The Savvy Server - as a File Server
File Servers are the backbone of most organizations. They offer a central location
where you user can store important data and allow your company to manage access to
files and network-accessible applications. But most importantly, once you have a
central location to store everything you can backup your data.
When Microsoft talks about File servers they generally talk about Total Cost of
Ownership (TOC) and Return On Investment (ROI). These are the kinds of terms you
need to use when talking someone into make a major investment in a server like
Windows Server 2003 where you are charged an annual fee for every user on your
network. The Savvy Server delivers a significantly lower TOC as discussed in this
comparison.
Other measures of a good file server
Other companies speak about uptime, speed, security and ease of use.
These are the hallmarks of a good file server and understanding them
will help you master the cost of ownership and receive a strong
return on your investment.
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Uptime
Reliability is extremely important
Having a system that doesn't require a reboot is
essential business. HiTechSavvy recently logged
into one customer's server to find that it had
been running a phenonmenal 485 days without a
reboot. Looking back at my logs we had experienced
two issue in the past year, but nothing that stopped
the file server and nothing that required a reboot.
I'll go out on a limb and say that Microsoft server
cannot offer this kind of reliability.
There are a number of Microsoft resellers that
offer a 99.9% uptime guarantee, but this isn't all
that impressive. It means they the system will be
down for only 8.76 hours per year... or an entire
work day. Of course, this does not include power
outages and boneheaded stunts by your staff.
The Savvy Server offers the tremendous reliability
of a stable Linux kernel, UPS support and an easy
to use interface for configuration.
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Speed and Throughput
Savvy Server outperforms Window Server 2003.
Now, overall, the Savvy Server performs 2.5 times
faster than the Microsoft alternative. But speed
isn't the only thing you should care about. Equally
important is the number of simultaneous users your
file server can accomodate. The Savvy Server is
able to handle 4 times as many users as the Windows
alternative without seeing a dropoff in performance.
These benchmark results may seem extraordinary,
but they have been repeated by several indepentent
organizations including
ITWeek, PC Magazine, ZD Labs
and others. Microsoft has produced test result that
indicate they have a faster system, but be cautious
when reading these. They use a 4 and 8 processor
system that small amd medium business is not likely
to own. Their test systems easily cost as much as
an expensive Italian sports car.
More
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Security
File Security is essential to a healthy file server
The Savvy Server provides several mechanism for securing
the integrity of your file including a built-in anti-virus
scanner to periodically sweep the system for bugs, a simple
and automatic backup system, built-in firewall and VPN system
and more.
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Ease of Use
Setting up a new shared drive is simple. It's a matter of
selecting a name for your new share, a groups of users to
participate and clicking okay. The user can either map
drive manually using the Microsoft "WORKGROUP" method or
optionally use a Microsoft "DOMAIN" system.
Note: While the Savvy Server is capable of providing both
modes of file sharing (workgroup/domain) not all Microsoft
operating system can participate in a domain-based system.
"Home Edition" are not able to work inside a domain. You
will need the "Professional Edition" to participate in a
domain.
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Other Products
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VPN - Let your remote employees connect securely
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Secure Email - Secure the sending and receiving of email.
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Disaster Recovery - Automated backups and proven recovery methods.
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UPS Support - UPS can issue a clean shutdown message to the server.
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Advanced Journaling - No worries about power failures even without a UPS.
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