ProLiant MicroServer

[Lucien_1]

Hi,
This is my first message here.
I'm considering the HP Proliant MicroServer as the first server of our company. We are an office of 10-15 staff.
I'd like to order it along with Microsoft Windows SBS 2008.
Now my question is: Besides other hardware which can be upgraded (RAM and HD for instance), is the AMD Athlon™ II NEO N36L processor (1.3 GHz, 15W, 2MB) of the MicroServer powerful enough to run SBS 2008 ?
Thanks for your help.

[Modris Bremze]

SBS system requirements:
http://www.microsoft.com/sbs/en/us/system-requirements.aspx

For MS supported/certified hardware, search your server at http://www.windowsservercatalog.com/

[Trygve Henriksen]

Welcome!

The MicroServer is nice, but are you absolutely certain it fulfills ALL your needs?
(When buying servers, I've learned that 'what's the best I can get for my budgeted money' is a better question than 'what's the cheapest server I can get that fulfills my basic requirements' If nothing else, they can last a few more years - and maybe an extra OS upgrade - if you buy better HW.)

With 10 - 15 staff, you're already borderline regarding how many users this server is designed for. (Sure, it'll probably hold up to twice as many under light loads. CPU requirements are usually 'a bit' overblown. I've run W2K server on 800MHz CPUs with 256MB RAM. It's painful to use the console, but for light use, users don't notice anything.)
So it may run SBS just fine. Or it could grind continously. HP has drivers for SBS2008 available, so they seem to think it'll work.

http://h20000.www2.hp.com/bizsupport/TechSupport/SoftwareIndex.jsp?lang=en&cc=us&prodNameId=4310887&prodTypeId=15351&prodSeriesId=4248009&swLang=13&taskId=135&swEnvOID=4037

Going from standalone PCs to a network with a server is a big change and there are many things to consider.

Will it be used to store often changed and important files?
(You may want dedicated Backup HW, too.)

Will it be used for printer sharing?
If so, do your employees often produce large printouts?
(These REALLY suck resources. A typical A0 plot can take 'a few' GB of spooling area. An A3 Full-colour 'poster' can be just as bad.)

It may be that a ML1xx series would be better?

My opinion of the Microserver is that it would be nice for some of the 'sattelite offices' in my organisation, for simple print and file sharing.
(We backup over WAN at night anyway on those sites. And we usually have at least one of the ML110 servers we use in storage, so if one dies, it's easy to get another up and running in its stead.)
We would then be considering them as and when the ML110s either dies or we need more than in storage. (temporary project offices and such.) The biggest sell for me then, is the low noise as not all our small offices have dedicated server rooms.

[Lucien_1]

I will be using SBS 2008 on the MicroServer mainly for emails and collaboration tools (Exchange and Share Point) and file sharing.
Backup will be done using a NAS (Buffalo LinkStation).
Printing won't be managed by the server.

[Lucien_1]

And I forgot to say that another advantage of the MicroServer for our company is that we can order Windows SBS along and the price is interesting.

[Lucien_1]

So you think 1.3 Ghz will be enough for this use ?

[Saberus]

Well, the only way to know if a 1.3GHz processor will work for you is to try it. You can guess and estimate all day long, and still be wrong via incorrect or forgotten data. I'd say look at the logs on your current solution and compare how much of a load it has on it's cores, and their core speed. Make sure to gather this data at peak times.

And as far as if the processor is capable of running SBS2008, I'd check Microsoft's site for it's requirements, but I doubt it would be listed if it was not going to work.

Since you're already looking at an environment at the top end of the device's designed load, I would suggest as others have to move a step up to an ML100 series, better to spend a little more now then to have to do it anyway when the MicroServer is overtaxed. Plan for the server to be in use for 3 years, and make sure it can handle your expected growth in that time.