setting up office network - server, etc.

[phil79]

Hello,

We are hoping to move offices shortly and I'm considering what our IT costs are going to be.

At the moment we have an ordinary desktop computer acting as a server to 3 other computers and too be honest it’s not very reliable. We are also hoping to add two new members of staff so that will be 5 computers running in the network.

Therefore I want to consider buying a basic (affordable) server which is capable of doing the job. As with all businesses today - cost is a major factor, especially for those operating in the construction sector as we want to keep overheads under control!

I see dell offer a "starter server" package - click here

Can anyone advise what sort of costs I'm looking at for:

- buying basic server with backup facility
- software, including anti virus, windows, etc...
- how much to get an IT consultant to install all this
- anything else you recommend?

Of course, I've only mentioned using Microsoft exchange - may be there is a more cost effective way of having a network? Cloud computing? Or something else??

Thank you.. P

 

[KM-Tiger]

Your best bet, IMHO, is to get some quotes from companies that can:

Properly assess your requirements.
Propose a solution to meet those requirements with costs.

If this system is going to be business critical, ie your business will suffer if it's down, then consider ongoing maintenance/support. Much of that is done remotely these days and can be highly cost effective.

Whereabouts are you?

 

[brownie]

Where are you located?

 

[leemason]

These days the CPU spec of most (even cheap) servers is easily sufficient for standard file and print serving. As are rule of thumb for a network of 5 PCs the server that you have suggested should in essence easily do the job. However you may also want to consider the following:

Remember that you need CALs (Client Access Licenses) for Window server for workstations to access it (so the option for 5 CALs on the Dell site will be needed for you 5 workstations).
XP Home is no good for working with a Windows server in a domain. You need XP Professional or the equivalent Vista or Windows 7 release.

RAID disks (this makes the server continue to work if a disk fails). RAID1 would be adequate I think (this requires two mirrored disks).

You will also need a decent network switch (everything will plug into it). You can get a decent one for about £150.00-£200.00 (Netgear, Linksys, or possible out of the Dell PowerConnect, etc).
A Decent firewall/ADSL router (Ideally you could get one that supports VPNs so that you can safely access your information from outside the office).

Exchange will need more that the base memory and if you are looking at Exchange. Exchange is not a cheap option and there are alternatives. I personally use Desknow for e-mail (www.desknow.com) which provides many of the same sort of features but at significantly lower cost and will run on much less powerful hardware.

Personally I am a big fan of Linux but if you want to look after all of this yourself then I probably wouldn't recommend it for this size of installation. I do have customers that I support with this size of installation running a Linux server with e-mail, file sharing, printer sharing, etc but I tend to support these (which I obviously charge a monthly fee for).

For backups I would personally recommend looking at offsite backup. This will remove the day to day hassle of using removable disk or tape (and tape can be pretty expensive still). This also has the advantage of "built in" disaster recovery as the data is held offsite.

I am based in SW London for if you any anywhere near there I'd be happy to come and have a chat about it all.

 

[phil79]

Thanks all for replying.

I'm based in N Ireland.

leemason - you mentioned online backups - who do you recommend?

Yes, I'm going to contact a couple of local companies and have a chat with them about what we need. Then they can provide a fixed price for doing it all.

I'd like to think we could have a new server/network, including installation for about £2,000. May be I'm not being realistic....

Thanks

 

[brownie]

Remember that you need CALs (Client Access Licenses) for Window server for workstations to access it (so the option for 5 CALs on the Dell site will be needed for you 5 workstations).

The Foundation version is not licensed via CALs, it is licensed via user accounts and by default is licensed for up to 15 user accounts.

In certain scenarios (ie. if running a license server, terminal services, etc.) CALs are required. I wasn't clear about the Foundation version so checked on MS's site.

Phil, I could not assist without meeting you and running through this in more detail face to face, it's not somethine that can be done at a distance online. I would recommend you find someone in your locality who can assist.

I might be going mad, but haven't we got someone on UKBF who's based in Ireland?

 

[leemason]

Thanks all for replying.

I'm based in N Ireland.

leemason - you mentioned online backups - who do you recommend?

Yes, I'm going to contact a couple of local companies and have a chat with them about what we need. Then they can provide a fixed price for doing it all.

I'd like to think we could have a new server/network, including installation for about £2,000. May be I'm not being realistic....

Thanks

That's actually our business. If you are interested in online backups let me know and I can set you up with a trial account.

I don't know about N.Ireland but I have a business associate in Eire that I could put you in touch with if you are interested.

 

[phil79]

Yes it would really need to be someone in NI, not Eire.

I've been through some of the threads and I think, as you rightly pointed out that there is someone from NI on the forums who does IT.

 

[brownie]

Found who I was thinking of, Comspec http://www.ukbusinessforums.co.uk/forums/member.php?u=6574

http://www.comspeccomputers.co.uk/

 

[KM-Tiger]

leemason - you mentioned online backups - who do you recommend?

I'll answer for Lee: because it's the only method that effectively deals with all the risks. More here, but we don't do it as a standalone service, Lee does.

 

[RedEvo]

Why not go the whole hog and use a SaaS model. If you only need to create documents (spreadsheets, docs etc) then Google Docs and other similar services are from free to cheap. Available from anywhere, backed up for you.

If you want to run a server then you could avoid license costs by using a Linux server and Open Office. Linux has become simple to run even for non techs.

Just a few thoughts. So many businesses 'invest' in servers they don't need when other more cost effective, lower maintenance and free options are out there.

d