When you need a reliable, highly-available server solution in a hurry, your choices are often limited to expensive, commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) hardware or a turn-key solution from a hosting provider. But what if you’re not in a hurry, and you’re looking for a powerful yet affordable solution that you can install and administer yourself?
The good news is you can get what you need without breaking the bank. The bad news is you need to do some research, compare features, and read lots of reviews before you buy.
The solution is the PowerEdge family of products. With Intel® Xeon® processors, up to 64GB of RAM, and hard disks up to 4TB in size, these servers are powerful enough to run almost any enterprise application or system with heavy I/O demands. Plus, with the introduction of the PowerEdge Arrays (PEAR) these products can scale to massive capacities without needing additional appliances.
Let’s delve into how you can put the PowerEdge servers to work for you.
Features That Set These Servers Apart
PowerEdge servers are built for high performance and extreme reliability. They have all the major features you need in a small and compact form factor, including:
- Dual Power supplies: One or two PowerEdge servers can be configured with two power supplies, each providing up to 500W of juice. This is critical for reliability as power outages are extremely common in data centers. For example, the average data center goes through a 500W power supply every three months and a 600W supply every month.
- RS232/422/485 ports: These ports allow you to connect various hardware devices (e.g., switches, routers, and security cameras) to the server.
- Serial ATA (SATA) ports: With up to six SATA ports, you can connect multiple hard disks to the server and easily create RAID arrays (redundant array of independent disks) to enhance data storage capacity.
- Standard network connectivity: The PowerEdge servers support both Gigabit Ethernet and 10GBaseT Ethernet interfaces. This makes it easy to connect the server to the network and allow it to share local resources (e.g., hard drives) with other computers on the network.
- Intel® Rapid Start technology: This technology allows you to install the product, spin up the disks, and have the system automatically find and load the software and databases needed for the product to operate without needing to manually configure the system.
- Optional integrated Lights-Out display (OLED): If you have a need for a real-time console or want to keep an eye on system activity even when the system is powered off, you can purchase the integrated OLED display that comes pre-installed on some models.
- Onboard power supply noise filter: This feature helps reduce the noise produced by the power supply by actively attenuating it before it gets to you. You can also purchase an external power supply that has the same feature if you have a particularly noisy power source or want to keep the system compact.
- Anti-microbial coating on metal exterior: This coating helps prevent the growth of bacteria and fungus on the outside of the system as well as on any hard drives or storage devices connected to the unit.
- Water-resistant: These systems are designed to withstand heavy rainfall and accidental exposure to liquid. If any of your equipment or resources are near or adjacent to water containers or plumbing fixtures, these systems are a perfect match for your needs.
Why Should You Get a Server From This Brand?
To put it bluntly, not all servers are created equal. Depending on your needs, you may require certain features and functionalities more than others. Here are just a few reasons why you might want to get a PowerEdge server:
Reason #1: Price
One of the big advantages of purchasing a pre-built server is you can bet it will cost you less than buying each of the parts separately. In fact, most vendors will charge you less than $1,000 for the privilege of having their system pre-configured and ready to go. The savings can be significant.
Additionally, some vendors might even throw in free software or patches to make the system more versatile or enhance its performance. You’ll need to negotiate for these extra benefits, but it’s still a no-brainer. A properly configured and powered-off PowerEdge server can run around $500–700, depending on the brand and model.
Reason #2: Availability
Even in this day and age, it’s not always easy to find the exact parts you need. If you’re in the market for a new server and happen to stumble upon one that’s been discontinued or is no longer sold by the manufacturer, you’ll definitely have to settle for something similar. But if you know that a particular model or series is in high demand, you can often find compatible parts from various manufacturers.
Additionally, if you’re looking for a low-cost solution and are unable to locate compatible parts locally, shipping charges can really add up. By pre-installing software and other necessary utilities on the system, you can avoid these charges and have your new machine up and running in no time.
Reason #3: Versatility
A versatile server is one that can be used for a variety of tasks. A built-in toolset and sufficient resources allow you to configure the system to suit your needs. A single versatile server can run multiple operating systems and have the flexibility to function as a stand-alone file server, print server, or web server. These systems are perfect for people who work remotely and need to access files or print jobs from various locations.
Additionally, many companies have backup and disaster recovery (BDR) requirements in case their primary systems fail. A standalone utility like Time Machine from Apple® or Crash Plan from EMC® can help with this, but you can also achieve the same level of redundancy using a VPN (virtual private network) connection to a remote server.
Reason #4: Reliability
Even in today’s fast-paced world, we all still rely on our hardware and software to function. If any of these components fail, we have no option other than to replace them which, in turn, can lead to further downtime and increased costs. This is why reliability is such a critical aspect of any computing device or system.
A properly configured and well-maintained PowerEdge server will offer you peace of mind in knowing that your important data is safe and accessible when needed. In addition, many of these products include excellent built-in redundancies and backup systems that offer fault tolerance and increased security.
The good news is, with the right expertise, you can put a truly reliable and high performing server together in a matter of minutes. Once you’ve got one up and running, it will be very hard to go back to using separate devices for backup and storage.
Comparing PowerEdge Servers
One of the most challenging (and critical) tasks when choosing a new server is comparing the price and features of various brands and models. With all the benefits and functionalities detailed above, it’s no wonder why so many businesses choose the PowerEdge family of products for their server needs.
Here’s a short list of some of the most popular PowerEdge series along with a brief comparison of these models: