Is windows Server 2k3 necessary?

[chockomonkey]

I'm in the process of researching to build a new server for my small business.

At the moment, i have windows 2k on my server but it is time to upgrade. I currently use this as a file server for about 14 people. I run several programs off of the server which people connect to/run off the server.

I am also going to be running mailenable (a free mail server i found online) for internal e-mailing.

At this point, i haven't used any of the features that i believe server software comes with, as to my knowledge i haven't needed to.

Is there any reason i should need server software? are there any features i should be using and most likely aren't?

Thanks,

-chocko

[TopGun]

Unless you have a need for 2k3 I wouldn't bother.
Just use 2k on your new box, By the way why use
internal e-mail? You should consider using a business
Instant messaging.

[Demon10000]

I like 2k3. I like it a lot more than server 2000. Not enough that I wouldn't upgrade for no reason, but 2k3 is just nice.

You might also want to take a peek at server 2k3 small business edition. It might have a lot more goodies with it that you could take advantage of.

[chockomonkey]

I checked out the small business edition and i saw some cool things i liked.

What i'm trying to determine though is if there is a reason to need server software at all... i mean, could i just use xp or vista on my server?

[LhasaCM]

Yes - the non-server operating systems only allow a certain number of simultaneous network connections (in the case of Vista it's 10 for anything above Basic). If the 14 people are needing to access the box at the same time, it could be a problem.

Also, XP or Vista are not optimized for acting just as a server, so you'd have to trim a lot of the fat to get it to work the way you want it to. Not worth the hassle for a business, in my opinion, when there are solutions designed for that situation already in the marketplace.

[Demon10000]

If you're going to run a server in a business, you really want to have a server class OS. If not for the number of available connections (restricted to 10 in all Desktop Operating Systems) for the stability.

While you could get away with a desktop, you're going to run into problems eventually, especially since you mentioned you'll be using it as a file server. You say you have 14 people that are accessing it, so you've already got 4 that won't be able to connect. And it's possible for one machine to take more than one connection, so 10 connections doesn't mean 10 people can talk to the machine at any one time.

Go with a server OS and you won't regret it.

[chockomonkey]

Thanks guys!

i'll go ahead and get the server small bussiness 2k3

I really appreciate the help!

[seanmcd]

I think your questions have already been answered for the most part - but one major reason to upgrade is that Microsoft doesn't support Windows 2000 anymore. There may be a major security/functionality patch in the future that you won't be able to get for Win2k... Yes it still works great and is very stable but once MS stops supporting it, it's time to move on.

[TheCreator]

Maybe look into setting up exchange which is included in SBS instead of using the "internal" email server.