[Samba] Samba and Multiple NICs

[AndyLiebman at aol.com]

Hi, 

I'm a happy Samba user. I've been working sucessfully in Linux for the past 6 
months. I've built a Linux Server with very fast storage and I'm connecting 
it to many Windows XP "video editing workstations" via Gigabit Ethernet (all 
NICs using Jumbo Frames, by the way). 

Now I want to see if I can increase my data flow in and out of the Server so 
that more workstations to connect to it simultaneously. I'm pretty much maxing 
out on the amount of data that can flow through a single Gigabit Ethernet 
connection (from the Server to a single Gigabit Switch). So I'm wondering what's 
involved in adding a second NIC to my Server and dividing my workstations into 
two groups. 

Is this a difficult thing to configure? Would somebody be willing to tell me 
what are the crucial settings that need to be made (in smb.conf, for example, 
or in /etc/*.* stuff). Do I have to create subnets? 

I'm currently working on an internal network where all the workstations have 
192.168.1.XXX static addresses. These workstations occasionally connect to the 
Internet through a Cable/DSL router that's also on the network and that 
serves as the gateway. 

Is it possible to give my server two fixed IP addresses (one corresponding to 
each NIC) and then connect each NIC to its own switch, which would then be 
connected to half of the workstations? I tried this today and had no luck. 

And how can I make it possible for each workstations to have access to the 
Internet. Presumably, only one switch can be connected to the cable/dsl router 
-- or else data traffic could go through the cable/dsl router to get from a 
workstation to the Server. But I suppose that's the least of my worries. 

I'm not looking for somebody else to do my homework. I've spent about 6 hours 
today googling around trying to figure out what's required and I'm coming up 
more confused with each article or discussion thread I read. 

I would sure appreciate it if somebody out there was willing to lend a hand. 
I'm sure this is basic stuff to an IT guy, but I'm just working on this 
networking stuff at a "hobby level" -- doing pretty well, but now a bit stumped. 

By the way, does anybody know if this scenario is covered in the new Samba 
cookbook? I'd be happy to purchase it tomorrow if I thought it would give me the 
recipe to do what I'm trying to accomplish. 

Regards, 
Andy Liebman