Introduction to Client/Server Network Setup

Introduction of Networks

Overview

A computer network consists of two or more computers intended to share resources:

A client/server network is a system where one or more computers called clients

connect to a central computer named a server to share or use resources. Each client
computer must use an operating system that allows it to be identified to participate in
the network.

Client/Server Networking
A computer network is referred to as client/server if (at least) one of the computers is
used to "serve" other computers referred to as "clients". Besides the computers, other
types of devices can be part of the network:

In a client/server environment, each computer still holds (or can still hold) its (or
some) resources and files. Other computers can also access the resources stored in a
computer, as in a peer-to-peer scenario. One of the particularities of a client/server
network is that the files and resources are centralized. This means that a computer, the
server, can hold them and other computers can access them. Since the server is always
ON, the client machines can access the files and resources without caring whether a
certain computer is ON.

One of the consequences of a client/server network is that, if the server is turned OFF,
its resources and sometimes most of the resources on the network are not available. In
fact, one way to set up a client/server network is to have more than one server. In this
case, each server can play a different role.

Another big advantage of a client/server network is that security is created, managed,

and can highly get enforced. To access the network, a person, called a user must
provide some credentials, such as a username and a password. If the credentials are
not valid, the user is prevented from accessing the network.
The client/server type of network also provides many other advantages such as
centralized backup, Intranet capability, Internet monitoring, etc. In a small network,
all these services can be handled by one server:

In a medium to large network, there can be many servers with each performing a
different task:
In these series of lessons, we will build a Microsoft Windows network (I love Linux
and Apple but at the time of this writing, I want to make lessons simple by dealing
with only a simple network; normally, you can connect a Linux workstation, such as
Novell SUSE Linux, to a Microsoft Windows network; this is extremely easy to do;
based on my experience, there is nothing significant to do; once the network is setup
and you connect the Linux workstation to the network, the Linux computer will find
everything on the network; the Linux OS is so intelligent it would take care of
everything).

Client Operating Systems

Introduction

If you purchase new computers in a store or from a web store, the computers will
most likely have an operating system. At the time of this writing, most computers sold
in stores have Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium. Some other computers, such as
netbooks, run Microsoft Windows 7 Starter.
For our network, we will use Microsoft Windows 7 Professional, Ultimate, or
Enterprise. Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium cannot join a domain-based
network (but it can participate in a peer-to-peer network). If the computer(s) you are
planning to use for your network doesn't (don't) have the Microsoft Windows 7
Professional, Microsoft Windows 7 Ultimate, or Microsoft Windows 7 Enterprise
operating system, you must upgrade it. Among the ways you can acquire the upgrade,
you can purchase it from a computer store or a web store. Another option is to get an
MSDN subscription.

If you have built your own computer(s) or you acquired (a) "barebone" computer(s),
once it's ready with the necessary hardware parts, you must acquire and install the
operating system.

New Client Operating System Installation

A new installation of operating system (OS) is suitable if:

 You have a computer with no operating system at all

 You have a computer with an operating system but you want to overwrite it
 You have a computer with an operating system but it doesn't support an
upgrade to the OS you want to use

To perform a new installation:

a. Turn the computer on. If you are using a computer without an operating
system, if you receive a message stating "Missing Operating System", or
"Strike F1 to retry boot, F2 for setup utility", don't worry about it at this time
b. On the (DVD) drive, push the buton to open the drive
c. Put the DVD that has the operating system in the drive
d. Restart the computer
e. A few seconds after the computer has started, a message may (should) ask you
to press any key to boot from CD or DVD (to install the operating system) (the
message may display "Press any key to boot from CD or DVD" or something
like that). Press any key to continue. Otherwise:
o If a message of pressing any key to install the operating system doesn't
come up, you should restart the computer. Then, as soon as the black
screen of the computer restarting appears, press a key such as F2 or F8
(this depends on your computer or the manufacturer) to access the BIOS.
Access the Boot Sequence and check the list. If the (DVD) drive is not
on top and if the instructions allow it, move the (DVD) drive to the top
of the sequence. If you cannot move the (DVD) drive to the top, then
 disable the drives, such as the hard drive, that come above it. In some
cases, you can select the drive and press the Space bar to remove the
check mark from the selected item. In this case, make sure that only the
(DVD) drive has a check mark next to it. After making changes in the
BIOS to make the computer boot from the (DVD) drive, save and exit
the BIOS. Then restart the computer and follow the instructions on the
screen to install the operating system
o If a message of installation still doesn't come up, make sure the (DVD)
drive is installed appropriately (if you have access to the Internet, you
can also check the following site: http://www.bootdisk.com/ for a boot
disks and options)
o If the computer still doesn't boot from the DVD and if you have access
to the Internet, check the Support site from
Microsoft: http://support.microsoft.com
f. The installation will stall copying files.
The next screen will ask you to select the language. Select one:

The next screen presents the language you selected

a.
The next screen presents the language you selected:

Click Next

The next screen indicates that the installation is ready:

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