I have a box with fairly modest hardware (Asus P5KPL-CM/Dual Core E2180/1GB RAM) that I’d like to use as a network file server for a couple PCs and Macs. I’d also like to run Apache, PHP, MySQL, etc. to use as a testing server for Web pages we build for our clients (i.e., we have Dreamweaver’s testing server tab set to the local machine, not the remote Web host). It doesn’t have to do anything else (that’s the beauty of it), and it will largely run headlessly.
[ol]
[li]Will Windows 7 be able to manage a RAID 1 array?[/li]
[li]Will I be able to costlessly (and easily) install Apache, PHP, MySQL, PHPMyAdmin, etc.? [/li]
[li]There is a router with a NAT between it and the Internet. Other than regularly patching/updating it, is there an increased security risk of storing files on it? It’s connected to the Internet, but won’t surf. (Charlie notwithstanding.) [/li]
[li]Post installation and data transfer, will other Windows and Mac machines be able to map/read/write to it without jumping through any hoops? [/li]
[li]Since I’m not running other software, will the meager hardware be up to the task of serving files and web pages? Would more RAM make a difference under these circumstances (or would that be overkill)?[/li]
[li]Am I overlooking anything?[/li][/ol]
Thanks,
Rhythm