Dell’s Guide to Server Basics

If you’re a small-business owner with multiple computers, it is probably time to consider investing in a
server. Servers help keep your data secure and organized and will help you run your business more
efficiently. Servers provide your business with a single solution for

 Centralized Email management

 Consolidated Internet connectivity
 Internal Web site development
 Remote access monitoring
 Mobile device support
 File and printer sharing
 Backup and restore

. . to name just a few

Choosing the right server solution starts with understanding how the server will be used. What type of
applications will it be running? How critical are these functions to your company?

Click on the questions below to learn more about servers:

1. What is a Server?
2. When do I need a Server?
3. Why do I need a server?
4. What type of Server do I need?
4.1. Why Tower Servers?
4.2. Why Rack Servers?
4.3. Why Blade Servers?
5. Server hardware configuration explained
6. Server Software
What is a Server?

Simply puut, a server is a typically a more powerfful computerr than your avverage deskto
op. It is
specifically engineered d to deliver in
nformation an
nd software tto other com
mputers that aare linked to iit by
a networkk. Servers havve the hardware to manag ge Ethernet-c
cabled or wirreless networrking, usually
through a router.

Servers arre built to han

ndle heavier workloads
w an
nd more appllications takin
ng advantage
e of the specific
hardwaree to increase productivity
p and
a reduce downtime.
d

Servers allso offer remote-management tools, which

w means an IT person
n can check uusage, and
diagnose problems fro om another lo
ocation. Thatt also means you can perfform routine maintenance
e
such as adding new ussers or changging passworrds.

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When do
d I need a server?
Start by asking yourself these questions to unde
erstand when
n it's time to invest in a server:

 Are you usingu two or more compu uters in yourr business?

By sttoring and orrganizing dataa in a core lo
ocation, you ccan access an
nd
share files easily and
a manage business info ormation more efficiently..

 Do you have
h a mobile e workforce??
Businesses with a mobile worrkforce (emplloyees who w work from hoome
or frequently travvel) definitely need a serve
er. Your employees can
remo otely connecct to the com mpany networrk and accesss information
n and
resources, no ma atter where th hey are.

 Do your employees
e s hare docume ents between multiple
commputers? If so,, you risk losiing important files, not to mention havving
multiple
m versio
ons of vital do
ocuments. Se ervers provide e a centralize
ed location too store and
organize impo ortant docum ments,

 Can
C you afford to lose valu uable files an
nd data?
Can
C it be repla aced or resto
ored?
A server can help you get organize
o data
a and help
protect your business
b from
m lost and corrrupted files.
Yoou can back up informatio on from yourr sever to a
dedicated bac ckup and recoovery system. Then, if
soome of your important bu usiness data iss accidently
deleted, lost or
o stolen, you can be confident your
files are safely backed up and that you canc restore
th
hese files again. With the multiple
m hardd drives on a
seerver and you ur backup sysstems, you caan be
coonfident thatt a crashed haard drive wonn’t wipe out
yoour system again.

 Do
D you need to
t host your own Web sitte?
A Server lets you manage and
a develop your
y own we
eb site so you
u can conduc
ct business m
more
ea
asily.

 Do
D you need to
t share acce
ess to peripherals, such aas printers an
nd fax machin
nes?
Se
ervers let you
ur entire offic
ce have accesss to these pe
eripherals. Plus, servers ta
ake the load o
off
yo
our local com
mputer and put the jobs in
nto queues to
o print or fax next in line.

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k to Top
Why do
o I need a se
erver?

Investing in a server en
nables 

 Yoour employees to share software toolss and

ac
ccess compa any databasess on- and offf-site. You
caan better manage additionnal computers and
so
oftware applications, as well
w as contro ol access
th
hat employeees and devicees have to cerrtain
in
nformation.

 Yoou to control access to seensitive inform

mation,
su
uch as financcial records an
nd personnel
in
nformation, by
b storing it aw
way from pry ying eyes. It
alllows you to better manag ge firewalls and virus prottection, helping you preve
ent unwanted
d
in
ntrusions. Pro
otection is esp
pecially impoortant when yyou have a m mobile workfoorce.

