Mac Mini Server - Is it really good enough?

Hi
The new Mac Mini Server configuration may be great for small workgroups wanting to collaborate on Wikis, calendaring and a little bit of file sharing, but when it comes to backup, this little baby really doesn't cut the mustard. So, how to backup your valuable data? AIT-2 Turbo drives have Firewire interfaces, but AIT technology is/is being discontinued and LTO is only available as SAS or SCSI and there's no way to connect it to a Mac Mini. For a small amount of data, an Iomega REV drive can be used, but if you configure a Mac Mini Server as per Apple's suggestion on their store with a Promise SmartStor DS4600, all of a sudden you've got 3TB of data storage and no effective way of backing up.
Has anybody else thought about this and perhaps thought of a solution? I'd be interested to know.
Paul

Hi,
I would say in this situation Time Machine is your best bet, backing up to either a USB/Firewire device, or a NAS box of some kind.
Failing that, you can get USB tape devices from a wide range of suppliers (they are actually standard SATA/SAS/SCSI devices usually, and simply feature a converter in the enclosure).
I think the real questions you need to be asking here are:
-How critical is the application/data you are thinking of hosting on your Mini?
+-If it's highly critical, you need to look at investing in a high end NAS/tape device, or maybe finding a way to cluster two Minis together...+
+Remember that your chosen backup solution depends on how you need to protect the data. For example, if you are simply wanting to protect against data loss due to a hard drive failure, a solution that mirrors the disk directly (or at the end of every day) will be good.+
+If you need to have periodic snapshots of your data going back over x number of days, your system will automatically become alot more complex and expensive.+
-Is the cost of what is required in securing the data going to make the option of selecting a different system (such as the Mac Pro or a low-end/second user X-Serve) more cost effective.
+-The Mini is intended to be a desktop machine. Look at any server on the market (PCs too!) and you will see that even low-end workgroup servers tend to feature at least 2 disks!+
I hope this helps,
Jon

Similar Messages

Please help me decide on a Mac mini server or MacBook Pro i7 for Logic

Hi folks,
I've really taxed my brain trying to figure out what's the smartest way to go. I'd love to know what any of you think I should do.
My current setup:
2007 MacBook Pro 2.33 GHz Core 2 Duo
2GB Ram
FSB 667 MHz
M-Audio ProFire 610
WD-Passport external drive for samples and audio files
Logic 8 (looking to upgrade to 9)
Record 1.5
Various AU plugins including Omnisphere, Miroslav Philharmonic, Amplitude 2, FM-8, BFD 2 and Korg Legacy Analogue
Final Cut Studio (latest version) for modest HD editing but sometimes multiclips as well
I tend to use lots of tracks - around 10 vocals, 4 guitars and lots of software instruments.
As you can imagine, Omnisphere runs like a dog past 2 instances and BFD practically makes everything grind to a halt.
Since going to Record 1.5, rewiring also seems to be unusably slow.
I'd love a new iMac or Mac Pro but I make several plane journeys to visit my Mum in another country. My solution has to be mobile, although I have got monitors, a keyboard and mouse that I can use at my Mum's.
As far as I can see, there are 2 options:
1
A new MacBook Pro 2.66 Ghz i7
2
A Mac Mini Server 2.66 Ghz Core 2 Duo
Physically, the Mac Mini is the better option:
- much lighter in my hand luggage so I could take it in addition to my existing MacBook Pro.
- more USB ports
My worries with getting a Mac Mini are:
- Is it powerful enough or at least significantly better than my MacBook Pro?
- Will it run the latest version of Final Cut Studio (a little off-topic, I know but I couldn't seem to find any straight answers elsewhere).
- Is it noisy when under a heavy workload?
- There is no Superdrive so can I use my MacBook Pro to install the software DVDs across a network?
Thanks for reading this. Let me know what you think.
Kind regards,
Steve

The mini will be about as powerful as your current MBP. You could have more RAM in the mini, 2 GB is certainly not enough for any serious work.
People on this list were initially(LP 9.0.0) underwhelmed by the MBP i7 dual core, it is a step up from your older MBP, but don't expect miracles. Get lots of RAM/a SSD for optimum performance.
9.1.3 may have improved performance, not sure,
Fast and relatively cheap: iMac i7 quad core. Not very portable, though.
Not ideal either is your M-audio interface, its drivers are below par making your Mac sweat more than necessary.
My 2c,
Zip

