Server questions

I am the office manager for a three-person income tax office. Our computers are connected on a peer-to peer network, using cables and the ethernet ports. We use Win XP Home Edition.

I have purchased a 4th PC with a dual core processor, and I want to use it as a server for the three pc workstations. (It, too has WinXP installed) Due to space issues, and security reasons, I'd like to set it up without the monitor, keyboard, etc, and access it through my workstation.

For ease in administration, I want to load the network-aware tax software we use onto the server, and make the three workstations the clients. The server will also act as the internet gateway. Here are my questions:

1 We have months of inactivity at our office, so I don't really want to keep the server on 24/7. Do I need server software like Win NT 2003, (or something else) to allow my people to come in and flip the "on" switch on the server w/o having to worry about troubleshooting at boot-up? (they won't have a monitor or keyboard or mouse at the server) Or am I forced to keep the server on all the time?

2 I'd like to be able to access the server from home and troubleshoot, if necessary. Is that possible?

3 What do I need in terms of software/hardware to make this work? I'd like to stay at or under $1,000.00, if possible.

Please, any answers, and/or suggestions you kind people might have would be much appreciated!

Forget working on it from home for now.

Set WinXP up for file sharing, create user accounts/passwords similar to the ones on the PCs for some security.

PC1:
user: sue
pw: tax
PC2:
user: jon
pw: taxes
etc.

WinXP server, create the following accounts and create passwords:
sue/tax
jon/taxes

Create your shares, configure security, map drives.

As far as working from home, you could technically get the Linksys VPN bundle. Its an end point for home and a concentrator at work, running you about $500 or so if I recall correctly. Its really not worth it for what you're looking to do. If problems pop up constantly when you're at home, then you may want to consider that option.

On the Server, set the BIOS to continue even on Errors. It'll load up even without a keyboard. You can use Remote Desktop to tap into the computer and work on it.

That should cover what you're trying to do.