> ...or if your > asterisk server is also a file server (which should never be > done)
I know I'm attracting flames for disagreeing, but sometimes when you're dealing with small business customers there simply isn't the budget to have separate machines for doing x, y and z, and often one finds the asterisk server is the only *nix box on-site. That makes it an ideal box to use for light file serving duties: 1) linux RAID1 support is pretty good, so you've got reasonable data integrity without having to fork out for separate RAID controllers 2) samba works fairly well as a domain controller 3) you aren't buying another windows licence Of course, in an ideal world you'd have a separate box as a file server, but even in that instance, the asterisk box makes a good choice for storing backups to (especially if they're scheduled late at night from workstations) when the phones are unlikely to be in use. It's a fascinating thread, this. Don't just rule out certain hardware or design choices because it isn't what's normally considered a "professional" or "correct" way of doing things. If you work with small businesses you'll often encounter scenarios where you have to work within a very tight budget. That means you'll often be making compromises that in an ideal world you wouldn't want to make - cheap switches, reusing old hardware as routers, etc.. To give you an example: ever run a network over old 2-pair telephone wire? I have, and in a fair number of cases it works. It's not something one would do in an ideal world, it's sure as hell nowhere near cat5-compliant, but if you're dealing with a listed building where trunking isn't permitted without an extensive planning process, and lifting floorboards/ceilings is out of the question, you may find yourself without an alternative. So, for all the criticism, I'll continue using cheap switches, recycled hardware and GXP-2000s in scenarios where the customer's budget simply can't stretch to anything else. Regards, Chris -- C.M. Bagnall, Director, Minotaur I.T. Limited This email is made from 100% recycled electrons _______________________________________________ --Bandwidth and Colocation provided by Easynews.com -- Asterisk-Users mailing list To UNSUBSCRIBE or update options visit: http://lists.digium.com/mailman/listinfo/asterisk-users