Monitor Not Going To Sleep on Mac Mini Server With Lion

Summary: I am attempting to configure a Mac Mini Server that runs OS X Lion. This machine was originally shipped with OS X Lion; it is not an upgrade. My current specific problem is that my Viewsonic VX2835wm monitor will not go to sleep when the minutes setting on the Display Sleep setting for Energy Saver has been reached. Instead, the screen goes blank for a couple of seconds and is replaced with a blank blue backlit monitor. (Ironcially, the display sleep menu cautions: "Never letting your display go to sleep may shorten its life".) I very much want and need the ability to have my monitor go to sleep so as to save energy and to extend the monitor's life for as long as possible.
Additional Background: I have had a couple of calls with Mac support and they have been unable to tell me whether this is a "design feature" or a flaw in the Lion OS because they have had no similar reports and they do not have the latest hardare available running Lion Server to test to see if this happens with other monitors. (They also, of course, don't have the VX2835wm monitor.)
I do, however, know the following:
(1) My HDMI monitor is connected to my Mac mini via a DVI KWM switch (ATEN CS1784) such that the HDMI output from my Mac is converted to DVI (using the DVI to HDMI converter that came with my Mac Mini) and is then run through the KVM and then converted back to HDMI (using a full pin DVI to HDMI cable). However, I have tested the monitor with a straight HDMI to HDMI cable running directly from the Mac Mini to the monitor and it has not changed anything.
(2) The Lion operating system correctly recognizes (in Hardware / Displays) the model of my ViewSonic monitor.
(3) I have a MacBook Pro running Leopard (OS X 10.5.8) that is connected to the same monitor through the same KVM switch (by way of a BookEndz docking station) which properly shuts down the monitor when there has been no activity for however many minutes are set in the Display Sleep setting under Energy Saver. (Indeed, all I want is the same functionality on my Mac Mini that I have enjoyed for the last two years with this MacBook Pro.)
(4) When fully connected to the KVM, if I switch from my Mac Mini to my MacBook Pro and my Mac Mini display goes to sleep while I am working on my MacBook Pro, when I switch back to the Mac Mini, my monitor backlight will be off (and the power light will be standby yellow rather than the blue on) until I wake my computer up by touching the mouse of keyboard. I wonder if this may mean that the Mac Mini's signalling of the change in status from on to standby is somehow dysfunctional.
(5) Shutting down the server functions (and other open applications) has no effect.
I would greatly appreciate feedback from anyone out there running a Mac Mini with Lion regarding whether or not their monitors go into standby mode when the Display Sleep time is reached (please note whether or not you are running the Server or Client version, whether or not it is a new install or upgrade, and what monitor you are using).
Thanks in advance to anyone who can help.

No, I didn't solve the problem. The monitor still goes to sleep with WIndows but not with my Mac Mini. About 8 months ago I basically wore out the power switch on my monitor so I bought a wireless power switch to shut it off at the outlet. The VX2835wm monitor itself is now starting to fail as well-- a couple of times it's gone through a weird sequence of flashing screen colors on power up and ended up in an overscan mode (that took me for ever to figure out how to fix). I have decided to replace my VX2835wm with a Dell u2412m once it fails for good partly because I really want to keep the 16:10 resolution (very hard to find these days) and partly because I want to see if a different make of monitor will go to sleep properly based upon my Mac Mini power down settings.

What's wrong with Mac Mini Server's quality ?

