LTSP: Raiders of the Lost Mainframe

In the beginning there were only the mainframes. Administration only required configuration of one system. Users accessed the mainframe from dumb terminals. Everyone had access to the same resources and had the same software, because everyone was on the same system. Then came the personal computer. Users all got their own systems, and system administration became exponentially more difficult. LTSP gives us a way to get the terminal server, singular administration and control we admins want and still give users the warm fuzzy interface, speed and freedom they want. One system, one set of updates, one place to make changes. We’re going to look in to some of the history of LTSP, overview the technology involved, and some of the many potential applications. Finally we’ll look at the best way to implement LTSP, and how its working in production in our corporate environment.