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Need the right server
- Thread starter Tecque
- Start date
Do you need to OCR the documents (for, example, full text searching?) What sort of scanner are you planning on using? Are you in a Microsoft environment, or are your users running Linux, Mac, some other form of Unix?
Do you have/have you looked at document management software, or are you just planning to toss raw PDFs into a directory somewhere?
Assuming you're already running MS stuff, You might want to give Julie at Columbiasoft ( a call at (503) 274-0504, and I'm sure she'll be happy to help you out.
Just a warning, if you want to do "paperless office" right, it's probably going to cost more than you're expecting to pay if you've just got five users.
Do you have/have you looked at document management software, or are you just planning to toss raw PDFs into a directory somewhere?
Assuming you're already running MS stuff, You might want to give Julie at Columbiasoft ( a call at (503) 274-0504, and I'm sure she'll be happy to help you out.
Just a warning, if you want to do "paperless office" right, it's probably going to cost more than you're expecting to pay if you've just got five users.
NickFerrar
MIS
Aside from the technical issues mentioned above much depends on how much data you intend storing.
Assuming you're talking gigbytes and not terabytes I'd go with a Dell PowerEdge 2600, dual CPU, 1-2GB RAM, RAID 5 (using 15k rpm disks if IO speed a big factor), redundant PSU, LTO drive, ARCserve.
Assuming you're talking gigbytes and not terabytes I'd go with a Dell PowerEdge 2600, dual CPU, 1-2GB RAM, RAID 5 (using 15k rpm disks if IO speed a big factor), redundant PSU, LTO drive, ARCserve.
Nick,
I think he needs to nail down exactly what he's going to do before he specs/buys anything.
The above solution is overkill if he just plans on scanning PDFs and tossing them in a directory somewhere. (2 CPUs and 2GB ram for a file server handling 5 users? He may as well buy a PV725 NAS and save four or five grand.)
OTOH, if he goes with some kind of database driven document management system he WILL need beefier hardware, 15kRPM disks for performance, etc.
I think he needs to nail down exactly what he's going to do before he specs/buys anything.
The above solution is overkill if he just plans on scanning PDFs and tossing them in a directory somewhere. (2 CPUs and 2GB ram for a file server handling 5 users? He may as well buy a PV725 NAS and save four or five grand.)
OTOH, if he goes with some kind of database driven document management system he WILL need beefier hardware, 15kRPM disks for performance, etc.
- Thread starter
- #5
I also consider a PE 2600 dual a bit too much to go paperless and share it btw 5 users.
Here's my advice, if you are in the US, you could get a proper Dell PE 1600 SC SCSI, Perc 4 RAID controller, 2 x 73GB U320 10K drives, single P4 2.8Ghz (dual capable), and a few more goodies all for under a grant. As for the document management system software, I advise you to contract someone else to build a simple web application that will allow collaboration btw your small team and access the documents, such application is easily doable, and your team can access it simply with a web browser, you could even access your documents from home or somewhere in the world.
I own a PE 1600SC as specified above, but costed me £2000 here in the UK, but the same machine in the US sales for under $1000, over here in the UK you even have to pay for the air you bread.
I'd say this is a really good suggestion and inexpenssive.
Let us know.
If you haven't heard of it, then you most likely don't need it.
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Here's my advice, if you are in the US, you could get a proper Dell PE 1600 SC SCSI, Perc 4 RAID controller, 2 x 73GB U320 10K drives, single P4 2.8Ghz (dual capable), and a few more goodies all for under a grant. As for the document management system software, I advise you to contract someone else to build a simple web application that will allow collaboration btw your small team and access the documents, such application is easily doable, and your team can access it simply with a web browser, you could even access your documents from home or somewhere in the world.
I own a PE 1600SC as specified above, but costed me £2000 here in the UK, but the same machine in the US sales for under $1000, over here in the UK you even have to pay for the air you bread.
I'd say this is a really good suggestion and inexpenssive.
Let us know.
If you haven't heard of it, then you most likely don't need it.
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NickFerrar
MIS
A PE1600SC spec'd like that is over $4000 in the US - add a tape drive for $1000 and some other items like a redundant PSU and you're looking at $5500, Dell kit is cheaper in the US but it's not as big a difference as people think. Bear in mind on the US site you need to manually update the price after changing the config whereas on the UK site it auto-updates.
