Home training server setup questions (VPN, RDP, DC, etc)

[SebastianP]

Hi!

 

I had a case of absolutely insane luck last week, and received a decommissioned Proliant server from the company I had been interning with when I left, as well as a laptop that's just old enough to not be redistributable within the company (its warranty has run out). The machines in question are still plenty powerful enough to run Windows Server 2008 and Windows 7 respectively, though, so they're decent training aids (which is what they were intended as when I was given them.)

 

Anyway, these two, in combination with my desktop workstation/gaming rig, my father's multimedia laptop, and a D-link DIR 825 router, form the basis of my home network right now, and I'm considering how to get decent use out of the whole thing.

 

I've got the correct operating systems and all drivers installed on all the computers, and I've got the RDP service working on the server unit and the gaming rig, with both computers accessible from within the local network right now.

 

What I want to do next is set up a domain with VPN access, so I can connect to the home network from either laptop over the internet (and RDP to my workstation or the server), and eventually set up an Exchange Server so I can read all my mail from either the laptops, my phone or my workstation without having to worry about storage or backups.

 

Oh, and since this is going to be kind of a test environment, I'd like a way to make the server notify me when it's ready to be logged in on, since it's sitting in a closet where I can't hear it.

 

So, what would be the proper order to do all this in (other than Exchange coming in last, since it requires active directory and a bunch of other stuff to be already set up)? Also, can I concentrate all of these roles into the server box without virtualization (processor is too old for hyper-v), or should I delegate some of it to the workstation?

 

Cheers,

 

SP

[IanT]

Whats the Model of the ProLiant and Spec?