[AuckLUG] Linux Terminal Servers

[Chilling_Silence]

Greetings all,

Currently Im supporting a small business that does Cleaning in the
Auckland region.
They've got  8 thin-clients currently connecting to a Server2003 Terminal
Server which also hosts Exchange.

They're taking on 5 new office-staff who will need access, not only
through Terminal Server seat licensing, but Microsoft Office as well. He's
looking at OpenOffice instead of Office 2003 / 2007 because pretty much
all the work they're doing is going to be in a web-based CRM package
(hosted off-site).

The big boss-man has come to me to find him some prices on Microsoft
licensing and recommend an office alternative. Im tempted to tell him to
ditch the whole server setup and opt for a Ubuntu Terminal Server (Im not
wanting to start a distro war, I really dont care about Distro right now
to be honest).

I dont know enough about the ins & outs of setting up Terminal Services
but how exactly do the thin-clients boot? They get the OS through PXE? So
I change the Server and dont have to worry about any "OS" being installed
on the thin-clients?

Im not going to make any hasty decisions and go formatting his server
tomorrow on a whim (That'd just be asking for trouble), but if I can
convince him to wait a week while I do a bit more research on the matter,
it could prove fruitful for both him and myself. Plus this means I get to
take home a thin-client box or two and setup a "test" at home, always fun
to play with new toys! :D

Also, is there anybody else out there who currently supports a Linux
Terminal Server environment? Have they run into issues of any kind, such
as format problems with the latest Office 2007 files being sent to them?
Users wanting to do funky things you hadnt initially though of?

Im only asking because I think he could save himself a fair bit in
software costs here, all his Office workers will be using the Web-based
CRM package, I believe including all emails. They do a little bit of
spreadsheet work (read: very little) and I think they also use MYOB (WINE
anybody?).

In a nutshell, Im also just looking for somebody to tell me Im not a total
idiot for thinking that this could be a viable option. Ive done
installfests, run Gentoo / Ubuntu at home, converted the odd MS zealot,
but never done a small-business switch entirely to Linux.

Thoughts / comments / constructive criticism appreciated

Cheers


Chill.