How can i use a single 1TB hard drive for shared use in 10 desktop pc

[maxxim_cod2]

well to start with, i am shortly to open an Internet cafe. i have already planned over the system configuration but i just have a querry remaining. i m planning to use 12 pcs initially but want to save my costs on deploying multiple hdds on each pc, individually. what i mean to ask is whether it's possible to boot & use all these different pcs with a single hdd (say 1tb in cap)? these pcs will be allocated space on that drive where the system files as well as the user files will be saved-to & read-from. maybe each partition cud represent a hard drive or there cud be another more efficient way. i have read about network boot capability in windows but i m not sure whether this feature can be used to continue the use of the same pc without a dedicated hard disk after os boots completely or is it just for the booting & boot related troubleshooting only? please guide. thanking you.

 

[PhilFrisbie]

Search for 'PXE boot' to get all the gory details!

 

[maxxim_cod2]

well thanks for the reply.. i have finally decided on using a thin client network for my internet cafe. although i have decided on the thin client pcs, it's the server config that's confusing me the most. i am planning to use around 10 thin clients initially with a plan to add further 10 in the future. the server that i need is suppose to handle all these present & future thin clients i.e. upto 20 thin clients for surfing the net, watching movies online, music & playing general flash based games. i have been going through multiple opteron & xeon configs lately & have finally settled for a specific configuration. an LGA 1155 xeon e3 1220 3.1 ghz + intel dh77eb 1156 mobo + corsair xms ddr3 1333 32gb kit + WD Caviar 2tb 7200 hdd. now i need to know whether this config will suffice all the thin client needs for my cafe? will thin clients perform reasonably good or will they lag on performance even with this config? kindly help me out. thank u.

 

[hang-the-9]

Whatever thin client hardware you get will have the specs on what's needed to run them. 32gig for 10 is a good amount though, may be a bit slow with 20.

 

[maxxim_cod2]

the thin client page says that i will only need a single xeon 2.6ghz processor & at most 6gb of ram to run 20 thin clients decently over this kind'f setup.. but i wish to understand certain other aspects of a server architecture too. is it necessary to use a xeon based server? i own a core i7 920 2.66ghz cpu which can be turbo boosted upto 2.95 ghz or so. i was also planning to pair it with a supermicro lga 1366 server mobo. will this work the same way as an quad core xeon setup such as xeon x5550 quad core? i'll be using maybe say 16 gb registered ecc ram on it too. the thin client site recommends a much lesser configuration for the server but i want to be on the safer side. so is it wise to expect a decent performance from a core i7 on a server mobo? my other query is that since i'll be using 10 thin clients initially, will a dual lan connecting 5 thin clients at each port serve any good use? i read somewhere on the net that a thin client network tends to be slow since they boast of only 10/100 mbps ethernet capability & obviously doesn't support gige networks. so i thought that maybe using two ethernet cards or a mobo with dual lan cud enhance network speed? kindly provide yr valuable opinions, thank u.

 

[hang-the-9]

Depending on the model of thin clients you get, they can have a 1 gig network card. Dual network cards on the server won't help you much unless you have them split up to 2 VLans and split up the clients between them. You don't need to use a xeon, an i7 should be fine.

 

[maxxim_cod2]

Best answer selected by maxxim_cod2.

 

[maxxim_cod2]

Depending on the model of thin clients you get, they can have a 1 gig network card. Dual network cards on the server won't help you much unless you have them split up to 2 VLans and split up the clients between them. You don't need to use a xeon, an i7 should be fine.

my sincere thanx for yr to-the-point reply. i was mistaken to think that all the thin clients are incapable of gige network but obviously a set of capable ones wud increase my setup cost furthermore. on the other hand, i was myself planning for two separate independent networks connecting a group of 5 pcs each to the server. but wud u recommend a server mobo with ecc registered ram e.g. supermicro lga 1366 server mobo with dual lan or a general lga 1366 mobo e.g. asus sabertooth mobo with a discreet ethernet card coupled with an onboard network adapter? kindly explain yr take. also is it possible to couple a network card with onboard adapter or wud i need altogether 2 separate discreet cards? again thanx for yr prompt & informative replies.

 

[hang-the-9]

my sincere thanx for yr to-the-point reply. i was mistaken to think that all the thin clients are incapable of gige network but obviously a set of capable ones wud increase my setup cost furthermore. on the other hand, i was myself planning for two separate independent networks connecting a group of 5 pcs each to the server. but wud u recommend a server mobo with ecc registered ram e.g. supermicro lga 1366 server mobo with dual lan or a general lga 1366 mobo e.g. asus sabertooth mobo with a discreet ethernet card coupled with an onboard network adapter? kindly explain yr take. also is it possible to couple a network card with onboard adapter or wud i need altogether 2 separate discreet cards? again thanx for yr prompt & informative replies.

If this is not for a business that needs high uptime, you can pretty much use a good desktop computer as your server. Many of them actually have two onboard LAN cards on the motherboard. Don't need ECC or anything fancy. Just have enough RAM. You may want to get a SSD drive, it will help a lot with speed.

 

[maxxim_cod2]

finally i got what i was missing on.. thanx to "hang-the-9", "Philfrisbie" & this eBook.. than k u guys. http://books.google.co.in/books?id=bxZaFwU1c-oC&pg=PA11&lpg=PA11&dq=what+server+is+required+to+run+thin+client&source=bl&ots=TCCuMl4iWe&sig=9n7spWw18KNeSsUgnUAF_2UbeDI&hl=en&sa=X&ei=hDVrUOeKFMXRrQf_yoDIBw&ved=0CFQQ6AEwBQ