Time to upgrade to Xserve-Advice Please

Question

Hi,
I'm currently the default "IT" guy at my company. We are a small company without any kind of dedicated IT department. We started out 15-20 years ago with a single Mac and have grown throughout the years. We now have 16 stations with 4 of them being PCs. At first we had our network setup with a simple file sharing setup. When we need to share files, each computer would connect with which ever other computer we needed to. This worked ok for a while but then we had the problem of archiving all of our data. I would manually compile everyone's work on a specific project and back it up to an external hard drive. This was not the most efficient solution, but it was effective and we used this method for many years. We've recently expanded our business to include Maya work which is done on PCs. At the same time we introduced 2x 2TB Lacie Ethernet network storage devices. Now I have everyone working within the same folder on the Lacie drives. This makes my life easier as far as archiving. Part of the problem I've got now is with the PCs. We've had them for a few months now and I've never really gotten them fully integrated into our environment. I have a single PC at home, but the work environment has always been completely Mac based. Meaning I have some PC knowledge but really none as far as networking goes. I know that we need to get a server to accomplish a couple of different things.
1) Better integration of PCs and Macs
2) Improved Rendering for Maya (PC based Maya)-We are going to implement a render farm into the mix as well- we are currently looking at a Boxx system and an SGI system as well
3) Central Storage with backup
4) Improved speed (with the Lacie storage devices, there is some slowdown when first connecting)
5) Remote login--i.e. something like the ability to login from home and set up a render over the weekend
I would prefer to go with an Xserve because of my familiarity with Mac products. My problem is that when I look at the specs for the Xserve, I really don't know what anything is. I have no idea how to price anything for the boss.
It makes me feel like I am getting in over my head, but at the same time, I am confident enough in my abilities that if I get the correct system set up, I should have no problem administering it for our needs.
A) I imagine I'd want to go with the 8 core to start with
B) What kind of performance boost-and in what areas-would I get with upgrading to the 2.93 or 2.66 GHz?
C) I imagine I should get the most RAM we could fit into the budget?
D) what is the Solid State drive? Do I need it?
E) I can have 3 hard drives. How many do I need? why would I need more than one?
F) Extra power supply..I understand why this makes sense
G) XSan? what is it? do I need it?
We currently also only have everything connected via ethernet. What's the deal with Fibre channel? Do I need to install a Fibre channel card in each workstation plus run all new wiring? If so then this is a very pricey deal and way unrealistic as far as budget at this time.
I'm also wondering about the render farm. Will either a Boxx system or a SGI system integrate well with an Xserve when rendering PC Maya files? Would there be an option to configure an Xserve as a render farm? If so could I render PC Maya files on it?
Sorry for the long winded post. I'm lost and need some help from some experts. Hopefully there is someone out there who can lead me in the right direction.
Thanks for your help.
Phil

Answer 1

Hi
My two cents.
+I know that we need to get a server to accomplish a couple of different things+
Apart from load balancing etc you don't really mention anything that either a 3rd-Party product might provide and what you've already got in place.
+1) Better integration of PCs and Macs+
With the environment you're describing you don't specifically need a Server for this although it depends on what you want to achieve.
+2) Improved Rendering for Maya (PC based Maya)-We are going to implement a render farm into the mix as well- we are currently looking at a Boxx system and an SGI system as well+
Perhaps XGrid might fit the bill?
+3) Central Storage with backup+
Depending on what Configuration you choose (Standard, Workgroup or Advanced) this could be easily achieved with what's already built in to the Server OS. On a side note the XServe is not the Server. The OS is. OSX Server can be installed on any qualifying hardware. The XServe is dedicated Server hardware built specifically to perform a Server (with all that that means) role. Redundancy is built-in. With what you're describing perhaps a suitable MacPro would be better?
With the XServe you have to consider a rack as well as noise if a rack is not an option.
+4) Improved speed (with the Lacie storage devices, there is some slowdown when first connecting)+
This is probably due to the fact the drives are connected to a client machine and OS that is now not coping with the amount of client access required. I'm guessing someone is also working at that client mac?
+5) Remote login--i.e. something like the ability to login from home and set up a render over the weekend+
This might be possible with XGrid although you might have a real problem with bandwidth
+I would prefer to go with an Xserve because of my familiarity with Mac products. My problem is that when I look at the specs for the Xserve, I really don't know what anything is. I have no idea how to price anything for the boss.+
+It makes me feel like I am getting in over my head, but at the same time, I am confident enough in my abilities that if I get the correct system set up, I should have no problem administering it for our needs.+
Leopard Server is a whole new ballgame and if not approached correctly Apple's marketing slogan of "No IT Required" may seem like a sick joke
+A) I imagine I'd want to go with the 8 core to start with+
If you have the budget get the best you can afford
+B) What kind of performance boost-and in what areas-would I get with upgrading to the 2.93 or 2.66 GHz?+
This would depend on what you want and what you're expecting. You won't really know until some time has passed. Besides how could you compare it? Unless you buy and bench test them both you can't really know? It might be possible you know someone who has exactly the same environment as you, doing exactly the same work and wanting exactly the same solution. However if you use google you should be able to find some performance bench test results? Whether they're applicable to your environment is another question.
+C) I imagine I should get the most RAM we could fit into the budget?+
See (A)
+D) what is the Solid State drive? Do I need it?+
http://support.apple.com/kb/SP511
http://www.apple.com/xserve/features/storage.html
http://blogs.computerworld.com/newapple_xserves_offer_additional_ssdbay
+E) I can have 3 hard drives. How many do I need? why would I need more than one?+
See (A). To be honest only you would really know? With the optional Apple RAID Card you could have 3x1TB Drives as a RAID 5. This provides some measure of redundancy (which is not a back-up) as well as performance. However you could as easily use a MacPro that has the 4 drive bays. Potentially 3+TB of Storage. A simple rule of thumb would be: How much data do I have now? Does the Storage I have now cope with it? Will the amount of Data grow over time? Do I have enough storage to cope with that growth?
+F) Extra power supply..I understand why this makes sense+
The XServe can be built-to-order with two PSUs providing redundancy. You should factor in a UPS as well. You don't want a power cut to potentially ruin all your data?
+G) XSan? what is it? do I need it?+
http://manuals.info.apple.com/en/xsan/XsanGettingStarted.pdf
I think this would be way too much in terms of your environment as well as your budget. However read the pdf and come to a reasoned judgment.
+We currently also only have everything connected via ethernet. What's the deal with Fibre channel? Do I need to install a Fibre channel card in each workstation plus run all new wiring? If so then this is a very pricey deal and way unrealistic as far as budget at this time.+
No to the first two questions. Read the XSan pdf.
+I'm also wondering about the render farm. Will either a Boxx system or a SGI system integrate well with an Xserve when rendering PC Maya files? Would there be an option to configure an Xserve as a render farm? If so could I render PC Maya files on it?+
I have no experience of either of the two products you mention. Perhaps someone who does may post?
Does this help? Tony