Dual CPU's might indeed be overkill - I was basing that on the document management software being a heavy-weight app but realistically for 5 users a basic doc managment/OCR package would suffice.
You wouldn't want to go below 1GB of RAM though - Windows 2000 sucks up RAM for file caching and often doesn't release it properly (or in a timely fashion). File servers we have with 512MB struggle much more than similar spec servers we have with 1GB RAM.
A PE1600SC is an OK choice, the PE2600 isn't hugely more expensive though once you start adding RAID and redundancy options.
Dual CPU's might indeed be overkill - I was basing that on the document management software being a heavy-weight app but realistically for 5 users a basic doc managment/OCR package would suffice.
You wouldn't want to go below 1GB of RAM though - Windows 2000 sucks up RAM for file caching and often doesn't release it properly (or in a timely fashion). File servers we have with 512MB struggle much more than similar spec servers we have with 1GB RAM.
A PE1600SC is an OK choice, the PE2600 isn't hugely more expensive though once you start adding RAID and redundancy options.
Well the price I gave is the price it was costing a month ago, when I bought my PE 1600SC SCSI, no redundat PSU or tape drive thou, I don't need them.
Tecque could even go for the IDE version of this server, I don't consider a redundat PSU that much critical for a 5 user local network, as for backup, you could get a DVD burner and get away with it for 1/4 of the price of a tape drive.
As I said, a month ago a PE 1600SC SCSI, RAID crtl, 2x73GB U320 hot-plug drives, single P4 Xeon 2.8Mhz (dual capable) with the extras I specified above would cost in the US just under $1000, I was just about to ask someone from the US to send me one, but I would loose the warranty and I don't know anyone over there that I thrust the task, so I had to contribute £2000 for the Great Britain Rip-Off to get the box. I'm very happy with it.
There's also the Dell lower level and cheaper servers, I mean the 400's and 600's but they lack several server specific features such as ECC memory and a few others.
You might be alright with a PE 600 if all you want is to go paperless.
If you haven't heard of it, then you most likely don't need it.
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Tecque could even go for the IDE version of this server, I don't consider a redundat PSU that much critical for a 5 user local network, as for backup, you could get a DVD burner and get away with it for 1/4 of the price of a tape drive.
As I said, a month ago a PE 1600SC SCSI, RAID crtl, 2x73GB U320 hot-plug drives, single P4 Xeon 2.8Mhz (dual capable) with the extras I specified above would cost in the US just under $1000, I was just about to ask someone from the US to send me one, but I would loose the warranty and I don't know anyone over there that I thrust the task, so I had to contribute £2000 for the Great Britain Rip-Off to get the box. I'm very happy with it.
There's also the Dell lower level and cheaper servers, I mean the 400's and 600's but they lack several server specific features such as ECC memory and a few others.
You might be alright with a PE 600 if all you want is to go paperless.
If you haven't heard of it, then you most likely don't need it.
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NickFerrar
MIS
Somehow I can't see the price having risen 300%+ in a month, a sub $1000 PE1600SC with the spec you mention is either a mistake or a very limited special offer, it has nothing to do with Dell being a rip-off in the UK compared with the US. Heck a 73GB SCSI HDD is a $600 option in itself.
Don't know about limited special offers, but when I bought my server, I actually checked the US price, and it was $9xx can't be precise, in the UK it costed me £1800 + £200 of extended warranty, that was the price in 1st of August when I ordered it.
I did not said Dell is a rip-off in the UK, what I meant was that every price in the UK is a rip-off compared to the US and most European countries, but that's the way it goes.
I don't know if Dell was having some kind of promotion at the time, but $600 just for the SCSI drives seams a bit too much, maybe you are right, and I was just lucky to get it at a lower cost.
If you haven't heard of it, then you most likely don't need it.
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I did not said Dell is a rip-off in the UK, what I meant was that every price in the UK is a rip-off compared to the US and most European countries, but that's the way it goes.
I don't know if Dell was having some kind of promotion at the time, but $600 just for the SCSI drives seams a bit too much, maybe you are right, and I was just lucky to get it at a lower cost.
If you haven't heard of it, then you most likely don't need it.
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