As I mentioned previously, I just replaced my server. The side-effect of this is that I need to perform a fresh install of all the software (unless I just move the drives of course, but I still want to use the old server).

I’ve decided to stay with Debian as my server distribution as I haven’t had any major issues with it and it is easy to administer, as well as being the parent distribution of my desktop OS, Ubuntu… makes it easier for my little brain to keep track of.

For the last few Debian installations I’ve done I’ve used to greater or lesser extents an really well written article that offers a step-by-step guide to the installation of an "almost ISP ready server". While it is written for Debian 3.1 (Sarge) I have used it to install Deiban 4 (Etch) on a number of occasions.

The majority of the process is the same, with the exception of a few packages that I prefer newer versions of; such as Apache 2, PHP 5 and MySQL 5. Facilitating the need to alter a few of the "cut-and-paste" instructions. The guide can be followed beginning to end, or just follow the sections detailing the services you are after.

Note: I’ve since discovered that the author (Falko Timme) has also written an article for details the installation of Etch, so maybe I’ll use that next time. Unless I decide to install Lenny by then.