6.4 Server Configuration

We will now start from scratch and build a configuration file for our Samba server. First we will introduce three basic configuration options that can appear in the [global] section of the smb.conf file:

 [global]     #  Server configuration parameters     netbios name = toltec     server string = Samba %v on %L     workgroup = METRAN     encrypt passwords = yes 

This configuration file is pretty simple; it advertises the Samba server under the NetBIOS name toltec . In addition, it places the system in the METRAN workgroup and displays a description to clients that includes the Samba version number, as well as the NetBIOS name of the Samba server.

If you used the line encrypt passwords = yes in your earlier configuration file, you should do so here as well.

If you like, you can go ahead and try this configuration file. Create a file named smb.conf under the /usr/local/samba/lib directory with the text listed earlier. Then restart the Samba server and use a Windows client to verify the results. Be sure that your Windows clients are in the METRAN workgroup as well. After double-clicking the Network Neighborhood on a Windows client, you should see a window similar to Figure 6-2. (In this figure, Mixtec is another Samba server, a nd Zapotec is a Windows client.)

Figure 6-2. Network Neighborhood showing Toltec, the Samba server

You can verify the server string by listing the details of the Network Neighborhood window (select Details in the View menu). You should see a window similar to Figure 6-3.

Figure 6-3. Network Neighborhood details listing

If you were to click the toltec icon, a window should appear that shows the services that it provides. In this case, the window would be completely empty because there are no shares on the server yet.

6.4.1 Server Configuration Options

Table 6-4 summarizes the server configuration options introduced previously. All three of these options are global in scope, so they must appear in the [global] section of the configuration file.

Table 6-4. Server configuration options

Option	Parameters	Function	Default	Scope
netbios name	string	NetBIOS name of the Samba server	Server's unqualified DNS hostname	Global
workgroup	string	NetBIOS group to which the server belongs	Defined at compile time	Global
server string	string	Descriptive string for the Samba server	Samba %v	Global

6.4.1.1 netbios name

The netbios name option allows you to set the NetBIOS name of the server. For example:

 netbios name = YORKVM1 

The default value for this configuration option is the server's hostname ”that is, the first part of its fully qualified domain name. For example, a system with the DNS name ruby.ora.com would be given the NetBIOS name RUBY by default. While you can use this option to restate the system's NetBIOS name in the configuration file (as we did previously), it is more commonly used to assign the Samba server a NetBIOS name other than its current DNS name. Remember that the name given must follow the rules for valid NetBIOS machine names as outlined in Chapter 1.

Changing the NetBIOS name of the server is not recommended unless you have a good reason. One such reason might be if the hostname of the system is not unique because the LAN is divided over two or more DNS domains. For example, YORKVM1 is a good NetBIOS candidate for vm1.york.example.com to differentiate it from vm1.falkirk.example.com , which has the same hostname but resides in a different DNS domain.

Another use of this option is for relocating SMB services from a dead or retired system. For example, if SALES is the SMB server for the department and it suddenly dies, you could immediately reset netbios name = SALES on a backup Samba server that's taking over for it. Users won't have to change their drive mappings to a different server; new connections to SALES will simply go to the new server.

6.4.1.2 workgroup

The workgroup parameter sets the current workgroup (or domain) in which the Samba server will advertise itself. Clients that wish to access shares on the Samba server should be in the same NetBIOS group. Remember that workgroups are really just NetBIOS group names and must follow the standard NetBIOS naming conventions outlined in Chapter 1.

The default option for this parameter is set at compile time to WORKGROUP . Because this is the default workgroup name of every unconfigured Windows and Samba system, we recommend that you always set your workgroup name in the Samba configuration file. When choosing your workgroup name, try to avoid making it the same name as a server or user . This will avoid possible problems with WINS name resolution.

6.4.1.3 server string

The server string parameter defines a comment string that will appear next to the server name in both the Network Neighborhood (when shown with the Details view) and the comment entry of the Microsoft Windows printer manager. ^[2]

^[2] We are referring here to the window that opens when a printer icon in the Printers control panel is double-clicked.

You can use variables to provide information in the description. For example, our entry earlier was:

 [global]     server string = Samba %v on (%h) 

The default for this option simply presents the current version of Samba and is equivalent to:

 server string = Samba %v