Hi,
I am an owner of the Unibody Mac Mini Server 2010 for my business server.
When i bought it after two days use the HD started to fail. One with bad blocks and the other one with I/O errors. OSX froze many times. Did many tests and it showed bad blocks on one HD the second just failed some times.
The HD that are included are HTS725050A9A362.
I took the Mini to an Authorized Repair place. They replaced one HD. Gave it back to me. I then realized that they only replaced one HD. Took it back again and then they replaced the second one as well. All fine took it back home installed everything again.
I have now use it for 3 months. Couple of weeks ago i woke up to a message box saying that the Mini has beed shutdown by some error. Could not find out what that error was but things looked to be running ok so i left it like that.
Today i woke up to a dead mac mini. It would not boot. It was sitting with the spinning weel so i made a reset of the RAM or whatever it's called you know Command + P + R. That made it go a little bit further. It now stopped with the Folder icon blinking meaning it could not find a boot disk. Hmmmm i thought. This can only be a disk error. Tried to boot with DVD and do repair but it did not work out.
To rescue my data from the second disk i booted in target mode and used my iMac to copy stuff over. Let me tell you that, that was not easy. Target mode worked like ****, maybe because of the first disk which was damaged dunno. When at last i opened the folder with my stuff the copy speed was ok. Funny enough i also managed to copy data from the disk that could not boot in target mode but i can't boot it so the disk is not really dead.
Now my problem is this. What to do ? I have warranty but i have a feeling that theese HD are not reliable so if Apple repairs the Mini again they will replace with the same HD which i am not interested in. I am willing to invest in 2 new HD myself which are not the same brand but i don't want to void the warranty and open the box.
I should add that i have 2 x 4gb memory inserted which is not Apple. I bought exactly what Apple recommend on their web page (CORSAIR 4GB DDR3 1066MHz model. CM3X4GSD1066 G). I do not think this has anything to do with the problems i see but i thought I'll mention it.
I can also mention that after first time the HD died i kept an eye on the temperatures and i had HD temperatures around 35C. The CPU was around 48-50C and the server was idling at 80-85%.
What can you recommend me i do ? Maybe all the problems that i have are just ****** quality by Apple. Maybe they squeezed the internal components to close and they run into these problems. I just don't know what i should do. It's not like that this is a computer...it's a server and MUST run continuously.
donnib

Are you certain the RAM is not causing this issue?
Was the original (2Gb-4Gb) RAM fitted when the 1st issue appeared?
Apple does not offer the current Mac mini + server with 8Gb RAM. It is likely that non OEM RAM can cause corrupted data on the HDD(s).
Is it not possible to fit the original RAM, format/reinstall the HDD and test the Mac mini the way it was shipped?.
The current Mac mini is positioned as a home or small business server plus there is no hardware reporting as found in an X-Serve. The HDD(s) used are as reliable as one would expect from a portable drive. Like the previous Mac mini's, the current models are reliable with few known issues until you replace parts that Apple may not have used in testing.
Since the arrival of the late 2009 mini, Apple uses sensors on the original HDD(s) which cause problems (either no boot or loud fan noise) if a different brand or model is fitted. The HDD needs to be compatible with the sensor(s). The 2010 Mac mini has taken it even further in that respect covering each drive with Mylar wrapping as well as the sensor. Apple really does not want users to swap parts out.

Mac Mini Server (Announced October 20, 2009) - Does it do RAID1?

Apple announced the Mac Mini Server today for $999. It comes with two SATA hard drives, but there is no mention of RAID1. Does it do RAID1? This would be a good enough reason to get it. This could be a perfect media device - iTunes server, streaming video to TV via DVI/USB-to-HDMI adapter or DVI/optical-digital-audio_out-to-HDMI adapter, Time Machine backups, and file storage with RAID1. Without RAID1, this is just a mini sans the DVD drive.

Dunstan Cooke wrote:
I'm interested in a RAID 1 configuration to use as a file server in our office. 500 gb will be plenty of space for us, and I will couple this with an external 1 TB drive to use as a Time Machine backup.
Given that presumably the OS will come preinstalled on one of the drives, how do you then create the mirror of this? If I reinstall the OS from an external device, does the installation provide the option to create the RAID 1 array to install to?
When you boot from the Mac OS X install DVD (included with the Mac mini) you have the option to run Disk Utility to format/erase/partition or configure Software RAID. You can then once you have created your RAID configuration proceed with the installation in to that volume.
Note: The Disk Utility program (the GUI version) does not let you partition a RAID drive, so if you have the two 500GB drives, you can only have a single 500GB volume (RAID1) or a single 1TB volume (RAID0). It is possible (but not recommended by Apple) to create two or more RAID mirrored partitions on a pair of drives via the command line. To do this in this case, would involve booting from an external drive which has Mac OS X installed on it, then you can run the Terminal to access the diskutil command line tool.

