Small businesses have a lot on their plate. They have to keep up with the demands of the internet, customers, and employees. It can be difficult to know where to start when it comes to finding the right server for your business. Here’s an overview of some of the Best Server for Small Business you should consider when choosing a server.
The Best Server for Small Business have been gathered, best cloud server for small business, cost of setting up a server for small business, along with the best server for large business.
Whether you require a straightforward file server or a machine learning powerhouse, this page has a solution for you.
Best Server for Small Business
What is a Server?
A server is a computer that houses and communicates with software used by small businesses. Servers are used to store, process, and send email, take pictures, and other digital files. They can also be used to power the internet or act as a central point of communication for a business.
What are the Different Types of Servers
There are several different types of servers that can be used in small businesses: web servers, FTP servers, mail servers, database servers, chatServers, and social media managers. Amazon Web Services offers a wide variety ofserver options that can be tailored to your needs. You can also find server options from Google Cloud Platform and Microsoft Azure.
What are the Different Benefits of Choosing a Server
Some potential benefits of choosing a server for your small business include: : having faster access to data; reducing risk associated with technology investments; increasing resilience against cyber-attacks; minimizing customer service bullet points; reduced costs associated with using outside providers; increased efficiency when it comes to processing large orders or fulfilling requests from customers).
What to Look for in a Server?
Server processors are a important part of any server, as they are responsible for the speed and performance of the server. They come in different types, including Intel and AMD processors.
What Type of Operating System Is the Server Supplied With
Operating systems include Windows, MacOS, Linux, and FreeBSD.
What Type of Graphics Processor Is the Server Supplied With
Graphics processing units (GPUs) are special purpose hardware that allow a computer to display graphics smoothly. Some servers have ATI or Nvidia GPUs installed.
What Type of Memory Is the Server Supplied With
Memory is responsible for storing data on a server so that it can be accessed by the operating system and graphics card combo device(s). Server memory is usually DDR-II or DDR-III SDRAM which provides good performance when used with modern CPUs and GPUs.
What Type of Hard Drive Is the Server Supplied With
A hard drive is a storage device for data, typically 3 or 5 inches in size, that is connected to theserver via a SATA interface. A hard drive can store either digital files (of any type) or traditional disk-based files.
Cost Of Setting Up A Server For Small Business
Every company is different, thus we always advise scheduling a server consultation so we can create a solution depending on your precise requirements and spending limit. A small business dedicated server typically costs $100 to $200 per month to rent. A cloud server can be set up for as little as $5 per month, but most organizations would need to pay about $40 per month to have enough resources. For a small business, the price of a server for your workplace may range from $100 to $3000.
What is needed in terms of CPU, bandwidth, disk space, and memory will determine how much a small business server costs. There are also additional things to think about. RAID, DDoS defense, and the kind of hard drive used in the cloud server or dedicated server are a few of these.
Best Small Business Servers
1. Dell PowerEdge T20 [barebones]
The best small business servers do not have to be massive or expensive. Take the PowerEdge T20 for example; it has benefited from a wealth of knowledge derived from the 20 years of experience Dell has building servers. While the barebones version(opens in new tab) doesn’t have a hard drive, it’s certainly cheap – in the recent past, it has been priced at less than £100 (with cashback offers, that is – it’s always well worth keeping an eye out for these).
It has a Haswell-based Pentium processor that can clock up to 3GHz and supports up to 32GB DDR3 ECC RAM (note that this model comes with 4GB). Expansion capabilities include four SATA ports (32TB if you use 8TB hard drives), four I/O slots and 10 USB ports. Astoundingly for a PC of this price, you also get two DisplayPort connectors, a VGA one, two PS2 and one serial port. Other than a Gigabit Ethernet port, the other points of interest are a 290W PSU and an Intel-based RAID controller.
