bangs@husc8.HARVARD.EDU (Alex Bangs) (07/21/87)
--- Hi! I need some advice as to purchasing a hard disk plus network file system type setup for some Macs. At present, we have two Mac Plus machines, and may buy some more; possible SE's. I have some ideas about what to do, so I'd like some feedback those ideas. Our one big limitation is money. The IRC is a non-profit student corportation. We cannot afford to dedicate a mac to being a file server only, so I guess Apple's system is out. (1) Can the Mac II be used as a fileserver with any great benefits? One idea I had was to connect a Mac II to ethernet to a larger machine which could act as a file server. (2) On the topic of larger machines, is there any way I could turn an older PDP system running Unix into a server for an Appletalk network? This could be an interesting solution, since we coudl run both Unix and Mac applications. Also, it is possible to buy relatively cheap PDP's. Is it possible to use a PC (dare I mention it in this newsgroup) as a server? It might be handy to have one around, since I might need a PC for accounting software anyway. (3) Any suggestions for servers like TOPS? It will be used on a smallish network -- four to six computers, probably with one large hard driver. Does anyone have any suggestions for large hard drives as well? I hope someone can help out. I will be going to MacWorld Expo and taking a look at what is available there, but I want to know what I am doing. Being a Unix lover myself, I would love to find a way to connect a PDP/dinosaur to the Mac. What a contrast! Support would be a problem in the future with such a system though. So, please e-mail suggestions. Do not post followups; I can summarize, and I do not often read this group since there is too much stuff to go over it all. Do not be afraid of throwing technical stuff at me; I might be into international relations, but I am still a CS/Engineering major. Thanks for the help in advance. Alex Bangs bangs@metatron.harvard.edu ...or... bangs@husc8.UUCP Pierce G-12b Harvard University Cambridge, MA 02138 (617) 495-7871