Mac Mini Server Hangs, Gets Sluggish

New 2012 Mac Mini Server (2Gig i7 with 8GB memory). Server App is off, and I'm using it as a standalone unit. Running iTunes on an external Thunderbolt RAID. Running Safari with several tabs open. The iMac generally gets irratic within an hour or so: iTunes may be sluggish, Safari slows or stalls, then eventually the whole system hangs with the fan running at full speed. I have re-set the contoller by removing power for a while and then re-initializing. No help. Seems for a loaded iMac something is very wrong. Any guesses.

1. This comment applies to malicious software ("malware") that's installed unwittingly by the victim of a network attack. It does not apply to software, such as keystroke loggers, that may be installed deliberately by an intruder who has hands-on access to the victim's computer. That threat is in a different category, and there's no easy way to defend against it. If you have reason to suspect that you're the target of such an attack, you need expert help.
2. All versions of OS X since 10.6.7 have been able to detect known Mac malware in downloaded files. This feature is transparent to the user, but internally Apple calls it "XProtect." The recognition database is automatically updated once a day; however, you shouldn't rely on it, because the attackers are always at least a day ahead of the defenders.
The following caveats apply to XProtect:
It can be bypassed by some third-party networking software, such as BitTorrent clients and Java applets (see below.)
It only applies to software downloaded from the network. Software installed from a CD or other media is not checked.
3. Starting with OS X 10.7.5, there has been another layer of built-in malware protection, designated "Gatekeeper" by Apple. By default, applications and Installer packages downloaded from the network will only run if they're digitally signed by a developer with a certificate issued by Apple. Software certified in this way hasn't actually been tested by Apple (unless it comes from the Mac App Store), but you can be reasonably sure that it hasn't been modified by anyone other than the developer. His identity is known to Apple, so he could be held legally responsible if he distributed malware. For most practical purposes, applications recognized by Gatekeeper as signed can be considered safe.
Gatekeeper has, however, the same limitations as XProtect, and in addition the following:
It can easily be disabled or overridden by the user.
A malware attacker could get control of a code-signing certificate under false pretenses, or could find some other way to evade Apple's controls.
For more information about Gatekeeper, see this Apple Support article.
4. Beyond XProtect and Gatekeeper, there’s no benefit, in most cases, from any other automated protection against malware. The first and best line of defense is always your own intelligence. All known malware circulating on the Internet that affects a fully-updated installation of OS X 10.6 or later takes the form of so-called "trojan horses," which can only have an effect if the victim is duped into running them. The threat therefore reduces to a battle of wits between you and the malware attacker. If you're smarter than he thinks you are, you'll win.
That means, in practice, that you never use software that comes from an untrustworthy source. How do you know whether a source is trustworthy?
Any website that prompts you to install a “codec,” “plug-in,” or “certificate” that comes from that same site, or an unknown one, is untrustworthy.
A web operator who tells you that you have a “virus,” or that anything else is wrong with your computer, or that you have won a prize in a contest you never entered, is trying to commit a crime with you as the victim. (Some reputable websites did legitimately warn users who were infected with the "DNSChanger" malware. That exception to this rule no longer applies.)
“Cracked” copies of commercial software downloaded from a bittorrent are likely to be infected.
Software with a corporate brand, such as Adobe Flash Player, must be downloaded directly from the developer’s website. No intermediary is acceptable.
5. Java on the network (not to be confused with JavaScript, to which it's not related) is a weak point in the security of any operating system. If a Java web plugin is not installed, don't install one unless you really need it. If it is installed, you should disable it (not JavaScript) in your web browsers. Few websites have Java content nowadays, so you won’t be missing much. This setting is mandatory in OS X 10.5.8 or earlier, because Java in those obsolete versions has known security flaws that make it unsafe to use on the Internet. The flaws will never be fixed. Regardless of version, experience has shown that Java can never be fully trusted, even if no vulnerabilities are publicly known at the moment.
Follow these guidelines, and you’ll be as safe from malware as you can reasonably be.
6. Never install any commercial "anti-virus" or "Internet security" products for the Mac, as they all do more harm than good. If you need to be able to detect Windows malware in your files, use the free software ClamXav — nothing else.
Why shouldn't you use commercial "anti-virus" products?
Their design is predicated on the nonexistent threat that malware may be injected at any time, anywhere in the file system. Malware is downloaded from the network; it doesn't materialize from nowhere.
In order to meet that nonexistent threat, the software modifies or duplicates low-level functions of the operating system, which is a waste of resources and a common cause of instability, bugs, and poor performance.
By modifying the operating system, the software itself may create weaknesses that could be exploited by malware attackers.
7. ClamXav doesn't have these drawbacks. That doesn't mean it's entirely safe. It may report email messages that have "phishing" links in the body, or Windows malware in attachments, as infected files, and offer to delete or move them. Doing so can corrupt the Mail database. The messages should be deleted from within the Mail application.
ClamXav is not needed, and should not be relied upon, for protection against OS X malware. It's useful only for detecting Windows malware. If you don't need to do that, avoid it. Windows malware can't harm you directly (unless, of course, you use Windows.) Just don't pass it on to anyone else.
8. The greatest danger posed by anti-virus software, in my opinion, is its effect on human behavior. When people install such software, which does little or nothing to protect them from emerging threats, they get a false sense of security from it, and then they may do things that make them more vulnerable. Nothing can lessen the need for safe computing practices.
9. It seems to be a common belief that the built-in Application Firewall acts as a barrier to infection, or prevents malware from functioning. It does neither. It blocks inbound connections to certain network services you're running, such as file sharing. It's disabled by default and you should leave it that way if you're behind a router on a private home or office network. Activate it only when you're on an untrusted network, for instance a public Wi-Fi hotspot, where you don't want to provide services. Disable any services you don't use.