2. HPE ProLiant ML350 Gen10
The HPE ProLiant ML350 Gen10 comes from HP — the “E” at the end is for “enterprise.” It’s HP’s top-of-the-line tower server, sporting an Intel Xeon Bronze 3206R, 16GB of memory, a 500 watt power supply and four full-sized drive bays in its base configuration. Although the base configuration only comes with a single processor, the ProLiant ML350 can actually support two.
The Xeon 3206R inside is plenty to power an email server, network attached storage, or a database server, and 16GB of RAM helps. If you need more, you can configure the ProLiant ML350 much higher than its base configuration. That includes up to an Xeon Gold 5218R, 32GB of RAM and dual 800 watt power supplies.
As is the case with any good small business server, you can add your own server components, too. The Xeon processors, no matter the model you choose, support up to 1TB of ECC memory, and the ML350 provides 12 memory slots, giving you plenty of room to expand.
| Configuration | Cheapest | Most Expensive |
|---|---|---|
| Price: | Around $1,200 | Around $2,700 |
| CPU: | 1 x Intel Xeon Bronze 3206R | 1 x Intel Xeon Gold 5218R |
| RAM: | 16GB ECC | 32GB ECC |
| Drive Bays: | 4 x large form factor, 8 x small form factor | 4 x large form factor, 8 x small form factor |
| Power Supply: | 1 x 500 watt | 2 x 800 watt |
The base unit comes with a single drive cage for up to eight small form factor or four large form factor drives. However, you can add another two cages, offering space for up to 24 small form factor or 12 large form factor drives.
You can repurpose the machine, too. Eight PCIe 3.0 slots allows you to slot new cards in (including up to 100Gb Ethernet), and you can convert the tower into a 5U rack server. Powerful and highly expandable, the ProLiant ML350 is perfect for small business solutions.
3. Synology DiskStation
CPU: Intel Celeron J3455 | GPU: – | RAM: 8 GB | Storage: 4 TB | Weight: 5.02 pound
- ✚ Great performance parameters
- ✚ 8GB & 4TB SSD
- ✚ Numerous software options
- ✚ Simple configuration
- ✚ Sleek design
- — Price
$1399.00
This small business server deserves many flattering words because of well-developed business handling possibilities it offers to users. It is fitted with Intel Celeron J3455 1.5GHz quad-core processor and has 8GB of RAM. Using 2-gigabit ports, you can connect to a local network, while 2 USB 3.0 ports are meant for attaching external devices.
Knowing the struggles of the top LLC services, the developers did their best to create a server that can assist in many situations. Thanks to high data transfer rates and robust hardware, users can share and store Ultra HD media files in a trouble-free way.
4. Dell PowerEdge T30
There are so many different servers out there, and that means that you’ll sometimes have to sort through entire price lists in order to find the best small server for you. Just look at the Dell PowerEdge T30 – you can buy it either as a barebones or as a fully configured server.
Aimed at the entry-level/SoHo market, the T30 manages to fit a ton of expansion potential into a tiny, mini-tower-like chassis. It’s certainly not going to require a lot of space in the office, yet it somehow manages to cram in six internal disks, 10 USB ports, two display ports, and an HDMI port. It also boasts a swift quad-core Intel Xeon processor.
It even comes with a wealth of server features by default, which makes it a perfect alternative to an office workstation.
5. Lenovo ThinkSystem SR550
The Lenovo ThinkSystem SR550 is a small business server with enterprise ambitions.
Pros:
- Massive room to expand
- Excellent hardware selection across configs
Cons:
- Expensive
- Requires a server rack
The Lenovo ThinkSystem SR3550 is a 2U rackmount server, and it’s one of the most inexpensive ways to start building your server rack. It’s a highly scalable unit that offers all of the features a growing business needs: a lot of PCIe expansion, an array of hot-swappable drive bays, software RAID support and support for dual second-generation Xeon Platinum processors.
