Future new user... windows or mac or virtual server ?

I'd not hold your breath on Mac server hardware.

I don't have direct experience with hosting a Casper JSS on Windows 2008, but my setup doesn't involve any Apple hardware or software on the server end.

My JSS is hosted on a VMWare-hosted Red Hat Linux VM. My repository is mountable via SMB (which is how Casper Admin uploads new installers, scripts, etc to the server), but my clients are downloading scripts and installers via HTTP.

First off, welcome!
Second, your JAMF SE should be able to help you come up with a strategy on all of your questions, but, as Jared says, don't expect Apple to ship any new Mac servers. Though its not "official" its a safe bet to say Apple is basically out of the server business.

As for the other stuff, Linux (Ubuntu, RHEL) generally works well as a JSS, so if you have that option, also consider it. Otherwise a Windows Server 2008 VM is fine. Use whatever you feel more comfortable with.
And no, you do not need your JSS and distribution point(s) to be one and the same. In fact, depending on your environment, how many locations you have, etc, it might even be wise to split it all up. But again, ask your SE for help with that.

We also have our fingers crossed that Mac Minis would support larger (or built in RAID) drives.

We tested Windows distribution points before but had a lot of trouble when it came time to compile images and we weren't able to get much support on making it work (albeit this was awhile ago).

Rich-
Can you hit me off-list? I'd like to pick your brain about that setup.

jared dot nichols at fmr dot com

Thanks!

@rtrouton We're migrating JSS to Windows Server 2008 virtual servers and our Distribution Points are on separate Windows Server 2008 virtual servers. This enables us to hand the datacenter team responsibility for the virtual servers...so we get maximum bandwidth and 24/7/365 support.

The only "issue" so far...lack of best practice for Distribution Point replication. Our datacenter brothers tried to help with Robocopy, but it seems to have a problem with PKG installers (slows to a crawl when it traverses all the directories within each one), and it doesn't seem to be intelligent enough to know how to handle that last file when we set a replication time window. So the last file ends up corrupted...

Robocopy:

"I'm copying a DMG...oops, time's up...stop copying in the middle of the file...corrupt file???...who cares, it's only for Mac users..."

https://jamfnation.jamfsoftware.com/discussion.html?id=4127

:(

Don

Hi All,
With you non Apple backend setups able to netboot clients for deployment? Cheers, Damien

@d4mo1337

Jamf provides a netboot/sus appliance for that. https://jamfnation.jamfsoftware.com/viewProduct.html?id=180

We currently still host our JSS on one of the last XServes, however since it's out of warranty now, if it dies my plan is to place the JSS on a linux VM.

My best piece of advice to you would be stay uniform in the operating system for your Distribution points, and in my opinion your JAMF environment period. With the distribution points life's a lot easier if you don't have to deal with the differences in Unix permissions and Windows permissions.