How to use webmail address book on Mac Mini Server with Lion Server.

I have a Mac Mini Server with Lion Server installed; the webmail is setup and working but I can not get the address book to work.
I have followed an instruction from this website on how to activate the address book icon in webmail but can not add any addresses. Is there something that needs to be activatied before it will work?

No, I didn't solve the problem. The monitor still goes to sleep with WIndows but not with my Mac Mini. About 8 months ago I basically wore out the power switch on my monitor so I bought a wireless power switch to shut it off at the outlet. The VX2835wm monitor itself is now starting to fail as well-- a couple of times it's gone through a weird sequence of flashing screen colors on power up and ended up in an overscan mode (that took me for ever to figure out how to fix). I have decided to replace my VX2835wm with a Dell u2412m once it fails for good partly because I really want to keep the 16:10 resolution (very hard to find these days) and partly because I want to see if a different make of monitor will go to sleep properly based upon my Mac Mini power down settings.

Mac MINI server crash and burn???

I have the new 2012 Mac MINI server. I think it needs repairs and I am wondering if anyone has seen this.
My start up volume crashed and the system froze. The computer automatically tried to restart but the Mac will not boot.
I get the "three beeps" indicating bad ram.
I purchased new RAM (2 chips) an 8 gig chip and a 4 gig chip. The system ran for a while and crashed again.
I decided to re-install the system on the other 500 GIG HD (The MINI server comes with two 500 GIG HDs).
Crash, crash, crash. then the MINI will not boot and I get the "three beeps" again.
After a lot of research, I installed one RAM chip in the top slot. I was able to install Lion on the second hard drive.
All the RAM chips are good if you use them in the top RAM slot ONLY. If I use them in the slot closest to the motherboard the computer will not start.
THE WORST THING is that the bad RAM caused my main drive with all my important info on it to fail right in the middle of a "Time Machine" back up.
The time machine back-up folder is corrupt so I lost 12 years worth of data and will not be able to restore.
Now what do I do?

Well not exactly DOA. I had it for 3 months before it blew up. That was long enough for me to get rid of all the old back-ups and use an external for the new time machine back up which is corrupt thanks to the messed up RAM. The exteral 2T drive with the time machien folder is damaged. DiskUtilities suggests that I reformat the drive. I used DiskWarrior and mannaged to get it back up, but the only back up available is about a month old and I do not know if it will work or not.
I purchased the extended Apple Support for an additional $150.00 so I will be sending the computer back to Apple. I purchaed it online at the Apple Store.
I have been using a Mac sence 1988.

Mac mini server 2011 with regular lion - lion freezes all the time!

