Networking – Michael Talks Tech

This post has been a long time coming and it is Part 2 of my Home Server Project, In Part 1 I discuss the HP ProLiant DL360 G5. Although initially I was utilizing that server it soon became apparent after a week that it was not an ideal solutions.
One of the biggest problems was that the DL360 G5 was incredibly loud and due to it being situated underneath a TV unit this made watching the media stored on it awkward and unpleasant.
This lead to a hunt for a new server that would offer a huge amount more power and hopefully would run more silently. After digging around the depth of eBay I came across the HP ProLiant DL380 G7.Although the DL360 had been my first server purchase ever, I felt that the build quality was good and I was slightly more familiar with it.

dl380g7hires__26718-1479211480-1280-1280 — HP ProLiant DL380 G7

Specifications DL380 G7 Specifications DL360 G5
CPU: 2x Xeon L5640 (12 Core’s Per CPU) CPU: 2x Xeon 5150 (2 Core’s Per CPU)
RAM: 32 GB DDR3 ECC RAM: 20GB DDR2 ECC
HDD’s: 8 x 146GB 15K SAS HDD’s:6 x 146GB SAS (Assorted Speeds)

I have opted to use UnRaid again as I found the ability to use dockers helpful and easy to manage, combine this with the abilities to run virtual machine it offers all aspects of what I require.
The Set up for UnRaid is simple and thankful the DL380 offers an internal USB port so there is no USB stick poking out of the front or rear.

Due to the acquisition of this other server my home network requires some potential upgrades as well, this included a 48 port managed switch. Although this was purchased in complete knowledge of it being over kill, it does allow for a huge amount of expansion in future.

NETGEAR FSM750S 48-PORT 10/100 L2 + 2 GB PORTS MANAGED STACKABLE SWITCH

Unfortunately due the builtin fan the sound levels produced by the switch did not work for the current setup and as a result a small managed 8 port switch was also purchased. Although the smaller switch is not rack mountable, in the currant setup this is not an issues as there is still no rack.

NETGEAR GS108Ev3 8-Port Gigabit Smart Managed Plus Switch

The acquisition of a server rack will be over the next few months as currently space is a concern. That being said I have seen a number of IKEA coffee tables that have been converted into make shift server racks.

Over the next few weeks there will hopefully be more detailed post regarding setting up the home lab as well as a detailed list of use cases.

The process of installing Ubuntu server be it on a Virtual Machine or an actual system can seem daunting at first, but aside from the GUI that Ubuntu Desktop boast the process is the same.

A prerequisite to the installation will be your boot media, I tend to use a USB stick for this as the process of creating the device is much easier and does not require any blank disks. There are a number of applications online that allow for you to create a bootable device but I have found Rufus to be the simplest and easiest to use.

Once you have the bootable device all you need to do is insert it into the system and power it on.

Stage 2 – Select Language to display the installation in

Stage 2 – Choose the type of installation, for the purpose of this tutorial and all my personal usage we will select “Install Ubuntu Server”

Stage 3 – Select installation language

Stage 3 – Select Location

Stage 4 – Configure the keyboard, for the purpose of this demo it will be done manually. But there is the option for automatic keyboard detection

Stage 5 – Select the keyboard configuration that best suit you

Stage 6 – The installation detects disks and other hardware

Stage 7 – The installer will acquire additional components such as the setup of the clock

Stage 8 – The Installer then goes on to detect the network hardware

Stage 8 – Select the host name for the system or just the name of the system. An example might be mail if your device is intended to be a mail server.

Stage 9 – Type in the users full name (The Username will be automatically detected using the users first name but can be changed)

Stage 10 – Select user password and retype for confirmation

Stage 11 – Select if you want your home directory to be encrypted (I usually select no as I have limited requirement for it)

Stage 12 – Confirm the automatic detection of the clock settings (If it is incorrect by selecting no you will be given the option to select yours)

Stage 13 – The installer then detects all other disks and Hardware

Stage 14 – Selecting the disk size and creating partitions (For this installation we only need this to be installed as a sole OS as the rest of the machines will be running virtually from this host server) You can select use entire desk or set up LVM. The only real benefit of LVM is on the fly partition changes.

Stage 15 – Select this disk to write changes to

Stage 16 – Confirm that you wish to write the changes, it may warn you that you will lose all existing data

Stage 17 – Final confirmation to write changes to disk

Stage 19 – The installer will then install the system to the disk/partition you have your opted for

Stage 20 – Installer is configuring the Apt source lists

Stage 21 – At this stage of the installation you are given the option to set up a Proxy connection, if you do not require this leave it blank and continue

Stage 22 – The installer is selecting and installing the required software

Stage 23 – At this stage I would suggest selecting “Install security update automatically” but decided based on your own preferences

Stage 24 – The software selection alow for you to pre install certain packages before the initial boot into the server. This could potently save time, but I personal add all my software after the installation so select manual package.

Stage 25 – The installer will then install any selected softwares and clean up once it is done.

Stage 26 – The installer then sets up and installs the GRUB boot loader

Stage 27 – If this is the only OS on the system then you need not worry about just selecting yes.

Stage 28 – Confirm and finish the installation

After you have finished the installation the system will reboot and you should remove the bootable media from the system before it boots back up.

A good method on first logging into the new system is to run the commands below as there is a high change the system will inform you that there are a number of packages that require updating. You can run them all at once with example 1 or individual wit example 2.

Example 1

sudo apt-get updates; sudo apt-get upgrade; sudo apt-get dist-update

Example 2

sudo apt-get updates
sudo apt-get upgrade
sudo apt-get dist-update

I hope this helps when installing Ubuntu server, and if you enjoyed check out my Home Server Project

Tag: Networking

Home Server Project: Part 2

Ubuntu Server Installation