We recently replaced the network server in our offices with the Linux based SMEServer (formerly called the E-Smith system). We were drawn to this server as one of our clients had been using it for four years with no problems at all.
Our own experience confirms that this is an excellent solution for the SME, with up to 100 or so network desks.
It is very quick to install, works out of the box, needs very little configuration, is extremely flexible and very, very robust.
If you need any advice on this, or would like us to install an SMEServer for you, please call us.
Here is an extract from the E-Smith website
"There are many companies that are trying to make Linux easier to use as a desktop operating system. This is a great goal, and we will undoubtedly become customers of some of these companies here at e-smith. However, we have taken a different tack for our own products. By focusing on only one application - the communications server - we have been able to greatly simplify the user interface.
We expect that as the use of Linux expands, distributions will continue to get more complicated as they strive to meet the needs of as many users as possible. However, at e-smith we plan to stand out from the crowd by keeping features to a minimum. This is the most important design goal of our software. Although it's inevitable that we will have to add features to meet the needs of our increasingly wide user base, simplicity will continue to be the focus and we will never add two new parameters when one might do.
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There are two other important design goals that should be mentioned here as they do play a significant part in our decision-making. These goals are: