Re: why have a server?...advice needed

Very good points, but allow me to respond....

"leew [MVP]" <useContactPage@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:47ed89c1$0$25019$607ed4bc@xxxxxxxxx
1. Single Logon. In a domain environment, you can setup your computers so
that each user has a logon that can be used on ANY computer. When they
change their password, the change is effective on ALL computers that are a
member of the domain. In a Workgroup, you must setup a user account on
EACH computer the user will log on to - or use a common logon which means
you have no way of tracking who does what.

Everyone will have one computer, and there will not be any need to use one
another's computer. So I guess the Single Logon does not matter here.

2. Centralized Management - you can control system settings on ALL systems
from one system. For example, SBS will allow you to redirect everyone's
My Documents and Desktop folders to a folder on the server. This is called
folder redirection.

This is a good point, but what is the purpose of collecting everyone's "My
Documents" and desktop folders? Is it for backup purposes? If so, why not
use an online backup tool for each computer (e.g. www.carbonite.com). Cost
is about $50/year per computer.

3. I've used Gmail for an organization I'm in. I love google... but I
HATE gmail. I've gotten so many important messages flagged as SPAM it's
not funny. Maybe it was a config error on our administrators part, but I
also don't like that I can't create (easily, if at all) sub folders. I
would strongly advise against using the gmail facility at this time (I'm
sure I'm in the minority).

Point taken.

4. Centralized backup. With Folder redirection, mentioned in #2,
you can backup virtually all user data without concern by backing up JUST
the server. (Your network, ideally, will be setup so that your users can
use ANY workstation (or almost any workstation) and if one fails, it
really won't matter; they can sit at another employee's desk and pick up
right where they left off).

See my response to point #2 above. If someone's computer fails, there will
of course be some downtime given the time to reconfigure their computer and
retrieve their backup, but that should be somewhat rare.

5. Exchange Server, included with SBS, will provide shared and group
calendars, e-mail, tasks, and contacts.

I have been using Gmail's group calendar and contacts and find them both
very good.

6. One of the best features of SBS (and Windows Server 2003 and later) is
Volume Shadow Copy, not typically offered by any CHEAP NAS. This feature
takes automatic, periodic backups that users can easily restore themselves
by right clicking on a folder and reviewing the history of the backups.
EXPENSIVE NAS units typically offer this "snapshot" feature, but they
typically cost AT LEAST $5,000 - usually more like $10K plus.

The NAS would be used only for file sharing, not for taking backup images.
An online tool like Carbonite would be used. Storing the data online (and
offsite) makes sense in that it protects from fire, floods, etc.

7. Remote access options with SBS include Remote Web Workplace,
Sharepoint, and VPN.

This is a very good point, but with laptops being issued to many employees
who travel, and using Gmail for e-mail and calendar features, I see the
remote logon being less important. The only thing they'd need remote access
to would be the local NAS, which we would probably set up with an FTP or
something.

I have a few pages you might want to review to get a better understanding
of the SBS product and backup in general. You should also might want to
review the link on Volume Shadow Copy.

http://www.visualwin.com/VSS/
http://www.lwcomputing.com/tips/static/sbs.asp
http://www.lwcomputing.com/tips/static/backup.asp
Thanks very much for taking the time to reply.


.

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