Replacement server (DIY)

[Davit2005]

I'd up the RAM and virtualize. That seems a lot of roles on one server and I wouldn't want to host VPN on a DC.

 

Or how about getting a second server and keeping the original short term for redundancy, 2nd DC etc.., if it's running 2008 R2 it may have a few years left yet.

 

By the looks of it you haven't got any redundancy i.e. Hot Swap or dual PSU's. Not sure about the org you are in but this could cause lengthy downtime in hardware failure.

 

I'd be seriously considering a 2nd hand Dell or HP where you will have a purpose built server with hardware redundancy.

Edited March 22, 2017 by Davit2005

[RJohnson91]

What about :

 

2 Dell Poweredge servers refurbed. (You can pick them up quite cheap now).

 

Install XenServer 7.0 (Free)

 

Then split your servers across the two, you could even have a backup domain controller at that point

 

 

As long as you have your Microsoft Licenses you'll be fine !

 

Ryan

[PotNoodleTech]

I strongly advise you don't bother rolling your own server. In this day an age you can take advantage of corporate greed, and buy cheap refurbished servers that just 3 years ago would have cost £thousands.

 

If you do not have much cash for this project then I recommend this:

Dell PowerEdge R710 2U Rackmount Server | Custom Configure

 

If you have an adequate budget then I recommend this:

Dell PowerEdge R720 2U Rackmount Server | Custom Configure

 

If you have a decent budget then I recommend this:

Dell PowerEdge R730, E5-2630L V3 Eight Core, 8GB PC4 RAM H730 RAID (Pre-Configured)

 

I also strongly recommend a separate server for backups - maybe another Dell R710.

[Kiest26]

Hyper-V is free in all x64 OSes, it's just the OSes which are licensed. Windows 10 x64 Hyper-V and Server 2016 Hyper-V are the same (as far as I'm aware). This gets round the license limitation, if it still stands.

 

I think you misunderstood me. There's a version of server 2016 which is specifically for HyperV and has no other features and this is totally free with no license required what so ever.

[Michael]

I think you misunderstood me. There's a version of server 2016 which is specifically for HyperV and has no other features and this is totally free with no license required what so ever.

 

Really? Wasn't aware of this, do you have a link?

[Kiest26]

https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/evalcenter/evaluate-hyper-v-server-2016

This states it's an evaluation for some reason however this isn't the case it is actually the the full version and is provided at no cost. We've been running the 2012 r2 version for several years

[ITGURU]

Whenever i need new servers we go for HP but build them as such myself. We buy the base model with 1 cpu and RAM, then purchase the extras additional CPUs, RAM, HDDs, NICs etc and install and set up the server in house so it's still a custom build.

[ICTDirect_Dave]

What about refurb servers? ICT-Direct do some great offers. Much cheaper than you may think and they have a decent 2yr warranty

 

It's true, we do

 

And we also do extensions for up to five years coverage

[mrwoberts]

By the looks of it you haven't got any redundancy i.e. Hot Swap or dual PSU's. Not sure about the org you are in but this could cause lengthy downtime in hardware failure.

 

It isn't quite the instant fail-over, but I always keep a spare PSU that can be installed without delay. For the redundancy, I at least have RAID 1, plus an extra disk in the chassis that will essentially only be at most a 3 hour window behind the main Samsung disks.

 

I hear the calls for a 2nd DC, and that is something I will be introducing, just not straight away - quite possibly reusing the old hardware into the backup DC, as folks have suggested.

 

Regarding the refurbs, I'm just not totally sold on it - that might be just me being a bit naive, but since these server parts are coming in at under £1,400, that meets our budget and I get my chosen components.