Linux in a thin Client Environment
When Paul Nelson, geek-in-chief of the Southwest Portland school district, talks about the savings that running all 110 Riverdale High new student terminals as bare-bones boxes, with nothing but monitors, $5 mice and keyboards and boxes with just a NIC (network) card and a video card running from servers (code-named Archie, Jughead, Betty and Veronica) that provide all the software--free word processing, spreadsheet, email and web-browsing programs, he speaks of having saved $50,000 in set up costs alone. And instead of shelling out for tech support when a problem crops up, Nelson emails educators around the world, with answers arriving minutes later from Norway, North Portland or elsewhere. Most important to Nelson, the centralized system allows him to teach, rather than wrestle malfunctioning machines. "I used to spend three-quarters of my time fixing computers, and one-quarter teaching," he says. "Now it's the opposite."
The kind of configuration that Nelson speaks of calls for a powerful server with two network cards, one to connect to the network/internet with (NIC#1 below) and another one (NIC#2) that connects to a Hub or Switch (isolating this subnet) that in turn is connected to each one of the thin clients via network cabling:
K12LTSP =============================...
Wide SERVER || || || || ||
====>Area =====>NIC#1 Switch || Thin Thin Thin Thin
Network NIC#2 =====>Device ===|| Client Client Client Client
#1 #2 #3 #4There are several protocols used by the diskless workstations to communicate internally with the K12LTSP server. Suffice it to say, that when there are no moving parts in your Thin Clients, there are negligible maintenance costs, the life of the "computer" is extended 3 to 5 fold, and with no licensing issues to contend with, upgrades are done to the server only on a sporadic basis. Linux's reliability is legendary. EPISD has had several Thin Client Linux labs running. The care and maintenance is so minimal, that one expert has been able to maintain a record 99.7% up time with the servers being used. For a demo/display in your campus, contact Alan Hodson.
As a side note it is important to know that any Mac running OSX and any PC that is booted from a Knoppix CD, can easily log into the K12LTSP system from within the school. In addition, the recent use of VLANS set up by our TIS network people, allow the configuration of small clusters of Thin Client machines anywhere in a given classroom of a campus that has acquired a K12LTSP server. In terms of TCO, it doesn't get any better!
One of the most attractive features of a Thin Client environment is that it also allows you to recycle old equipment - 286, 386 and 486 machines are being re-used all over the world - since all they need is a network card (PXE compliant) and a video card, old equipment is receiving a new lease in life thanks to Linux and Thin Client configurations. Email Mr. Conlon at Richardson for more information.