Need Guidance Setting Up Debian File Server

Question

I've recently gotten really into Linux, and am interested in setting up a file server in my home. I want to be able to ssh from outside of my network. The file server would be used mostly for media, eventually I want to be able to set up a little raspberry pi chip to stream the media on my server to my tv via hdmi(but this is a future endeavor).

I also want the files to be available to windows, other linux distros, and other UNIX OS's. How hard would this be to accomplish? Are there any basic guides? After researching it a bit I keep coming across NFS and Samba servers, which would be more appropriate for my setup(if any at all).

I understand this question is somewhat vague, but I'm hoping one of you guys is pretty experienced with this and can nudge me in the right direction.

Thanks.

Answer 1

I set up my file server using this tutorial http://www.howtoforge.com/setting-up-a-linux-file-server-using-samba a using ubuntu server lts. It was pretty easy to follow and runs perfectly well on a 10 year or older computer. Using samba to set up your windows shares was covered pretty well in this tutorial. No gui with ubuntu server, this will get you really into the linux file system and hand editing config files. It was a great learning experience for me!!