[lug] advice on lab setup

[Simos]

> Hi everyone,
> 
> Was hoping for some advice on a computer lab I want to setup. Currently 
> I work with RHEL in an environment where each workstationhard mounts 
> /home, /usr/local/, and a data storage directory from my RHEL server.  
> That works great for those workstations but there is a lab setupI'm 
> trying to work with where I needto be able to run some "Windows only" 
> programs and I'm looking for a good solution without running a damn 
> windows server.
> 
> I've also worked with VMWare on individual workstations to run a virtual 
> windows setup.  What I'd like for this lab is a setup where there is a 
> Linux server, Linux workstations, and some sort of virtual setup to 
> allow each workstation to run the "windows only" software (which can be 
> processor intensive, i.e. chugging numbers).
> 
> I realize this will not be an easy task but what I need is a push in the 
> right direction. Where should I start looking? Should the virtualization 
> be on the server or client? Should the clients be thin clients or more 
> independant of the main server?
> 
> I'm less concerned about cost and more interested in theoverall layout 
> and having a plan in place so I can make informed decisionsabout what 
> hardware to buy down the road.
> 
> Any ideas would be appreciated.
> 
> cheers
> 
> Steve

Hi Steve,

I would vote for each Linux workstation to run its own virtualized Windows
image (through Linux-KVM, Virtualbox, VMware, whatever). You will obviously
need a Windows license for each image. You can also share server exports
to the Windows VMs through SMB. Make sure your Linux workstations have
lots of RAM.

I suppose you could also try to run the Windows software "natively" under
Wine, but that way madness lies probably...

Simos