quick mobo question

**jusatry** · 05-21-2004, 06:05 PM

hey everyone - i know this isnt an HTPC forum but i thought i would try anywyay:

whats the best motherboard to run a VERY simple http server - just to store files (word docs, PDFs, small apps) for remote access? I have a 10gig HDD lying around and some ram. I even have a PCI ethernet card but built in would be much easier. I dont really need to do anything on the system - jsut have it sit and accept a login from me to give access to files.

Any ideas on what OS would be best too? I dont know linux but i could probably figure it out if necessary. I was thinking windows server or something like that?

Ideas? Thanks!

**NoPistonPC** · 05-21-2004, 06:21 PM

jusatry, If all you're doing is serving up files then Linux is a good option to consider. The newer Linux kernels have an HTTP server built-in to the kernel. It will only serve files (scripts, etc. get passed up to user space).

As far as the motherboard, get an old Pentium II motherboard off ebay for $10.

**jusatry** · 05-21-2004, 06:52 PM

no piston
what kind of linux do i have to track down? will it be command line or will there be a UI like windows? im not really sure where to start, any ideas about somewhere to get a quick rundown of the diffferent options?

thanks for the advice!

**NoPistonPC** · 05-21-2004, 10:33 PM

if you've never installed linux before, a good place to start is the knoppix distribution (www.knoppix.com). it comes on one CD that you can boot off immediately. Basically, you can try it out without installing anything on your hard drive.

Although, if you don't feel like messing with linux, there are a bunch of tiny windows http servers out there for just serving files. And you won't need a fast mobo no matter what OS you use because the bottlenecks will be your hard disk and network card.