I have installed a regular OSX lion 10.7.3 on my brand new mac mini server 2011.
I called support today they told me it would not be possible but with a bootable USB im just able to install a regular OSX lion since I dont like the server features and bought the machine for development ( coding ).
When doing an internet recovery OSX lion server will be installed. This is higly unwanted but I guess the installer checks the hardware and installs the server version since that would be the "correct" version.
Now it keeps locking up everytime, even after a time machine backup I did and hoped that clean install would have fix this,
problem still persist.
When it lockups and I reboot on login screen I can:
only move the mouse up and down
when I type 1 keystroke on keyboard the password field is filled with multiple charachters dotted out because of the password field
3 questions
Is running a reguler lion ( not server version ) on a mac mini 2011 really not supported causing my issues? It feels like unlogic since the regular lion installer installed just fine, it should have given a warning that its not possible to install on my mac mini server therefore I see this as a "ok" it can be installed without problems?
Anyone has regular osx lion on mac mini server without any problems?
Is there anything I can do to determine the cause of the freezes? The console does not mention anything
This is higly frustrated, I dont dare to fully spend some hours to restore the system to a workable state for me ( install apps, coding enviroment, xcode etc) since it feels unstable and i dont want to spend time and have to do everything over again :S

1. Go to System Preferences.
2. Select Engery Saver
3. Slide the setting for Computer sleep to never.
4. Slide the setting for Display sleep to never (though I believe the display should be able to sleep without much issue.
5. Make sure the following are not selected:
a. Put the hard disk(s) to sleep when possible.
b. Allow power button to put the computer to sleep.
6. Make sure the following are selected:
a. Wake for network access
b. Start up automatically after a power failure
c. Restart automatically if the computer freezes.
Good luck!

Want to upgrade to Maverick 10.9 from 10.8.5 Mac Mini Server

I have a 2012 Mac Mini server running 10.8.5 with 2 - 1 TB drives. Sadly I have not really set up my server with anything really important. I was hoping to do a fresh install of 10.9 and then be selectve as to what I re-install including a fresh install of the server app. Then I can take my time getting it set up properly. In the past I remember having an issue with permissions I had set on some external drives from an older MAC. Can't remember all the details but if I remember correctly it kept telling me that I did not have permission to access MY files. A real PIA. What should I do to prevent this from happening unless I am remembering the issue incorrectly? Looks like the update is free but the server app is not, correct?
I just want to start fresh without locking myself out of my external DROBO drives where my pictures, music and videos reside.
Any tips or help would be appreciated.
Thanks
-Zack

Download the Mavericks installer (make a copy now, as installation will delete it), and follow this sequence to make an external bootable installer. Purchase and download Server.app version 3. Get the local DNS server configured and working first. Don't use .local as your top-level domain, and preferably use a real and registered domain that you've registered or have permission to use, or a subdomain of a real and registered domain that you have registered or have permission to use.
As for managing the file ownerships and protections on external devices, that's usually done voa chmod and chown commands (and chmod -R and chown -R) at the command line, or via the Get Info command via the GUI. Usually setting yourself as the owner of the objects is typically enough.

File lock in MAC mini server

Normally when users opening a CAD file from MAC mini server, when other user open the same CAD file it will show “read only” and can’t be save. But one of the computer did not show read only messing when someone using the same CAD file. This computer able to open & save file, however the saved files may be missing in the server. Is there any wrong in the mac mini server ?

Well, I don't know the answer really, if you don't get some good help here, it might pay to repost in the Server area...
https://discussions.apple.com/community/servers_enterprise_software/os_x_server
Or I can ask this one be moved if you like.

HELP! Mac Mini Server Journaling issue during reinstall

H E L P !
Mac Mini Server Journaling issue...
Hi there,
I have taken on a nearly new Mac Mini Server running Snow Leopard.
It has a RAID set up already.
When I try to reinstall the OS from the original disk the installation willl not let me select the drive as it says it is not journaled.
I have then opened Disk Utility and selected the main HD (there is one HD plus 2 Raid slices listed).
From this point on there are no options available:
The only 2 tabs above the right hand window are 'First Aid' and 'RAID'.
First Aid shows all 4 options greyed out.
Selecting the main HD and then going to File>Enable Journaling will not work as 'Enable Journaling' is greyed out.
Deleting the RAID does not work either, as the HD (mirrored RAID set) and both RAID sclices have the padlock icon next to them.
Can anyone help?
I really need to reinstall the OS and set the machine up with a TimeMachine Capsule asap!
Many thanks,
Haberdashery

