E-smith server and gateway is a customized Linux distribution based on Red Hat Linux. It can provide file, print, mail, Web, proxy and DNS services and also function as a firewall.

An e-smith server can support from one to 500 users; the hardware needed differs.

Installation
The boxed set contains a boot disk, a bootable CD and a manual. The installation runs through pretty fast (30 minutes on a Pentium 100, 16 on a PIII-800), and the manual provides information about ADSL, cable and dial-up connections.
One can choose between installing on a single hard disk (or use hardware mirroring) or dual hard disks using software mirroring . Disk partitioning and installation do not require any intervention. The package takes up around 290MB.
The software is open source and can be downloaded from the e-smith Web site. The same goes for the manual. The costs mentioned are for set-up and support by the reseller concerned.

Configuration
The machine has to be rebooted after installation and the server can then be configured. Users will need to forearm themselves with certain information like a system password, the type of network card(s) (most common cards are detected), internal network details, operation (server only or server and gateway) details about the type of internet connection (dial-up, ADSL or cable) and some miscellaneous information.

There are no cryptic screens to enter configuration information, just simple questions. The manual covers it in detail. It is difficult for even a novice to go wrong.

Basic administration can be done using a text console; a Web-based interface is available for attending to functions which the console does not provide. The manual provides detailed instructions on setting up clients to connect to the server. Windows clients can see the e-smith server using the Network Neighborhood icon.

Services
e-smith uses a feature of the Linux kernel, known as IP masquerading, to provide Internet access to all computers on a LAN. People with permanent net connections who host their own domain (as I do) would have their own email accounts set up on the server. If it is a dial-up connection with a single POP mailbox and email address, the account can be shared, providing the ISP agrees. Web mail can also be set up for users.

I used an e-smith box on my LAN for two weeks, in place of my Debian box. The only difficulty encountered was in getting the dial-up connection working - but that was because of my ISP, not e-smith. I have a static IP on a 24/7 dial-up and Telstras Remote Access Services apparently do not provide my reserved static IP address using the PPP Internet Protocol Control Protocol as they should. The relevant RFC (http://www.faqs.org/rfcs/rfc1332.html) makes this clear.

I had to manually edit the dial-up configuration file and thereafter it was a smooth ride. However, two weeks uptime is nothing in the Linux world where uptime is measured in months and years. My Web, mail and file services ran smoothly and I had no complaint from any of the users, including my daughter (and that says it all!). I had the usual number of script kiddies scanning my server but none was able to get in.

Given that my LAN has just five PCs connected, I looked for other real-life examples and found plenty: an 80-user ad agency which runs two e-smith boxes - a mail server that typically handles 5-20MB attachments and a proxy that handles 500,000 hits and 1.3GB traffic per week, numerous homes and small and medium-sized businesses and one school that meets the needs of around 600 users who all use the Web-mail feature.

e-smith has other features like information bays for creating distinct information-sharing sites.

One con - e-smith has no dial-in module (though a contributed module does exist) so no ISP can use it out of the box.

I was impressed by the way people reacted to posts on the e-smith mailing lists; everybody, from the users down to the chief developer, was willing to help.

If I was not happy with my Debian set-up, I would definitely give this one a go.

Sam Varghese