[Samba] Help: justification for Linux PDC vs Windows...

[Greg J. Zartman, P.E.]

> Yep - which is why I think your bosses are correct.  Deploying a *new*
> NT4 domain in 2008 is just nuts.  When most clients are XP or Vista and
> many applications have integration with AD.  

You've been brainwashed by M$.  It is not nuts to deploy a new Samba 
server in 2008.  Samba 3.x configured with an LDAP auth backend and 
Winbind offers at least 80% of the functionality that the typical 
windows network admin and user needs.

As a file server, Samba walks all over Windows in terms of performance 
and cost.

Neither Windows XP nor Vista require AD and I've yet to see a mainstream 
application that REQUIRES it either.

If your network configuration demands that deploy AD, then let windows 
handle that function and plug Samba in where it excels.

I've been following this list since before Samba could do NT4 DC 
functionality.  One thing that is a constraint is users trying to 
implement extremely complex network configurations when they likely 
don't need them.  Much of this is rooted in the fact that M$ tends to 
throw loads of functionality options at its users and make these 
functionalities seem easy to implement by front ending them with some 
type of wizard.  Users attempt to blindly deploy things without asking 
themselves "Do I really need this."

Fact is, most of us don't have farms of domain controllers and hundreds 
and hundreds of users.  Most of us manage small to medium sized networks 
that can benefit hugely by the cost savings of deploying Samba instead 
of Windows.  I'm not talking about just costs of software licenses; but 
cost of hardware, sys admin staff, and down time.

Greg