 Yo
ou can easily
y add platform
ms, such as customer rela tionship man nagement (CRM) software e and
ac
ccounting programs, whic ch enable you to schedule e group mee etings, share information, and
manage
m clientts and vendorrs. They also allow your employees to send group emails and fa axes
an
nd organize customer
c contacts and cu ustomer dataa in one locattion.

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k to Top
What ty
ype of a serrver do I ne
eed?

The serveer you choosee should refleect the numb ber and type oof application
ns you want tto run on it. YYou
need to know
k how ma any users (clients) it will have. Many co ommon appliications – such as print se erving,
sharing office docume ents like Word d and Excel files
f – impose e such light p
processing deemands that a
single low
w-cost serverr may be ablee to handle yo our entire co mpany with eease. Other ttasks, like hossting
large data
abases or imaage libraries, require more e processing horsepower along with big, fast hard d disks
and capac cious networrk pipes to match.

When buy
ying a server there are thrree considera
ations: 

1. Se
erver type: To
ower, Rack or
o Blade?
2. Hardware
H con
nfiguration
3. Se
erver softwarre

Towers, Racks or Bllades?

You can choose from the following three types o
of servers: 

Tower Servers
S
This is the
e most basic of servers on
n the market. It costs and takes up as m
much space a
as the average
desktop. Tower
T serverrs are great fo
or small busin
nesses that

 Have
H limited space
s concerns and need
d centralized processing
without a data room
 Need
N easier monitoring
m an
nd maintenan
nce of netwo
orked resourc
ces
 Want
W to reduc
ce susceptibiility to intrusion and attac
ck through a
central lo
ocation

A tower iss most typicaally recommeended for you ur first server.. You will alsoo be able to c
choose the
number of
o hard drivess and processsors on your server.
s For an
n office with less than 25 employees, a
server witth one processor and 2-4 hard drives should
s be suffficient. If you
u have more than 25
employee es or if you're
e planning to run data inte
ensive applicaations, a server with two p processors an
nd 4-
6 hard driives is recom
mmended.

ervers
Rack Se
This syste
em stacks the
e servers in ra
acks in much the same waay that a CD rrack stacks C
CDs. This is a
space-savving option but
b is more su
uited for com
mpanies that

 Want
W to maxim
mize space in
n a centralized data centerr
 Need
N flexibility
y to mix and match serverrs to match
ap
pplications an
nd workloadss
 Require large dedicated
d sto
orage interna
al to the serve
er.
Rack servvers are bette
er for small bu
usinesses tha
at are well-ve
ersed in the w
world of serve
ers or a medium-
sized bussiness that req
quires more servers.
s

Blade Servers
This syste
em is the most compact server
s of the bunch.
b This sserver was naamed for its u
ultrathin shap
pe.
Multiple blade
b servers can fit vertic
cally into a sin
ngle enclosurre, sharing ceertain hardwaare compone ents
like poweer supplies. Because
B of th
heir ultra-commpact size, yo ou can fit mo
ore servers intto less space
e.
Consolidating a traditional server infrastructure e into space- and power-ssaving blade enclosures m means:

 More
e processing
 Less space
 Less power
 Less time and mo
oney spent on
n management

Blade serrvers are grea

at for businesses that requ
uire much larg
ger computin
ng capacity, o
or for businessses
that plan to develop a data center.

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Server Hardware
H Configurat
C tion

Servers usse the same basic

b architec
cture or conffiguration as your desktop
p computer. H
However, a sserver
has enhannced hardware features su uch as

 Multiple
M multi-
-core processsors
 Fa
aster memory options forr increased ap pplication pe rformance
 Multiple
M hard drives
d for increased data capacity
c and redundancy
 Sp
pecialized ne
etworking carrds

. . . and more.
m

Sy
ystem boarrd

The system bo oard, also refe

erred to as a ‘motherboarrd’, is the com
mputer's main
n circuit boarrd to
which
w all the other
o components of your server are c connected.

The major com mponents on n the system board

b include
e the processsor (or CPU), supporting
d the chipset, memory, exxpansion slotss, a hard drive
circuitry called e controller, and input/ouutput
(I//O) ports for devices suchh as keyboard ds, mice, and printers. Som
me system bo oards also inc
clude
addditional buillt-in features such as a gra
aphics adapteer, SCSI disk controller, or a network
in
nterface.