If you want room to grow, the ThinkSystem SR550 provides it. The base model comes with a single Xeon Bronze 3204 six-core processor, 16GB of memory and hot-swap drive bays for up to 12 SFF or 8 LFF drives. There’s also an option to expand the bays for up to 16 hot-swap SFF drives. The SR550 can support dual power supplies, too.
| Configuration | Cheapest | Most Expensive |
|---|---|---|
| Price: | Around $1,500 | Around $15,800 |
| CPU: | 1 x Intel Xeon Bronze 3204 | 2 x Intel Xeon Platinum 8256 |
| RAM: | 16GB ECC | 384GB ECC |
| Drive Bays: | 8 x large form factor, 12 x small form factor | 8 x large form factor, 16 x small form factor |
| Power Supply: | 1 x 550 watt | 1 x 750 watt |
Additionally, the SR550, along with all ThinkSystem machines, comes with Lenovo’s XClarity Controller. This embedded management engine makes it easy to perform server maintenance and automate mundane tasks. It works across ThinkSystem servers, too, allowing you to expand your hardware lineup in the future.
The ThinkSystem SR550 is a small business server with enterprise aspirations — and it will also work well for small businesses that just need a lot of computing horsepower. The base specs are more than enough to get started. However, with the wealth of expandability and Lenovo’s excellent XClarity Controller, the SR550 is also a great way to set a foundation for a larger data center.
Best Cloud Server For Small Business
Dropbox
Dropbox claims to serve more than 300,000 teams through their Dropbox for business cloud-hosting solutions. Expedia, Under Armour, Spotify and National Geographic Channel are a few of the well-known brands in Dropbox’s esteemed clients list.5 Beyond the cross-platform sharing, storage, sync, backup and seamless integration features, Dropbox allows file sharing even with users who don’t have a Dropbox account. The basic plan for individuals is free, offers 2GB of storage and comes with Microsoft 365 integration, allowing one to edit files directly through Dropbox. The Plus plan for individuals offers 2TB of free storage.6
The Standard Business plan offers 5TB of storage, with a standard charge of $15 per user per month for at least three users. It also offers full audit records of user activities, sharing, and controls. Business users get priority dedicated support.
Google Cloud Platform
Google Cloud Hosting is an excellent option for a small business cloud server. Known as AWS’s main competition, Google Cloud has millions of users and has many outstanding features for small businesses. Some features include its excellent support team, security, and continued network expansion.
The Google Cloud support team is reachable 24/7. Similarly, users with the Premium support plan can expect responses within 15 minutes, year-round.
As a result, this platform is constantly growing and offers encryption, independent verification, and more to make you feel safe and secure.
Amazon Web Services (AWS)
Amazon’s AWS offers a wide range of cloud hosting services. Plans include Pay as you go, Pay less when you reserve, Pay even less per unit by using more, Pay even less as AWS grows, and Custom pricing. “Pay as you go” allows one to pay only for the resources actually used, without any long term commitments or upfront costs. The “Pay less when you reserve” plan allows one to invest in reserved capacity, and later get discounts and savings. “Pay even less per unit by using more” allows one to get benefits of reduced costs with increased storage space and data transfer. “Pay even less as AWS grows” plan allows one to receive benefits when AWS optimizations result in reduced operational costs. Custom pricing, as you might expect, is for clients needing customized solutions.1 AWS claims its unique selling proposition (USP) in computation and dedicated application services, including website hosting, mobile data backup, business apps hosting and gaming. Pricing details vary widely across multiple product offerings, and one can start with AWS free tier to get a firsthand experience of services and expected costs.
Microsoft Azure
Microsoft Azure most commonly assists businesses with Paas, SaaS, and IaaS needs. One of the reasons so many users choose Azure is its speed. Azure makes creating and deploying applications, recovery data, and scaling a quick process. The number of premade tools, templates, and guides is readily available to users.
Another considerable benefit of this cloud server is that it provides flexibility in coding languages, locations, and service levels. As a result, having freedom and flexibility to choose your service level allows you to select the features you need without paying for the things you don’t.
To sum up, Azure’s security is also solid and comes with excellent disaster recovery capabilities.
