Configuring the File Server Role

A handy wizard in Windows Server 2003 automatically configures the computer as a file server. Follow these steps to use this wizard:

1. Log on as an administrator.

   TECHNICAL STUFF 

   You need administrator rights to make the changes called for by this wizard.

2. Choose Start Administrative Tools Manage Your Server.

   The Manage Your Server page appears, as shown in Figure 17-1. It shows the various roles you configured for the server. If the File Server role already appears, you can skip the rest of this procedure-you already configured the computer to be a file server.

   
   Figure 17-1: The Manage Your Server window lets you configure roles for your server.

3. Select the Add or Remove a Role option.

   A message suggests that you take some preliminary steps, such as connecting network cables and installing modems. Read this list, just to make sure that you completed them all already.

4. Click Next until you see the Server Role page.

   The Server Role page, as shown in Figure 17-2, lists the various roles you can configure for the server.

   
   Figure 17-2: The Server Role page.

5. Select File Server and then click Next.

   The File Server Disk Quotas page appears, as shown in Figure 17-3. This page lets you

   • Set up disk quotas to track and limit the amount of disk space used by each user.

     The default setting is to limit each user to a paltry 5MB of disk space. Microsoft recommends that you set a low limit and then change it for users who need more space.

   • Specify the consequences to occur when a user exceeds the quota.

     By default, no consequences are specified, so the quota is just a tracking device. If you want, you can tell Windows to refuse to let the user have more space than the quota specifies, or you can specify that an event be logged to let you know that a user has exceeded the quota.

   
   Figure 17-3: The File Server Disk Quotas page.

6. Specify the disk quota settings you want to use and then click Next.

   The Indexing Service page appears. It lets you indicate whether you want to activate the Windows Indexing Service for the file server. Few users take advantage of the Indexing Service, but if you need it, it's available here.

   Warning 

   In most cases, activating the Indexing Service is a bad idea because it can dramatically slow down the performance of the server.

7. Select the Yes check box if you want to use the Indexing Service or leave No selected to disable Indexing, and then click Next.

   A summary page appears, listing the options you selected.

8. Click Next.

   The computer grinds and whirs for a moment as it configures the file server. In a moment, the Share a Folder Wizard appears so that you can set up the initial file shares for the server.

9. Use the Share a Folder Wizard to share one or more folders.

   For the complete procedure for using this wizard, see the section "Sharing a folder from the File Server Manager," later in this chapter.

   After you're finished with the Share a Folder Wizard, you see the dialog box, as shown in Figure 17-4.

   
   Figure 17-4: Congratulations! You successfully created a file server.

10. Click Finish.

    You return to the Manage Your Server page, which now lists the File Server role as active.

That's it. You've configured the computer to be a file server.