Server Buying Tips

1. Buy as much memory as you can afford and ask if the server has memory expansion slots for adding even more in the future. Adding memory improves application performance.
2. Don't be stingy with storage. You might need only 120GB today, but will that be enough next year? Studies show that business data nearly doubles every year. Make sure the server has sufficient available drive bays for expansion. Otherwise, you might have to buy a whole new system.
3. Look for a server that comes with easy-to-use management tools.
4. Make sure the server is using server-specific processors, which boost performance and data throughput that distinguish basic servers from advanced desktop PCs. Examples of these processors include Intel Celeron, Intel Pentium 4, or AMD Athlon MP server processors.
5. Insist on at least one Gigabit Ethernet port. These adapters provide transmission speeds of one billion bits per second. You might not need that speed now, but these adapters can also operate at slower standard speeds, such as Fast Ethernet

Storage Options

While IDE hard drives are just fine for desktop computers, they weren't designed to provide the speed or to handle the constant use that a server environment requires.

Look for a server that supports either SATA or SCSI hard disks. A SATA drive uses smaller, thinner cables that improve air flow inside the server and decrease heat build up, so they make a better choice than do IDE drives. Still, SCSI is the best, albeit more expensive, option, because it's much faster than either IDE or SATA drives.

Choose a SATA or SCSI system with built-in support for RAID, a technology that provides varying levels of data protection. RAID 1, for example, writes the same data to two hard disks so if one drive goes bad, your data is safe on the other.

RAID 5 uses a parity-check system that lets the server reconstitute the contents of a drive that goes bad. Hardware-based RAID systems are pretty expensive and may not be necessary if your organization can live with the downtime it would take to restore your date from backups. No matter what disk options you choose, you must also provide a backup and restore solution tape, removable hard disk, or optical disk for your data.

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• Two Gigabit LAN ports and 8MB graphics on-board.
• 6 SCSI hotswap bays installed as standard.
• Redundant hot-pluggable 1350W power supply as standard.
• Rackmount slide rails included as standard. 
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