Server Specs

macally · 25 Jun 2013 at 11:46

Hi all,

I've currently got a HP ML110 G6 Tower Server with a Quad Core Xeon X3430 2.4GHz processor in it. It's currently only got 3GB Ram in it and a 1TB hard drive but I'm looking at the possibility of getting a used rackmount server as an upgrade and could use some advice.

Having looked around, I can get the following rackmount servers:

1) IBM X3650 with dual E5440 2.8GHz Quad Core Xeons, 16GB DDR2 Ram (PC2-5300F ECC)
2) HP SE1102 with dual L5420 2.5GHz Quad Core Xeons, 24GB DDR2 Ram (PC2-5300F ECC)

Would either of these offer better performance than the HP ML110 G6 even though the processors are older?

I am looking to use the server for either (undecided at present) running Windows Server 2012 Essentials or FreeNAS.

macally · 25 Jun 2013 at 14:16

Hi Rotor,

Thanks for your replies.

It's interesting to see the comparisons on CPUBenchmark so thanks for that.

I have asked the supplier about how much noise each server generates and they have not been very forthcoming with answers so still waiting on that. Noise would be a concern as we are in a one room office (albeit a big room) but the last thing we want is a noisy machine in the corner.

My main criteria is to get the best bang for buck and something that will be reliable. We have basically been offered £300 for our HP ML110 G6. The HP Server above is £300 and the IBM one is £250 so quite good with the amount of ram, etc and considering the performance boost.

I do like the look of the Microserver's (I used to have the N36L) and I am considering getting one as an iTunes server box for home but couldn't really rely on one for work.

macally · 25 Jun 2013 at 14:40

Are all rackmount servers loud? Kinda disappointing if they are.

Can't get hold of ML110 G7's anymore and the G8's are way out of my price range

macally · 26 Jun 2013 at 10:40

Thanks for the replies. Ok, we'll give rackmount servers a miss

Will a Microserver be capable of working in a business environment? We're all Mac users so will probably just use it with FreeNas or something similar but obviously it needs to be reliable.

macally · 26 Jun 2013 at 13:52

Saundie said:
What sort of workload will you demand from it? Is it just going to be a file and print server?

Yeah, the most taxing thing it'll be used for will be our accounts database (we use Quickbooks Pro 2013). The other thing it's going to be used for will be FTP backups of our web server. We're undecided whether to use Windows Server 2012 Essentials or something like FreeNas at the moment.