Processor
P

The processorr is the centra

al brain of the
e server. The speed and nnumber of pro ocessor in yo
our
se
erver has an enormous
e im
mpact on your server’s abillity to supporrt application
ns. Processorss are
co
ontinually ch
hanging and itt can be diffic
cult to determ
mine which oone is right fo
or your applic
cation.
Yo
ou should coonsider three main feature es when seleccting a proce
essor.

Clock speeds
This is how fast the
e processor operates,
o usu ally measured in
gigaheertz (GHz). Geenerally, the faster the be tter, that is, sservers
with higher speedss deliver betteer performan ce. This mayy
transla
ate into the ability to supp
port more simmultaneous
Outloo ok accounts, handle more e web requessts during peaak
deman nd periods orr perform faster queries o n your custo omer
databaase. Buying a higher frequ uency proces sor improvess
currennt system perrformance bu ut also helps e
ensure your sserver is able
e to handle fu
uture
 demand.
 
Core count
The number of physical processors within the processor itself. Today, most server
CPUs have two or four cores. Multiple cores enable better multitasking on servers that
will run multiple applications. For example, virus scans may run on one core while data
backup is handled by another independent core.
 
Cache size
Each processor has built-in high speed memory located directly on and close to the
central processing unit (CPU). Larger cache size reduces the frequency that the CPU
needs to retrieve data from the system memory that sits outside of the CPU. For most
applications, this improves the responsiveness of the system and provides a better user
experience. Typically, CPUs with higher core counts and frequency have larger cache
sizes to provide optimal performance.

Memory

When you open a file or document, your server needs a place to temporarily keep track of that
file. It uses high-speed specialized chips called random-access-memory, or RAM. The actual
file is saved to your hard drive once you ‘save’ the file. RAM is designed for fast access and
quickly remembers where the file is stored in your permanent hard drive system.

A general rule of thumb is to add as much RAM as you can – the more RAM available, the
more operations your server can handle at the same time, without having to access the hard
drives (which are slower than the RAM on the system board).

Storage, or Hard Drive System

Hard drives provide your server with a large library of all the files it can access. Think of it like
an ever-expandable file cabinet. The size and type of hard drive systems depends on just how
much data you need to store.

Internal Storage
Most servers are configured with a very large hard drive much like the hard drive in
your desktop. However, server hard drives are specially designed for fast access times
and the ability to add multiple hard drives internally.

Eventually, you may need to add more hard drives and attach external hard drive
systems.

RAID
Redundant Array of Independent Disks – combines hard drives into one large, logical
storage system that writes data across more than one disk for greater reliability. To
use a RAID hard drive system, you will need to include a Dell PowerEdge Raid
Controller (PERC) card which manages the data writing across these disks.
 Network Controller

The network connection is one of the most important parts of any server. The network
controller manages the inputs and traffic from the clients (other computers) in your office.

Power supply

Because a server usually has more devices than a typical desktop computer, it requires a larger
power supply (300 watts is typical). If the server houses a large number of hard drives, it may
require an even larger power supply.

Then you need to consider which form factor options will fit your needs: Tower and Rack or Blade.

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Server Software
S

ments of a server’s operatin

Requirem ng system an
nd application
n software difffer from those of a desktop
computer. A server is better
b able to
o share data from
f multiple
e people secu
urely and red
duces bottlen
necks.

For most small to med

dium business, Dell recom
mmends pre- installed Win
ndows Server 2008 family of
operating
g systems for your server. Windows Serrver operatin g systems caan be pre-insttalled at the
factory be
efore the servver is shipped
d to your offic
ce which is n
not only less e
expensive tha
an purchasing at
retail, butt also alleviate
es the hassle of installing the
t software yourself. In aaddition, pre--installed OS
software has been fullly tested by Dell
D engineerss before it leaaves the facto
ory and is inc
cluded in Delll’s
support agreements.
a

Centralized
C Authentica
ation
One
O of the big ggest benefitss of a server is
i that it can hhouse a
ce
entral user diirectory. It co
ontains the usser names an nd
passwords of all
a the emplo oyees in the company.
c All the
desktop system ms on the ne etwork are co onnected to t he
se
erver which allows
a users to
t log into an ny desktop on n the
network with their
t user nam me and passw word. Their fiiles and
se
ettings will ap
ppear as if theey were sittin
ng at their owwn
co
omputer. This functionalitty is crucial fo or security annd
provides the fooundation for many otherr facets of ne etwork
co
omputing.

