Linux Terminal Server Project

1
Linux Terminal Server Project

• How to re-use outdated equipment and give it new
  life
• Mark Elliott
• Sharbot Lake High School / CFSO

2
Why we did it

• Asked by Industry Canada and CFS National to
  assist the 150 schools to which were providing
  labs of computers in Kenya and schools in other
  developing countries software was a problem
• Great project for my ICE 3M/4M classes
• Networking DHCP, switch/hub topologies, IP
  addressing
• Alternate Operating Systems
• Because we could

3
Possibilities for Thin Client

• Microsoft NT4, 2000 and 2003 server with
  terminal services. (needs a powerful server 256
  Mb per client recommended)
• Citrix same as Microsoft (needs MS server) with
  a very efficient overlay still needs a fair bit
  of hardware for your server
• Linux runs on a very small server (Pentium 3)
  and needs lt50 Mb per client

4
What we did

• Developed an MS 2000 server with terminal
  services (CALs and TS very expensive)
• Citrix server was more expensive since we needed
  the MS server also
• Developed LTSP with Mandrake 9.1 but it wasnt
  stable enough for shipping abroad
• Developed LTSP with RedHat 8.0. This was very
  good but now costs 179 per server (too much)
• Assisted in the development of K12LTSP using
  Fedora core (a hybrid of RedHat and free). This
  package now installs well and has many
  educational programs included, along with a
  complete Office Suite (all free)

5
How to set up K12LTSP-Hardware-

• Prepare a Pentium 3 server with a larger (10
  Gig) Hard Drive and as much RAM as you can
  install
• Install 2 network cards (different if possible to
  determine which services the clients and which
  provides the Internet connection)
• Set your server BIOS to boot from CD
• Take out the hard drive from the client (not
  needed) and make sure it boots from the floppy
  drive
• Install a network card into the client
• Prepare a network switch/hub (switch preferred)
  and Ethernet cabling

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How to set up K12LTSP-Software-

• Download the 1st 3 disks images (iso) from
  www.k12ltsp.org
• Burn the iso images on a CD (I use Nero 6.0 or
  Alcohol 120)
• Boot from the 1st CD
• Answer all default settings as OK except the IP
  range for the DHCP server as 192.168.5.254
  instead of 192.168.0.254 so that you can use
  default IP addressing for your routers/switches
  that will carry your Internet connection
• Youll be asked to set up a root account (super
  user) during setup and one client account after
  rebooting after setup
• You can set up students user spaces in System
  Settings after you reboot and log in as root
  (remember your root username and password)
• Make sure your client has a network interface
  card (3Com905, Intel 100 Pro, Real Tec, etc. --
  28 possibilities from my boot disk) This NIC is
  what the client will boot from and attach to the
  server, unless your NIC has an onboard EPROM.

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Using K12LTSP

• Boot your server after connecting all Ethernet
  cabling to switches, server and Internet
  connection. You dont have to log on, just leave
  the server at the logon screen since all services
  will be running (DHCP, file server, print server,
  Internet, etc. )
• Boot your client from the floppy after connecting
  the RJ45 cable to the NIC client boots from the
  floppy for only 3-5 seconds the rest is from
  the server
• Log on using the given username and password
• Each user has their own directory on the server
  to store files and settings
• TRY IT OUT (p.s. dont use Chromium or Tux
  Racer since these two programs need a very
  high-end video card on the client not possible
  today) Sound is also possible on the client
  using K12LTSP 4.1.0 if it is a standard card
• Log on is student01, student02, , student10 with
  the same password as logon id

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Whats next for our project?

• CLUSTERING the clients are going for a free
  ride and were going to put them to work. Well
  have the RAM and CPU of the client do some work
  for the server so that the server looks like it
  has unlimited power in an itty bitty space-
  takes some of the load off the server. We might
  even start creating server farms for large
  classes (2 or 3 servers sharing the load)
• JAVA working on the server and running my LEGO
  robots on the clients via infra-red through the
  USB port
• Getting our Pringle Can broadband wireless
  project running from a Linux Thin Client
  environment (7km range with antennas)

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Has it Worked?

• Labs of 20 clients in Kenya (numerous schools)
• Just shipped labs to 4 schools in Ghana
• 2 labs are on their way to Malawi this week
• Tanzania, Mauritius, Uganda, Cameroon and Nigeria
  are ready to setup schools with thin-client labs
  in their countries
• Interest from Guatemala, Dominican Republic (as
  of Nov 12, 2004) and Cuba
• Canadian Business is starting to see advantages
  in the technology (weve been approached already)
• Industry Canada and CFS-National are embracing
  the technology to help eliminate the Digital
  Divide

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Advantages

• Server free (P3) with free software
• Upgrades are to the server only
• Software is loaded on the server once and is
  pushed to the clients
• clients can be any PS2-style Pentium 1 machines
  (even 486s work) dont need high-end machines
• Software is free
• Students learn some pretty interesting Networking
  skills and get to talk on the phone to
  interesting people from other countries. They
  also learn about different cultures. (My class,
  last semester, learned a fair bit of Swahili from
  a technician from Kenya who worked in our shop
  for 10 weeks.)

11
Questions?

• If you have any problems, contact me at
  ctdc_at_frontenac.net
• or
• melliott_at_cfso.ca