20030730: quote for HP/Compaq server

>From:  address@hidden
>Organization:  Metro State
>Keywords:  200307291930.h6TJUaLd006427 platforms

Hi Tony,

Sorry I didn't get to this sooner, but I was up in Fraser mountain biking
and hiking for 6 days in celebration of my 53rd birthday.

>Don't know what the problem is, so I'm forwarding the original message from
>the Compaq rep. If you can't read it, I'll try something else.

I was able to read the resend attachment.  The system presented, a dual
2.4 Ghz Xeon w/ 1 GB RAM and 2x72 GB Ultra 320 SCSI 10K rpm drives is
_nice_.  This will be quite a step up from your current machine with a
9 GB hard disk :-)   As far as the price goes ($3794 + $152 for 3 yr
extended warranty), it is higher than mostly comparable machines I have
found in my searches for the best deals by about a factor of 1.5.  The
question that comes to mind is if disk space you are buying will be
enough in the long run?  It seems to me that you might be able to get
double the disk for a few hundred dollars more, and that might be
useful depending on the designs you have for this unit.  BTW, I
especially like the hot plug drive bays for operational
considerations.  What does the equivalent Dell sell for?  I can tell
you that a mostly comparable machine from TigerDirect
(www.tigerdirect.com) (the place I bought the 2.8 Ghz Medion for $800)
is in the lower $2000 range, but the disks were IDE not SCSI.

>Kurt
>did mention it its a rack server so it would have to be put in the main
>campus server facility.

Presumably that facility will have conditioned power through a decent
UPS, and it will be more easily observable by central computing personnel.
This could be a big win as long as you don't need intimate access to
it.

>I'd only have remote access to it.
>This troubles me some - can you think of arguments why I should have it
>physically in my lab?

Yes and no.  We do like to have our machines near at hand, but, then again,
it is nice to have our operational machines thelma and motherlode up
in the NCAR/SCD machine room where there are operators on duty 24x7.
I guess it really boils down to whether or not you could get access to
the machine on holidays, etc. if you needed it.  If not, I would be
careful to impress on the computer services folks how important it
will be for there to be personnel on duty to take care of problems that
may arise.

Have a good vacation.

It was _great_!

Please let me know if you would like a more thorough evaluation of
the quote you sent.  I can get Mike Schmidt to chime in with his
views on the cost and capabilities.

Cheers,

Tom
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* Tom Yoksas                                             UCAR Unidata Program *
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