Linux distro for new server?

["Randy Brukardt" <randy@rrsoftware.com>]

This is mostly off-topic, but as it will be used to compile and run Ada 
programs, it's not *completely* off-topic, and I know people here have 
valuable insight.

I'm about to start replacing the machine that runs the www.ada-auth.org 
website and serves as our DMZ for the network here. (It's approaching 12 
years old and can be underpowered at times, especially when searching the 
RM.)

The hardware arrived today (it's been in town for almost two weeks, but the 
carrier didn't deliver it until now with weather and holiday excuses - 
grumble), and I need to decide what Linux distribution to install on it. The 
standard advice here has been Debian, but that's really emphasizing Ada 
development. I hopefully will not be doing much development on this machine 
(but that is not the same as none).

One thing I definitely want to avoid is a setup that loads up lots of 
unncessary software (Ubuntu does that, for instance). As a server, it should 
have almost nothing on it beyond the stuff it is running or needs to 
function.

The primary uses for the machine are going to be:

(1) Run the existing mail filter and web server software. This is all Ada 
software which I should be able to recompile for this machine (but it has to 
be possible to do that).
(2) Run firewall and proxy software for our network. (I'll need to find 
Linux versions of these, given how much Linux is used for servers, it must 
exist.)
(3) GNAT, to recompile the existing software for the machine. I expect 
development on the machine to be kept to a minimum. The software is 
virtually all Ada 95 code (with a few Ada 2005 features tossed in), there is 
nothing bleeding edge because it all was created with Janus/Ada.
(4) Network tools and a browser for network troubleshooting. (I assume these 
are givens on any modern OS, but I figured I better mention them.)

It's possible that I will look at virtualization at some point in the 
future, but I don't think it will buy much for right now, as all of the 
softtware coexists just fine (my personal opinion on that is that software 
that needs to be run it a virtual machine because it conflicts with 
everything else is junk - like most software that needs an SQL database, 
apparently). So being a good base for virtual machines would be a useful 
bonus, but not important now.

Thoughts on which distribution to install would be welcome, especially from 
Dmitry (who apparently uses several of them).

                                  Randy.