Sorted!
All is good now : )

Uninterruptible power supply for mac mini server

can anyone recommend a good UPS for my mac mini server? i am a novice with these things so any advice appreciated: what i should look out for, will i need extra cables or can i just plug a uk plug directly into a ups, price v performance (there is a big range)
thanks

I would recommend you go with a small Smart-UPS, something like the APC Smart-UPS 750VA LCD. The 750 is a line interactive unit, offers avr boost/drop, surge protection and outputs a sine wave. This unit will provide you data center quality protection.
The Mac Mini consumes about 110W of power, so with the SMT750 you'd have over 35 minutes of run time on the unit alone. If you have routers and switches, it would reduce the run time a bit, but you can protect more equipment.
I wouldn't recommend going with the Back-UPS series of UPSs. They're not really designed for sensitive equipment and don't offer nearly as much protection as much the Smart-UPSs. We can't use them here at all because they don't get along with most Mac power supplies because they don't output a sine wave. Overall, they're just not as good as the Smart-UPSs.
We use the North American version here, in Europe you'd be looking for a SMT750I, "I" being the international edition.
We use a variety of these UPSs here at our office, they work like a charm.
Message was edited by: JoeJoe2009

Mac mini server - MATLAB - Apple Remote Desktop

Hi all,
I am thinking of buying a Mac mini server, upgrading it to 8GB of RAM memory. I will use it mainly as follows:
- to be my HT"PC"
- to make intensive use of MATLAB
I know (think) that I will have no problems with the HTPC part, but I am wondering if it will be powerful enough for MATLAB. I have a mid-09 MacbookPro and it works fine there. And, I would like to access my MATLAB from the University, so, I need to know if Apple Remote Desktop will be fast enough to work properly with my server at home...(my uni internet connection is great, and my domestic connection is fine). I have read that ARD is quite good working with computers that are in the SAME network, but i don't know how it compares when the computers are not in the same one.
Thanks in advance

As far as being able to run Matlab, there should be no issue.
Accessing it over a network might be. I have never done it
myself, but some software, especially pricey stuff, can some
how identify it is being accessed over a network and refuse to
run. I have run into this occasionally when connecting and
attempting to run things on a PC remotely.

How to set up my mac mini server to use two drives seamlessly?

I have a mid 2010 mac mini server, with OSX Lion installed. It has dual 500gb hard drives.
I've been moving all my important files to it, and I've always assumed that once I filled one disc, it would seamlessly transfer over to the other and continue backing up. This does not seem to be the case.
I'm at roughly 495gb of data, and when I try to move a 10gb file onto my server, it tells me that I don't have enough disc space to continue the operation.
What can I do to make use of both drives?
-Thanks

It sounds like what you're asking for is to have the two drives in a RAID 0, where the two 500 Gb drives look like a single 1 Tb drive. I'm not sure the exact procedure for installing RAID 0 on a mini's internal drives, but the process would involve backing up, reconfiguring for RAID (which destroys all data,) restoring data from the backup, and more risk than I would personally find acceptable. I'd expect to lose a full day with the backup and restore steps. I can guarantee, there will be pain.
Instead, I'd suggest looking at what's consuming the 500Gb, and seeing if there are particular folders that can be moved. For example, a shared folder is pretty easy. Copy it over. In file sharing setup, edit the share to point to the new location. Make sure remote users disconnect, and reconnect to the "new" share. When you're happy there is no data loss, delete the old location.
User's home directories can also move, but the process has a few more steps, and depends on how the accounts are built (local vs. OD)
If the majority of the data is in a single "your backup files" folder, shared or otherwise, then I would just set up a second folder on the second drive and write to it, leaving the first alone. If it is truly a backup, then you could make the first folder read-only at this point for extra protection. If you go the 2 folder route, keep in mind your boot drive is operating with 1% free space, I like my drives to have at least 15% free, and OS drives more like 25% (you'll find some range in recommended %-free, but most will agree 1% is too little) so move SOME stuff to the new folder, before closing the old.

Mac Mini Server - Is it really good enough?

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