Best Server For Large Business
1. HP ProLiant MicroServer Gen8
An effective server in basic tasks and functionalities.
- Price: $677.50 & FREE Shipping
- 2.3 GHz Intel Xeon E3-1220L
- 4 GB DDR3
- 2000 GB 7200 rpm Hard Drive
- Two USB 3.0 ports
- Two Gigabit network ports
- One embedded RAID controller
This server is very effective in many tasks such as file sharing, printer sharing, emails, web interface and database hosting. It comes without any operating system, though it offers compatibility with any inter-OS, such as Windows 10 and Linux it cannot run Apple OS x.
It comes with an integrated HP lights-out controller for remote management and diagnostics and comes with a choice of inter dual-core processor. Moreover, it has easily accessible memory slots with the ability to pull the motherboard out from behind.
2. Dell PowerEdge T30
Dell PowerEdge T30 server is the Clint Eastwood of servers- characterised by its stability & reliable delivery on every level. Dell PowerEdge T30 packs quote a punch with its large internal storage capability, stored into a mini-tower chassis. The server has been designed to consume minimum space while delivering efficient and stress-free operation.
Dell T30 consolidates applications & data running on different desktops, workstations and mobile devices, onto a single server for improved collaboration and productivity.
Dell PowerEdge T30 key features:
- Easier file sharing which improves collaboration among teams and streamlines workflow.
- Consolidate data stored on multiple devices in multiple locations to a single location.
- Small server size reduces physical dependency on space.
- Cost efficient alternative to storage.
- Easy backup and data recall capability.
3. Windows Server
Windows server is one of the best servers which can help you power your business. Whether you have just decided to choose a server for your business or working to harness your business. The Windows Server 2016 brings the latest cloud-inspired technologies to the everyday business. Moreover, Windows server contains good features that can help you to make existing resources so that your business can spend more time focused on bringing new solutions, services and experiences to your clients.
Windows server is designed to fit your business and despite having a good security and cloud storage, it contains the following features.
- Windows Nano Server
Nano Server is a pared down headless version of Windows Server. This Server will have a 93% smaller VHD size, 92% fewer critical bulletins and 80% fewer required reboots. In addition, Nano Server is a Windows Server installation options and it’s completely headless.
- Containers and Hyper-V Containers
Windows Server containers and Hyper-V containers are the latest buzzes in IT technology as they threaten to supplant virtualization as a core IT technology.
- Docker Support
Docker is an open-source engine that’s used for building, running and managing containers.
- Rolling upgrades for Hyper-V and Storage clusters
Rolling upgrades feature allows you to add a new Windows Server 2016 node to a Hyper-V cluster with nodes that are running Windows Server 2012 R2.
- Hot add & remove of virtual memory network adapters
Another great new feature in Windows Server 2016 Hyper-V is the ability to add and remove the virtual memory and virtual network adapters while the virtual machine is running.
In addition to these, it contains the following features:
- Nested Virtualization
- PowerShell Direct
- Linux Secure Boot
- New Host Guardian Service and Shielded VMs
- Storage Spaces Direct
4. VMware vSphere
VMware vSphere cloud powered server supports business workloads by providing an agile framework for your IT infrastructure. It’s a powerful, flexible and secure server that maintains the integrity of your data, application and infrastructure at all cost.
Its advanced security capability is powered by machine learning, which keeps updating itself as your process complicates and experiences challenges. As a result, businesses get better visibility, protection & quick response to adverse situations & incidents.
VMware vSphere helps companies in:
- Simplifying data centre functions and management
- Improve business efficiency by decreasing CapEx and OpEx costs with virtualisation
- Secure IT infrastructure, data & application with built-in security architecture
- Protect application integrity running on vSphere using machine learning and behavioural analytics
- Multi-office support capability, to connect remote & branch offices through virtualisation
Conclusion
Choosing the right server for your small business can be a challenge. By reviewing the different types of servers and choosing the right one for your needs, you can boost your business growth.