Linux conversion for a corporate Windows enviornment

Surely you can do an Active Directory type setup with the new versions of SAMBA, if you want an easy to use ready to go and test version, you can try turnkey linux been using them for a few years, before I go on to build my own production systems.

Domain Controller | TurnKey GNU/Linux

A Samba4-based Active Directory-compatible domain controller that supports printing services and centralized Netlogon authentication for Windows systems, without requiring Windows Server. Since 1992, Samba has provided a secure and stable free software re-implementation of standard Windows...
www.turnkeylinux.org www.turnkeylinux.org

TurnKey GNU/Linux | 100+ free ready-to-use system images for virtual machines, the cloud and bare metal

www.turnkeylinux.org www.turnkeylinux.org
 
repitah said:
Been running a theoretical how do I replace my MS products should things go awry in the next months/years and sanctions severely reduce traditional products.

My challenge came to the end users and while I have loved Linux for years (don't bother doing network work on Windows anymore) and daily a MacBook at home (SBCs running the house and mini server in the study are all flavours of Debian), but I've never given much thought as to how do I get corporate style setup -- an Active Directory / Co-Pilot type experience of a machine joining the directory and policies and scripts lock down systems and automate a lot of the setup for the IT support team (box to end user desk in 2 hours or less is the goal).

When I took over as the major grump, I set about making group policies and scripts that are/should be considered norm in a corporate. Great, but now how do I do the same in Linux? All the DevOps things seem scary and everything seems to start having a price tag in currencies/countries that we could be excluded from. I remember when I was a young sprite, Suse had some nice YaST things that looked policy like.

ZorinOS/Mint/Deepin (skeptical) would be my go to for the end user OS. All of the IT support team have taken a crash course on Mint to do network diagnostics/switch programming and they seem to have taken to the interface with minimal shock and resistance.
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Replace Deepin for MX Linux. Personally, don't trust Deepin all that much, despite the obvious nature of open source.
 
probably be easier to convert everything to run Mac or IOS in the back end than to move away from Microsoft,

although if you STARTED with Linux and built everything from scratch as Linux and Unix, in parallel
id imagine the shock would be easier
 
Surely, if sanctions hit replacing one US product (Microsoft) with another US product (Apple / Google) might not be the solution?
 
I enjoy MacOS, but if sanctions did happen, obviously that is also off the table.
At the rate hardware prices and shortages are going, I'm already having the shuck screens/drives/memory/chassis tops from notebooks in the retire/dispose pile to make Win11 notebooks continue working.

Linux is less fussy about older machines, so the assets can be sweated as well.

The thread was how to make a fleet of user machines manageable. A DevOps push/pull approach works. I'll spend more time experimenting next year.

Brain is currently fried for this year and spent the last 2 weeks learning/taming PostFix to behave like/better than the EggsChange that I inherited (uninstall pending; still in the silently turn off and see who screams phase).
 
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If I was for some reason forced to do this I would look no further than Ubuntu and their Landscape functionality.
 
SauRoNZA said:
If I was for some reason forced to do this I would look no further than Ubuntu and their Landscape functionality.
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Thank you. Looks interesting and I see there is a self hosting option.
 
Al P said:
Try Winux:- https://winuxos.org/
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I'm old enough to be waving my (newish) zimmer frame in the air. I remember the trademark and EeePC suits.
I'm not interested in a skin. Modern distros have so much ease of use compared to the Linux I experienced in the late 90's. The Gen-Z's I have given LinuxMint to have taken to it quickly. An older generation acquaintance moved their company users (<10) to Mint before COVID19 and even has become a power user -- the Gen-Xers should take to it fairly easy as something more familiar and logical (IE like Windows 9x/XP/7 and a bit of 10). A Deepin/Gnome 3 style machine might fly with the youngins, but the older crowd will like the older style.

kolaval said:
You answered your own question.
Stick with what works and is the norm.
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Not trying to be like Chinese/Russian companies that ran XP for moons long after the expiration... Not going to be exposed to any/every known threat for a lack of updates/support and malaise. Legacy is a painful thing to get out of. Maintaining ISMS certification is also a thing.

This is a planning and testing exercise. What if things go bad? I am mid career and would like to ease into retirement without ripping off the table cloth and trashing the crockery. Certainly don't want to be the muppet in the news because I didn't do my thing and badly hurt a company.
 
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