Server Spec - your thoughts

[TriedandTested]

Have i missed anything?

This is the server i'll be ordering VERY soon, would appreciate a look-over to see if it looks ok. Number of users is quite low in the scheme of things at the moment but this will increase and want some future proofing etc.

Server:
PowerEdge™ 2950 Dual Core Intel® Xeon® 5050, 2x2MB Cache, 3.00GHz, 667MHZ FSB

Support Services:
3yr BASIC Support, Business Hours Only, Next Business Day Onsite Response

Memory:
2GB FB 533MHz Memory (4x512MB single rank DIMMs)

Rack Mounting Rails:
Rack Chassis with Sliding Rapid/Versa Rails, Universal

Riser Card:
Riser with PCI Express Support (2x PCIe x8 slots; 1x PCIe x4 slot)

Front Bezel:
PE2950 Bezel Assembly

Factory Installed Operating System:
Not Included

Non-Factory Installed Operating Systems:
Not Included

Raid Connectivity:
C3 Integrated SAS / SATA, RAID 1 using add in PERC 5/i controller, 2 Hard Drives

1st RAID or SCSI Controller Card:
PERC 5/i, x6 Backplane, Integrated RAID Controller Card

Backplanes:
1x6 Backplane for 3.5-inch Hard Drives

1st Hard Drive:
73GB, SAS, 3.5-inch, 10.000 rpm Hard Drive (hot plug)

2nd Hard Drive:
73GB, SAS, 3.5-inch, 10.000 rpm Hard Drive (hot plug)

3rd Hard Drive:
160GB, SATA, 3.5-inch, 7.200 rpm Hard Drive

4th Hard Drive:
160GB, SATA, 3.5-inch, 7.200 rpm Hard Drive

Floppy Drives:
3.5" Internal Floppy Disk Drive

CD/DVD Drives:
24X CD Drive, Internal, Half Height


Tape Backup:

Base:
Dell PowerVault PV114T Sng Rack Base LTO2-LC, 2U, inc cleaning Cartridge

Rack Mounting Rails:
NON DELL 4 Post Rack Mount parts, all parts to fit a PV114T into a NON DELL Rack

Tape Back Up Media:
Tape, Media, LTO2,200/400G, 5 Pack

 

[Adz]

Upgrade to the 51xx Woodcrest Xeons. They're faster and much more power efficient .

Other than that, looks like a good spec. Depends what you're using it for really.

Don't pay the online list price - Dell will almost certainly negotiate to get a sale.

I'm just about to order Dual 5130s, 4GB RAM, 5x 146GB 15,000RPM (RAID 5 with hot spare), Perc 5i, Rapidrails, Dual PSU, Silver support. I'm not a big fan of Dell (we normally buy Supermicro) but if you want value for money on the latest tech, they're hard to beat.

 

[TriedandTested]

Thanks for the advice. I do have an account manager there so will certainly squeeze the best price out of him!

Compared to what we have now, and our upcoming connection to the KCN broadband line this will be a BIG step up.

 

[TriedandTested]

Would a:

'Dual Core Intel® Xeon® 5110, 4MB Cache, 1.6GHz, 1066FSB '

be a better choice than a:

'Dual Core Intel® Xeon® 5060, 2x2MB Cache, 3.20GHz, 1066MHZ FSB '

In terms of performance etc?

 

[Adz]

Would a:

'Dual Core Intel® Xeon® 5110, 4MB Cache, 1.6GHz, 1066FSB '

be a better choice than a:

'Dual Core Intel® Xeon® 5060, 2x2MB Cache, 3.20GHz, 1066MHZ FSB '

In terms of performance etc?

Should be at least as fast I'm lead to believe and with dramatically reduced power consumption - it's a significant factor when you're running a server 24x7 for 3 years!

 

[Sone]

2gb RAM seems quite low to me, but it depends wht you are using the box for. Always buy HP servers myself after some problems with dell in the past

edit, i assume you are running ws2003 r2, you going 64bit or 32bit?

edit, also personal pref i use 2 x 18/36gb in raid 1 for boot and 3 x 72/144 for data in raid 5. i don't like hot spares but i always have a few boxed drives for all servers.