Would like some expert advice please!

pepsilol

pepsilol

pepsilol

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26 Jun 2011
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We're quite light users.

We have an old Poweredge 2800 and 4 users on the network.

We use our server purely for Sage and then just storage of work files etc.

We are now starting to come into problems with our poweredge with downtime now becoming more and more often.

So I am looking to upgrade our system. We have to take into consideration some important factors.

1. Server atm is on 2003 and users all running XP. Our current sage version will only work on 2003, if we install server 2008 we need to upgrade our sage which in turn means we also need to upgrade the users to windows 7.

What sort of options do I have?

Virtual server?
Juts upgrade the server and pcs?
Cloud server? ( Internet speed is only 2.5meg )
 
You need to upgrade the users to Windows 7 regardless. (Or maybe Macs)

I'd go looking at Sage as a Service, and get them to host that for you.

A Synology NAS would probably suit for the file server, you ought to be able to set that up to backup to say Amazon Glacier.
 
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Which Sage product is it? I assume its Line 50/Payroll.

The cloud version of Sage Line 50 is very expensive, we received a quote for £2000+ per year (can’t remember the amount of users, around 3ish).

Sage Line 50 2014 still supports Windows XP.
 
As above, what version of Sage?

If all you're using a single ancient server for is Line 50 and file storage then migrate to Xero and buy a couple of Synology NAS units and set them up as an HA pair with backup to Glacier or a USB drive that you take offsite.

http://help.xero.com/help/resources/FromSagetoXero.pdf

Then buy some new laptops/desktops of your choice. I wouldn't bother with a domain for 4 of you.
 
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I would put it in a VM like ESXI if you still have to keep 2003 although I haven't put that particular OS in a VM myself I suspect it would work OK. You could still use 2003 as file server or you could then install Xpenology in a VM to give you a Synology NAS setup as a file server.

You could actually locate the files for Sage on this although the Sage program itself would reside in 2003. I don't really see benefit of this though, but it would be possible.

You could also RDP into the server/ or client VM's of XP from other PC's and work on Sage inside VM. This way you could allow your users to have whatever windows OS they wanted as long as they can RDP in some way.

Also you could install something like Untangle to protect your network.
The other options are purely mentioned to make further use of the new hardware you purchase.

This though would mean a little time spent configuring your OS , but you could make backups easily and deploy quickly should you need to.

Another way would be to run Server 2003 in HyperV or Virtual box.
 
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I am sorry it is Sage200 so SQL etc all a must.

I am thinking of various options.

1. Sage online but expensive + generic server for our small files 50 gb ish.

2. Virtual server altogether very expensive

3. New server with a 2003 virtual in it. Is this possible? Always thought one server on one domain?

4. Go the full whack, latest sage 200, latest server and upgrade all clients to windows 7. However this is extremely expensive and will cause a pain on our custom bits in Sage.

At the moment I'm like number 3.
 
The problem you have with going virtual is that you don't really gain anything if you're installing ESXi on one host and then running a single VM on it pointed to local storage, you still have a single point of failure, and getting around this is very expensive for no real benefit to you.

Have you have a price back for Sage 200 online? That would be where I'd start first of all.
 
If you're not making enough money using Sage 200 to cover £350 per month then move to something else that does what you need it to do and costs less.

Buying a single box and virtualizing Server 2003 is probably the worst way of solving this problem that's possible to opt for. What version of SQL Server are you using?
 
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What is it that you do? That will help people give better advice. Do you have any options for better internet connectivity? You can get a 10Mbps leased line for under £300 a month in most locations.
 
The problem you have is that SBS2003 R2 (I'm assuming you're on R2) goes end of life in 2015. And your license for SQL Server 2005 Workgroup isn't valid when used outside of the SBS install.
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/sbs-2003-faq(v=ws.10).aspx#BKMK_Licensing said:
Can I separate the components of Windows SBS 2003 R2; for example, install Exchange or SQL Server on another server?

You may not separate the software for use on more than one operating system environment under a single license, unless expressly permitted. This applies even if the operating system environments are on the same physical hardware system, such as by using virtualization technology.
Click to expand...

And if your SBS 2003 R2 Premium install is OEM then you aren't licensed to virtualise it since it's tied to your original server hardware. Once you've solved all these issues to run a relatively lightweight Sage 200 install it's going to have cost you more than taking out the subscription and solving your internet connectivity issues.
 
I think Sage 200 online with like a 3G backup should do the trick tbh.

Really trying to get a way to have this pushed online and think having a 3g backup would do the trick. And then the server will be a lot more simple.

Internet issue is purely down to the location/
 
You can get a leased line to almost anywhere. Although even if you have a DSL line it shouldn't be dropping, just slow, so you can probably get that part of it resolved without spending a fortune.
 
Caged said:
If you're not making enough money using Sage 200 to cover £350 per month then move to something else that does what you need it to do and costs less.

Buying a single box and virtualizing Server 2003 is probably the worst way of solving this problem that's possible to opt for. What version of SQL Server are you using?
Click to expand...

This.

£350 a month is not a lot when you factor in your time, bills, and the cost of the hardware. Running that lot properly is going to cost you £3k a year anyway
 
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