Fiile Sharing
The central usser directory can
c also be usedu to allow
w or deny access to certainn files. A normmal
mall‐businesss server will have
sm h file share
es available th
hat contain u
users’ personaal files as welll as
sh
hared files that other users can access when necesssary. By dedicating a sharre to each user,
th
hey can storee sensitive andd private info
ormation in a place that on nly they can access.

Bringing
B Em
mail In-Housse And Implementing Mobile E‐M
Mail
Adding a serve
er and configuring it to haandle e‐mail ttasks brings aall of your e‐m
mail in‐house
making
m users’ e‐mail access faster and keeping
k sens itive information within th he company’ss
doors. In addittion, by moving your commpany’s e‐maiil to a local seerver, you can enable e‐m mail
ccess to yourr mobile deviices, such as a Windows M
ac Mobile phone e, BlackBerry or Dell Strea
ak.

Centralized
C Application
ns
Additional bussiness applica
ations such ass an inventorry or custome
er resource m
management
ap
pplications caan be run fro
om your serveer and used bby your emplooyees while kkeeping the d data
sa
afe on the server's redunddant storage. In most busi nesses, these
e applicationss are the key to
th
he company, and keeping them safe an nd sound is aan absolute re
equirement, especially as the
business growws.
 Data
D Backup
p
One
O of the mo ost importantt services a se erver provide
es is
backing up your business critical
c data.  In the event o
of a
atastrophic fa
ca ailure, fire, orr flood, that data
d can meaan the
difference between keeping the doors open o or closiing
hem for good
th d. Backup sofftware runnin ng on the servver
makes
m copies of the serverr's operating system
s and f iles to
th
he tape or oth
her external storage
s devic
ce. Once com mpleted,
th
hese backupss can be store ed off site in a secure locaation.

Build
B An Intrranet And Extranet
E
A simple intran
net site for yo
our business could house quick links to
o forms, com mmonly used files,
an
nd informatioon for your employees, ass well as serve
e as a central point for disstributing
in
nformation thhroughout the e company.

Virtualizatio
V on
As your server network and d infrastructure grow, youu may find thaat some of yo our servers arre
unning a single application
ru n. It may be using
u only 60
0-70% of its p processing ca apacity. You ccan
ta
ake control of this under-utilized serve
er capacity byy creating virttual machine es on a single
se
erver throughh a specialize
ed software syystem known n as ‘virtualizaation’. So onc
ce you start
in
nvesting, you can continue e to get moree out of yourr investment w without adding more
in
nfrastructure.

If you hav
ve... If you need... Chooose...
Fewer than
n 15 Winndows Server 22008
Shared files,
f printers an
nd remote acceess
users R2 FFoundation
Winndows Small
Fewer than
n 75 A turn-k
key solution thaat includes sharred calendars, email, collaboration,
Busiiness Server® 22008
users remote access
a and virtuualization
Stanndard
A turn-k
key solution thaat includes sharred calendars, email, collaboration, Winndows Small
Fewer than
n 75
remote access,
a virtualizzation and linees of business aapplications succh as Busiiness Server 20008
users
customerr relationship management
m (C
CRM) Premmium
Unlimited
Winndows Server 22008
number off Shared files,
f printers, virtualization
v and
a remote acceess
R2 S
Standard
users

usiness needss to exchange

If your bu e large files with
w other com mpanies or c clients, you caan also use your
server to house these files and allow access to outside
o entitiies through aan extranet. M
Many email
providers restrict the size
s of emailss. Direct file trransfers may be the only w way to distrib
bute some
informatioon

If you're spending
s a lo
ot of time moving information around yyour organizaation, if you’rre having trou
uble
wringing real efficienc cies out of your current co
omputers, or if you have c
concerns abo out data safetty, it's
time to geet your first server.

Let us sho
ow you how adding a servver to your sm
mall businesss network is ssimple with D
Dell.

View Deell Server Solu
utions