[OSM-dev] Set up your "personal tile server" for experiments - what machine / installation suitable?

[Ulf Lamping]

Hi!

I'm pretty much aware, that the responses to the following questions 
will be subjective. However, I'm seeking for some advice to get a 
"feeling" what could work for me (and probably others).


I'm currently thinking to set up my own "personal tile server", 
basically to experiment with rendering.

My thoughts are:

- postgis/postgres DB
- mapnik rendering
- tile server (apache / lighthttpd?)
- DB updates at least weekly
- little runtime load, only from my personal tests

For the rendering and as a first step it would be enough to do this 
"europe wide" (and e.g. use the geofabrik excerpts), but maybe it's even 
easier in the long run to use (and especially update) the planet once 
it's imported into the DB?!?


I have a currently unused (somewhat older) machine:

- CPU 3 GHZ (single core)
- 1 GB RAM
- 1 TB disk space (total)

and I wonder if this would "do the job".


I mean I don't care if it's once running 24h to import the planet or 
38h. However, if it turns out that later on applying the weekly changes 
takes longer than a week this configuration is becoming a bit pointless ;-)

If it's obvious, that this machine can't deal with the task, what's the 
weak spot? Will it be a good idea to add some more RAM, or is the CPU 
too slow ...


As I'm going to install the machine from scratch anyway. What OS to use? 
I would prefer Ubuntu here - but what version/edition?


Regards, ULFL