CentOS - Apr 2009 - looking for alternative to SME & Clark Connect

Hi all,

I'm looking for a (preferably free) alternative to SME / Clark Connect.

I basically need the following:
- firewall
- nat
- VPN
- bandwidth limiting / monitoring
- email (SMTP / POP3 / IMAP) & groupware
- file & printer sharing
- RAID support
- if possible fail-over / high availability support.

I need to support about 15 - 30 (some part time) students, so I would
like to keep the costs low. If it's free, so much better. SME works
for most of the stuff, but it still runs on CentOS 4, and I'd prefer
to use 5.

Any recommendations?

-- 

Kind Regards
Rudi Ahlers

On Wed, Apr 15, 2009 at 9:37 AM, Rudi Ahlers <rudiahlers at gmail.com>
wrote:
> Hi all,
>
> I'm looking for a (preferably free) alternative to SME / Clark Connect.
>
> I basically need the following:
> - firewall
> - nat
> - VPN
> - bandwidth limiting / monitoring
> - email (SMTP / POP3 / IMAP) & groupware
> - file & printer sharing
> - RAID support
> - if possible fail-over / high availability support.
>
> I need to support about 15 - 30 (some part time) students, so I would
> like to keep the costs low. If it's free, so much better. SME works
> for most of the stuff, but it still runs on CentOS 4, and I'd prefer
> to use 5.
>
> Any recommendations?
>
> --
>
> Kind Regards
> Rudi Ahlers
> _______________________________________________
> CentOS mailing list
> CentOS at centos.org
> http://lists.centos.org/mailman/listinfo/centos
>
Pfsense(FreeBSD based) can be an alternative, although it doesn't support
email/groupware out of the box...but it doesn't mean that it can't be
done.
http://www.pfsense.org

I've been running it on a Dell Optiplex PIII for almost 2 years without any
issue using NAT, Port Fowarding, Dual WAN(Cable and ADSL), Captive portal,
DNS Server, Snort, etc.

hope it helps.

-- 
"It is human nature to think wisely and act in an absurd fashion."

"Todo el desorden del mundo proviene de las profesiones mal o mediocremente
servidas"
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Rudi Ahlers schrieb:
> Hi all,
>
> I'm looking for a (preferably free) alternative to SME / Clark Connect.
>
> I basically need the following:
> - firewall
> - nat
> - VPN
> - bandwidth limiting / monitoring
>   

I'd split these functions to a separate device, using pfSense on
embedded hardware (ALIX or comparable).
They have no point on a server. pfSense does this on 200 $-size hardware
with 5 Watt energy consumption.
> - email (SMTP / POP3 / IMAP) & groupware
> - file & printer sharing
> - RAID support
>   
I don't think there's a free version for everything ;-)
Zimbra is OK, but the commercial edition costs - same with OX and most
other stuff.
Given the complexity of the stuff involved, I'd say anything like this
needs a commercial backer.
Unless you only use mail.

> - if possible fail-over / high availability support.
>
>   

For free?
;-)

> I need to support about 15 - 30 (some part time) students, so I would
> like to keep the costs low. If it's free, so much better. SME works
> for most of the stuff, but it still runs on CentOS 4, and I'd prefer
> to use 5.
>   

I have a sense of deja-vu. Didn't we have all these questions and specs
a couple of weeks ago?




Rainer

Rudi Ahlers wrote:
> Hi all,
> 
> I'm looking for a (preferably free) alternative to SME / Clark Connect.
> 
> I basically need the following:
> - firewall
> - nat
> - VPN
> - bandwidth limiting / monitoring
> - email (SMTP / POP3 / IMAP) & groupware
> - file & printer sharing
> - RAID support
> - if possible fail-over / high availability support.
> 
> I need to support about 15 - 30 (some part time) students, so I would
> like to keep the costs low. If it's free, so much better. SME works
> for most of the stuff, but it still runs on CentOS 4, and I'd prefer
> to use 5.
What's the problem with clarkconnect? It's not particularly difficult to
  set these functions up yourself starting with a stock Centos if you 
intend to maintain them yourself (SME's main attraction is that the 
configuration interface is easy enough for anyone to use).  With other 
appliance-type distributions you might find it easier to split the 
firewall and application services onto different boxes.

ipcop and ebox look somewhat promising.

-- 
  Les Mikesell
    lesmikesell at gmail.com

On Wed, Apr 15, 2009 at 9:37 PM, Rudi Ahlers <rudiahlers at gmail.com>
wrote:
> Hi all,
>
> I'm looking for a (preferably free) alternative to SME / Clark Connect.
>
> I basically need the following:
> - firewall
> - nat
> - VPN
> - bandwidth limiting / monitoring
> - email (SMTP / POP3 / IMAP) & groupware
> - file & printer sharing
> - RAID support
> - if possible fail-over / high availability support.
>
> I need to support about 15 - 30 (some part time) students, so I would
> like to keep the costs low. If it's free, so much better. SME works
> for most of the stuff, but it still runs on CentOS 4, and I'd prefer
> to use 5.
clarkconnect 5 is on beta 2
http://distrowatch.com/5407

just wait a little while :)




-- 
Muhammad Panji
http://sumodirjo.wordpress.com