Choosing the right server for your business is a crucial decision that is likely to impact your operations, productivity, and general user experience at work.
With the Windows Server 2012 end of life in October 2023, many organisations are required to look for a new server solution. However, with such a vast range of options available, it can be challenging to understand the features that best meet your business needs.
Below, we’ve put together a list of useful tips you might want to consider to make choosing the right server easier and clearer.
Rule Out Cost In Your Consideration
Price would once have been perhaps the key consideration in choosing the right server for your business. But not anymore.
Tax deductions announced by the UK Government, running until the 31st of March 2026, have made all IT hardware fully tax deductible. This means that whatever a business spends on a server can be reclaimed from its profits.
So while there is still an upfront cost, this is an amount that a business can get back. And that means businesses should consider investing more as a result.
Determine Your Requirements
The first step in choosing the right server for your business needs is to explore your requirements.
How many users will the server be supporting and how will the affect your decision between different form factors? Do you have space to store a server, or would a cloud solution work better to support your operations? Will you be running high data usage applications that require advanced processing power or more basic applications that can be supported on a lighter level?
You’ll need to ensure that your choice has enough memory and storage to cater to your organisation’s demands.
Choose the Right Operating System
The operating system you choose depends both on the applications you plan to run, as well as your team’s level of expertise. Windows is a popular choice among businesses operating with Microsoft applications, though Linux is often used for web servers and database applications.
Consider Scalability
Scalability is another essential factor to consider to ensure you’re choosing the right server for your business. As organisations grow, they need solutions that can scale to meet their needs.
Solutions with less scope for scalability are likely to stunt development, so it’s advisable to consider the upgrade and expansion options of your solution in order to guarantee its longevity.
Cloud-hosted servers are a popular choice due to their scalability capabilities. You always have the option to scale up or down depending on your requirements without having to purchase new hardware.
Evaluate Security Features
Security is a key priority for most businesses, and your server; at the heart of your organisation should be highly protected.
To ensure you’re choosing the right server, look for solutions that offer hardware-based security features such as Trusted Platform Modules (TPMs), Secure Boot, and hardware encryption. Also consider software security features such as firewalls, intrusion detection, and antivirus software.
A hosted server solution provides further security measures; by being based in a secure data centre, the risk of physical damage or theft is next to zero.
You’ll also have the added benefit of not being responsible for your server security, so in the unlikely event that anything were to happen, you’d be fully covered by your provider.
Choose A Form Factor
The form factor of your server will depend on the available space in your office and your specific requirements.
Servers normally come in four main form factors: with rack and blade servers being the most common occurrences.
Smaller organisations with limited office floor space may be inclined to choose a tower server, and larger organisations might use a mainframe server.
Of course with a cloud-hosted server, this won’t be a consideration. For organisations with limited space, a hosted server provides a secure solution that removes the cost of maintenance.
Summarising Your Considerations
In conclusion, choosing the right server for your business needs is important to ensure an optimal working experience for your users. By considering your requirements, operating system, scalability, security features, and form factor, you can make an informed decision, and get the server that works best for your organisation.
Akita has supplied, implemented and maintained servers for over 25 years. For more information to make choosing the right server easier:
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