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Choosing a distro

Planning a new server

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dstiles

2:09 pm on Dec 2, 2020 (gmt 0)

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My current mail/web server OS is Linux Mint 18.1 Serena with Mate, based on Ubuntu 16.04.6 LTS Xenial Xerus. It comes to the end of the OS's life in April. Uncharacteristically, I've already begun planning the update. :)

Until now I have rented a dedicated Windows server for web sites, on top of which I have a Hyper-V linux OS with the spec above, originally for mail. I have spent much of the past two years transferring web sites from Windows to linux Apache/PHP with the ultimate goal of dumping windows. Reading threads in this forum I have concluded I will probably go for a VPS for mail and web, possibly two, one for each. Windows, I will probably be stuck with for the next 6-8 months: converting to PHP from ASP is not quick and I have a tendency to tinker.

The question is now: what OS? I used to like Mint but from recent experieince v20 is a cow. Which suggests going to Ubuntu 20 with XFCE. I toyed with Manjaro as a server (I use it as a desktop) but failed to get postfix running satisfactorily.

I dislike the idea that some software on Mint and Ubuntu may have to be snap or flatpack. I see no reason to degrade performance and resources. Whether I would need either on a server (postfix, spamassassin, mySQL (or probably MariaDB), Apache and PHP) I do not currently know. Any hints appreciated.

A third OS has suggested itself this week: Debian. I know little about it and have zero experience of it. Again, for preference, XFCE gui. Would there be a significant learning curve from Ubuntu/Mint to Debian? Is there a better alternative with a low learning curve?

dstiles

11:22 am on Feb 28, 2021 (gmt 0)

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As I said previously, not ubuntu because some apps insist on snap or flatpack and that trend seems to be expanding. And I've discovered debian updates automatically without reboot - a definite bonus for a remote server!

I intend installing XFCE so the console option probably isn't going to be relevant, but thank you anway.

I have SSH in use for my current server and can transfer files with no problem between the server's home directories and my desktop. I can also edit files in the remote Home directories but am having trouble setting it up to edit the web files etc, which require root - or at least http. I'd like to get this working to reduce the need for running an on-server editor, where I am rebuilding old ASP sites as PHP. Any help there would be appreciated.

graeme_p

4:53 pm on Mar 1, 2021 (gmt 0)

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Debian will update automatically if its configured. You can do this with Debian derived distros like Ubuntu (@destiles I share your distaste for snap and flatpak with regard to ubuntu). Auto updates are not default, are they?

I can also edit files in the remote Home directories but am having trouble setting it up to edit the web files etc, which require root

Two solutions:

1. Enable remote root logins. If you do this I suggest you make it certificate logins only, not password. The sshd config file has an option for this specifically for root. This works for everything including Apache config files.
2. Put your PHP files in a user directory, owned by the user. I would suggest one user per site for most people, Also run PHP runs www-data or another user that can read the PHP files but nor write them (you will need to allow it to write to any directories you need to allow uploads to).

dstiles

10:11 am on Mar 2, 2021 (gmt 0)

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On the local VPS I had to install and configure an updater, yes. Not sure other distros can do this without a reboot, though.

I thought of option 2 but discarded it as "unsafe". :) Option 1 - yes. I'll look more closely at the config. Thanks for the help. :)

jmccormac

1:03 am on Mar 8, 2021 (gmt 0)

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Going to give Ubuntu server 20.04 LTS a try. Wasn't exactly pleased with Redhat's Microsoft-like cluelessness over CentOS. It is just going to be a box for crunching stats and some dev work.

Regards...jmcc

This 34 message thread spans 2 pages: 34

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