Home/ very small business server

dgingeri

dgingeri

2[H]4U
Joined
Dec 5, 2004
Messages
2,830
OK. I asked this on another forum, and I'm curious about general opinions on this idea:

With the new dual HT/ Quad core chips out lately, I've been thinking about a potential market: home server for proxy/ firewall/ centralized storage with backup or a very small business (3-10 users) server with Base Linux OS and virtualized Windows DC/ file/ print server, Linux SQL server, and Linux Web server for a web based accounting/ POS app. I'm sure they could be useful.

The big things would be idle power consumption, performance, and cost. (I suppose the idle power consumption would be part of the cost, but I'm narrowing it down a bit.)

Which would be better?
1. AMD Athlon II X4 635 (quad core, 2.9Ghz, $119), 8GB memory, 760G motherboard
2. Core i5 530 (dual core with HT, 2.93Ghz, $125), 8GB memory, H55 motherboard

The cost difference, with the same memory, is currently about $52 in AMD's favor ($360 compared to $412)
the power consumption is in Intel's favor. I am not considering overclocking.

What do you guys think?
 
I had an additional idea that might be worth doing something with: a centralized program, preferably web based, that would allow licensed content to be streamed to other remote devices on a local only network. Basically a home theater server. Make it web based to work with the above server using virtualization. (Sold as an entirely set up virtual machine, to minimize installation problems. Perhaps even selling it on a eSATA drive. Just plug and play.)

the developer could work with the movie and music companies to allow for copying the content to licensed devices for mobile use, and allowing copying existing hard copies of DVD's and CD's to the server with their blessing. Built in content protection and file sharing protection would be vital to get their blessing for it.
 
How about a point of sale/ accounting/ inventory web based app, sold as 2 virtual machines to minimize installation, that would use think clients as registers, network controlled credit card readers and cash drawers, iPod touch or iPhone (or something equal with wireless 802.11g/n connection and camera) for inventory. It would use a Linux / SQL server / Apache web base and have full back ups on the entire virtual machines, so that if the hardware filed, it could be quickly brought back up on a new server with no data lost. Perhaps sold on a mirrored eSATA dual hard drive.

this could be a boon for very small businesses. Sell the whole package, the above server, eSATA drive with POS system, backup system, thin clients, inventory module, printer, and installation and customization, for $7,000. It would cost about $1500-$2000 in hardware and take about a week to setup/install completely with just one person.

Small businesses are getting major grants lately for things like this. I think the market is there.
 
Have you seen WHS?
I mean, it's truly a Windows HOME Server...Does all of this minus the POS.

It's truly very slick software. Slick enough, an example: if you have File1.xlsx on Machine 1, and the same File1.xlsx on Machine 2- it'll only back that file up ONE time.
 
TechieSooner said:
Have you seen WHS?
I mean, it's truly a Windows HOME Server...Does all of this minus the POS.

It's truly very slick software. Slick enough, an example: if you have File1.xlsx on Machine 1, and the same File1.xlsx on Machine 2- it'll only back that file up ONE time.
Click to expand...

And WHS has no place in a business environment, which the OP seems to be targeting with this idea.

Seems interesting, OP, and it could be done easily, but it'll be hard to break into the market unless you have a bunch of small business clients lined up. Big companies = support contracts, which a lot of small businesses like.
 
My point is that I personally wouldn't target home market at all. WHS is already a fantastic solution.

If you want to build a SMB package, that's fine. But you're going to compete with SBS- which is again, a fantastic solution that has the market by the balls :eek:
Also alot of folks are turning from SBS to something like Google Apps as well- no server required.

Just stating some things... I think your target audience is already well served by other products.
ClearOS is another already-existing SMB product based on Linux that was posted about awhile back as well.
 
The value here is in the integration and applications. There are some great OSS apps out there like SugarCRM for example, and lots of room to develop innovative new stuff (like your web-based accounting application), especially if you can target a specific industry with certain needs. If you can identify a particular target and put together a set of applications, offer training, support and administration services, and be competitive with other solutions (which really shouldn't be difficult compared to commercial CRM and like applications), you might be successful. There's a ton of small business out there that can't afford or don't want to pay the ridiculous licensing fees for some of the other solutions, and you can show them real value by providing a solution that improves their efficiency, but doesn't cost more than it's worth. You're also going to need to really flesh the offering out, make it standard and include everything people need, and make sure it's well integrated for easy management and use. If it just frustrates users because they have to make a change in 3 different places, they're going to hate it and you're going to fail.

It will really depend on your business skills more than anything though, as TechieSooner points out, there are large established solutions you'll be competing with, but there's a lot of room well under their price point, you just need to sell and support your offering well.

I've thought about getting into this business and basically abandoned the idea - not because there's not a ton of great technology and software out there, but because I don't have the business and sales acumen to pull it off.
 
Of course if you can set a great price point, folks will use you. But there's a reason that their price points are high... Managing an all in one solution like that takes a ton of time and labor.

Better served is maybe some kind of "SmallBiz" box running ClearOS, and just have flat pricing structure along with it for implementing new software updates and whatnot- unless you're planning on building out your own push-update service.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top