[Help] Choosing and setting up a business server

[silentkills]

hello i am quite new to this server thing. I have previously setup a windows home server for myself, however that was pretty easy. My uncle has asked me to help him setup a server for his business. He wants a server that can host his company's website (a domain has been bought), has file sharing like windows home server (the remote access feature) and a mail server.

i went and downloaded a trial version of windows server 2008 enterprise to practice on before actually accepting, and i was completely lost in setting it up.

Which version of windows server would be the best choice? and could someone point me to guides or guide me on how to set up the server.

Thanks

 

[RSchwarz]

For what your uncle needs standard edition would be best. You install it just like you would any other OS. After it's installed you add features and set it up the way you want.

 

[Phillips]

If you wanting to host domains I would recommend against hosting your server at your office. First off the bandwidth that will provided to you to host a site probably wont be enough for your site even a smaller one. Second most ISP block port 80 and 25 so you will have to configure an external ip to forward to the server. I would recommend a VPS server. Server Intellect has a web version that is managed with DNS/CP/Email and security ready to go. All you would need to is transfer your domain to the server. Then you could create a vpn to the server and your office could grab files and do what is needed. You would still have admin access and could do as you pleased to the server. If you take the price of 2008 Standard OS plus your bandwidth cost for one year you will pretty much have paid for a VPS for 2-3 years.