Server solution possible?

[EssentialParado]

I manage 16 Macs that range between G4 1GHz emacs to the latest iMacs. They're used primarily for video editing, sometimes more than half of them will be in operation at once. The Macs are currently not networked.

My problem is backups and student work. The macs are currently backed up manually using an external HDD going from Mac to Mac, which is very labor-intensive.

I'm looking at maybe setting up a server that will allow individual login accounts for each student to store their work to, which will remove the need for manual backups.

Is it possible to go a 'cheap route' for this, taking into account it is video work?
When I say cheap, I mean we can't afford a Mac server. What we do have is a 1.83GHz Intel Core duo iMac with 2GB of RAM and a cracked screen. Is that of any use? What else would we need? One concern I have is what network connections we'd need to support (relatively light) video work.

 

[stevecrown]

One centralised backup software would be BRU Server from Tolis Group.
I think its USD 599 with 25 clients - check here:

http://www.tolisgroup.com

You could then attach the disk to that iMac and back up the stuff over the network.

cheers
Steve

 

[Angrist]

Well .... You should be able connect all of the machines together with Cat5 Ethernet and a Switch.

Then if you turn on sharing on the busted iMac, and create a user account for each student, they'll be able to connect to the "Server" iMac and save to their user directory on that machine. The wired network speeds should be fast enough for saving data files at the end of class .... how large are the files you're working with?

Then, I'd get a cheap backup solution, like chronosync of carbon copy cloner, or whatever. Attach the external drive to the busted iMac, and setup a nightly backup of the student directories.

All in all you'd need to buy/acquire some ethernet cable, a switch, and some software .... depending on the length of cable needed I'd ballpark it in the $100-200 range.

 

[EssentialParado]

Thanks a lot guys. Thanks for the information Angrist.