Submitted by “In this short guide I will show how to set up a simple DHCP server on a Debian Sarge system whose sole purpose is to assign IP adresses, a gateway, DNS servers, etc. to client computers from the local network that don’t have a static IP address. You can use such a DHCP server in your home network, your office, etc., for example if your router doesn’t come with a built-in DHCP server.”
People should just start using m0n0wall. It’s unbelievable in its power and ease of use. I am running m0n0 on an original Pentium 133 with a CDROM and 128MB RAM. Been up for over a year with zero problems. Seriously folks, take a look at it.
http://m0n0.ch/wall/
Cheers.
It’s a custom Linux (2.4) with everything you need to configure a simple gateway + firewall, router for port mapping, and DHCP server. It can also be used as a DNS server, and you can also make a “static DHCP”, I mean a DHCP that always assign the same IP address to a network interface. For example, when I plug my laptop to the network, it always gets 192.168.1.80.
Have a look at http://www.ipcop.org/
There is a tutorial for using IPCOP on this site : have a look at http://www.howtoforge.com/perfect_linux_firewall_ipcop
Well, should I resurrect a big, old, loud computer and install and configure Debian or just get a dirt cheap, small, silent router with built in switch and NAT?
I will have to meditate on this.
“Well, should I resurrect a big, old, loud computer and install and configure Debian or just get a dirt cheap, small, silent router with built in switch and NAT?”
Depends on wether you want something made by professionals (debian) or amateurs (cheap SOHO “routers”).
Well, should I resurrect a big, old, loud computer and install and configure Debian or just get a dirt cheap, small, silent router with built in switch and NAT?
Try to put an antivirus, antispam and/or local mailserver on that router. Or anything else. Then meditate.
If you have the money, soekris (http://www.soekris.com/) makes some pretty nice computers, starting at $150. They’re the size of an 8-port hub, and have no moving parts (i.e. they’re silent). You can put linux or any bsd on them and have a fully configurable firewall that’s silent and low-power.
I’ll second that. I don’t know exactly what it costs to run a mid-Tower machine, but I imagine the Soekris box would pay for itself eventually. They are very small, very light (easy to move around), and use almost no electricity. An AMD or Intel CPU alone (not including any other parts) use something like 4x as much power as the entire Soekris board under maximum load.
I don’t know if the electrical cost is enough to justify the upfront cost of buying a Soekris board or not, but the size, and the totally silent operation, and the fact that they generate almost no heat makes them worth it to me.
If you want to know more about them, I’ve written tons of documenation (with several pictures) which can be found here: http://www.ultradesic.com/index.php?section=22
A linksys firewall works well enough and has NAT and DHCP built in. At least for home use and small business.
Someone mentioned IPCOP and Monowall, there are many others but Astaro comes to mind and the low end Cisco PIX too…..
way off topic though. sorry
“Cisco PIX”
If you think PIX is a solution you now have one more problem.
Let your router do your DHCP. End of story.