starting fresh.. .distro?

[joebloeonthego]

Hello, I realized I didn't install gcc and some other stuff on my web/mail/dns server which is redhat 9. I'm going to just start from scratch as I think that'll be easier and I always like having a fresh start.
I've been running a linux server for a few years now (web/mail/dns) but never really got all that into it, checking logs and all that. It's behind a NAT router forwarding 25, 80, 110, and 53, and I have the firewall running allowing only those ports, and I just sort of let it sit there chugging along.
My question is... with the redhat uncertainty (or is it even?) should I be switching to a different distro?
My requirements:
I usually just do stuff in the console (with pine).
I'd rather not mess with iptables, and just have an interface where I can just tell it which ports I want open and have it do it for me. (or am I very wrong with this idea?)
I'd like it to be easy to keep up to date a la RHN.

so... stick with redhat? mandrake? debian? slackware?
I like the idea of a bolted-down (security-wise) box, but I don't have days and days to figure stuff out. I'm pretty good with understanding stuff (comp-sci diploma) but a lot of linux stuff, I'm clueless about (mounting drives, soundcards, etc.) so I'd like a little bit of hand holding. I can set up the email, web, and dns allright, it's just all the other little things I'd like my hand-held with like firewall, and stuff.
any help would be much appreciated.. I guess I'm just looking for push in the right direction distro-wise.

thanx!

 

[joebloeonthego]

sry, posted without previewing by accident...
I've tried the X-less before, but I think it's worth it for the few wizards or whatever that you eventually want to use. Once it's setup, I'll just leave it too, no monitor or anything, just putty/vnc in.
I'd like to do an ftp server this time (avoided it due to security issues - but now I have several friend's websites running, and I doubt they want to pscp all the time), so I'd like to get into watching the logs and being alot more 'on top of it' this go-round, running nessus occasionally and other things.
So yeah, I guess I'd like to take it a bit more seriously this time, and therefore want to start with the 'right' distro so I don't have to redo it later.

 

[benjithegreat98]

I would say for you Debian would be the best. It has updating features you want. For the gui of setting your ports you can use Webmin (

http://www.webmin.com)

It is webbased administration that does a lot more than iptables. You could switch to Fedora. I've used it as a desktop and have had minimal problems, but there have been some. And it is a version 1 (basically, anyways). Mandrake would be the easiest to setup but I just don't like using it for a server. I don't know why. I just don't.

 

[joebloeonthego]

I was pondering Debian, though I didn't know much about it. That's just enough of a push to try it out, thanx!

 

[ady2k]

You can choose SuSe Linux.And you can get support SuSe Linux/ Novell.
Good Luck...

 

[joebloeonthego]

does debian come with webmin installed, or do I have to add it?

 

[jwenting]

Debian allows you to install whatever you want easily.
I don't know if webmin is part of the distribution, if it is you can elect to install it during installation or not (Debian is flexible enough that it will let you install anything or nothing in any combination you want while keeping track of dependencies for you, unlike ever more distributions that allow only the selection of one of a group of default configurations).