A primary function of a server is hosting shared resources for your business. A server is a centralized, robust computer that allows other computers in your office to quickly retrieve shared files or run shared software.
from lenovo.com March 2011
As your small business grows, accumulates data, and employs more staff, the strain put on a simple workgroup networked computer may become to great making the server inefficient. At this point the need to share data is crucial and it may be a good time to consider purchasing a server.
What do you look for in a server?
Which server is best for your small business?
Below are some elements to contemplate when purchasing a server:
Price:
What can your small business afford? Buy a server that fits your current needs and when considering server specifications allow some room for growth. Keeping long term growth in mind is wise because although at the time you may not need it you might eventually need to expand. Prices for entry level servers typically range from $500 to $5,000 depending on the brand, model and features.
Size and Shape:
Contrary to what you might imagine, servers come in two primary formats, tower and rackable. A basic, entry level server in a tower format (upright as opposed to rackable) might be best for your small business because it has essentially the same footprint as desktop. A rackable server would work best if you currently have one or more server racks or are soon considering adding a server rack and adding more equipment.
Processor and Memory:
A processor directly affects the speed and performance of the machine. Choosing the best processor for the server you are considering, will ensure that your server can perform the necessary tasks at an efficient and productive speed. Similarly, the more memory available in the server will also affect the speed because it will have more room for the server to store temporary data and process information. Processors with 2GHz or more are usually suitable entry level servers for small businesses. Most entry level servers come equipped with a minimum of 1GB or 2 GB of memory and have the option for expansion depending on the needs of your business. It would be wise, if in your budget permits to purchase a minimum of 4GB of memory for optimal performance.
Hard Drive Redundancy:
It is important to consider the data requirements of your business. How much down time due to server problems an acceptable? The server technology known as RAID allows different levels of data redundancy and fault tolerance. The most common forms of RAID are RAID with a level 0 which does not provide fault tolerance and RAID level 1 which mirrors data, or writes data to two drives at the same time. If one drive were to fail, your data is still available on the other drive, you simply swap in a new drive and the mirror is recreated. Less common on entry level servers are RAID 5 and RAID 10 which have a much higher fault tolerance though it may be overkill for most small businesses when contemplating needs versus return on investment (ROI). While speaking of drives, some entry level servers have hot swappable drives, a very convenient function, which allows hard drives to be sapped while the server is still powered on.
Additional factors to consider include the server’s Operating System, Expansion Options, and Server Maintenance.
In an upcoming article we will be looking at some recommended small business servers: HP ProLiant MicroServer, Lenovo ThinkServer TS200v, and Dell PowerEdge T310.
More information about When and Why to Consider a Server.
Thanks for Reading have a Great Day!
Dustin
CDTek.com
Tags: entry level, Server, Small Business
