but they need to expand to a 2nd
> location in a different building. Both locations have broadband Internet
> access, so I am planning to link them with a couple of SOHO VPN routers.
> (Maybe a wi-fi link in the future... some complicating factors right now.)
>
> The current setup has the SnapServer running in "peer-to-peer mode" with a
> manually configured user account for each machine that needs access.
> Microsoft Office is installed individually on each machine. Symantec
> AV/Ghost are not installed yet.
>
> I would like to wipe all machines and start fresh,

The obvious question is, "Why?" If it ain't broken, don't "fix" it.

but I am need of some
> guidance to help me create a "maintainable" network.
>
> Some sort of "traveling desktop" would be ideal, as there are more office
> workers than machines. (The ability for uses to move to a different machine
> would be a huge help, but I am unsure if this can be done without Windows
> Server.)
>
> I have free reign to redesign the network from the bottom up, and I would
> like to do things right. So, the more detailed advice I can get, the better.

IMHO, if you want to do it "right," you should be looking at something
other than Windows, but I know others here will disagree. A lot depends
on what you consider "right."
>
> Thanks,
> David
>
>
>
>


--
The e-mail address in our reply-to line is reversed in an attempt to
minimize spam. Our true address is of the form che...@prodigy.net.

> >
> > I would like to wipe all machines and start fresh,
>
> The obvious question is, "Why?" If it ain't broken, don't "fix" it.
>

Half the machines are not fully onlline, and the other half are full of
extra cruft that is slowing things down.

> IMHO, if you want to do it "right," you should be looking at something
> other than Windows, but I know others here will disagree. A lot depends
> on what you consider "right."
>

Please feel free to make a sugestion.

By "done right" a mean a stable, mantainable, and protected network of
Windows XP desktops.

Thank you,
david

What do you need your network to do that it is not currently doing?

-Frank

"David" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
news:E986C79F-AE77-4F95-8162-(E-Mail Removed)...
> Hello,
>
> I am volunteering at a small school to help them set up a ~10 user office
> network, and was hoping to get some advice from you folks before
> proceeding.
> (Learning as I go here....)
>
> Here is what we have on hand:
>
> Hardware:
>
> - About 8 Dell Desktops P4 2.2 Ghz and faster.
> - A few laptops to be used at the office and at home.
> - Two laser printers with attached NetGear mini-printservers.
> - A SnapServer storage appliance.
>
> I might be able to get funds for a cheap desktop to run as a "server", but
> as I think a Windows Server license will not happen now, perhaps the point
> is
> moot.
>
> Software:
>
> - Sufficient quantity of Windows XP volume licenses.
> - Sufficient quantity of Office volume licenses.
> - Sufficient quantity of Symantec Corporate AV licenses.
> - Sufficient quantity of Symantec Ghost licenses.
>
>
> Right now, all machines are in one room, but they need to expand to a 2nd
> location in a different building. Both locations have broadband Internet
> access, so I am planning to link them with a couple of SOHO VPN routers.
> (Maybe a wi-fi link in the future... some complicating factors right now.)
>
> The current setup has the SnapServer running in "peer-to-peer mode" with a
> manually configured user account for each machine that needs access.
> Microsoft Office is installed individually on each machine. Symantec
> AV/Ghost are not installed yet.
>
> I would like to wipe all machines and start fresh, but I am need of some
> guidance to help me create a "maintainable" network.
>
> Some sort of "traveling desktop" would be ideal, as there are more office
> workers than machines. (The ability for uses to move to a different
> machine
> would be a huge help, but I am unsure if this can be done without Windows
> Server.)
>
> I have free reign to redesign the network from the bottom up, and I would
> like to do things right. So, the more detailed advice I can get, the
> better.
>
> Thanks,
> David
>
>
>
>

David wrote:

>>>I would like to wipe all machines and start fresh,
>>
>>The obvious question is, "Why?" If it ain't broken, don't "fix" it.
>>
>
>
> Half the machines are not fully onlline,

In what sense?

and the other half are full of
> extra cruft

Define "cruft." Then delete it.

that is slowing things down.
>
>
>>IMHO, if you want to do it "right," you should be looking at something
>>other than Windows, but I know others here will disagree. A lot depends
>>on what you consider "right."
>>
>
>
> Please feel free to make a sugestion.
>
> By "done right" a mean a stable, mantainable, and protected network of
> Windows XP desktops.
>
> Thank you,
> david


--
The e-mail address in our reply-to line is reversed in an attempt to
minimize spam. Our true address is of the form che...@prodigy.net.