6. Software -Networking

Linux being a product of the net revolution is a natural choice for a web server, mail server, a file and print server; if it is a part of your intranet environement, among various other roles it can perform superbly well. In this part we take a look at various avatars it can assume and serve your organisation for a long time to come. All distributions of linux whether be it RedHat or SuSe do provide in binary format tools/software for your linux to act as a Web server or a Mail server to mention a few, but the amount of advancements which happen in linux world are beyond the grasp of these companies for it to catch up. The situation is if something can be achieved, it will be done in shortest possible time hence we have used always source tarballs downloaded from the respective websites of the software(s) used as example in this book. This affords us the capability to configure, choose and optimise according to our needs. This part attempts to highlight the capablities of linux to act as a full fledged Web server, Mail server, a file and print server, as a B2B e-commerce point where the need of the hour is secure environement, etc. Enjoy!