Xserve
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Apple updates Xserve -- "most powerful Apple server ever"
Apple just updated their Xserve boxes. Starting at $2,999, Apple's calling their new Xserve the "most powerful apple server ever." The speed comes via two (max) quad-core 3.0 GHz Intel Xeon 5400 series processors. That's 8-cores pumping away inside a 1U rack server. Two PCI Express 2.0 expansion slots provide up to 4x the I/O bandwidth of the previous Xserve in support of the latest multi-channel 4Gb Fibre channel and 10Gb Ethernet cards. We're also looking at built-in accelerated graphics to drive a 23-inch Apple Cinema Display and new front facing USB 2.0 to jack into. The three drive bays can support 73GB or 300GB SAS drives or 80GB and 1TB SATAs with a RAID option for choice of RAID 0, 1, and 5. Ships starting today.
Xserve Lights-Out Management Firmware Update 1.1 available
Apple released Xserve Lights-Out Management Firmware Update 1.1 on Thursday. It's for Intel-based Xserves only, and will update your firmware to version 1.2.8. The Xserve I manage at work is a G5, so no update for me. Here's what I'm missing, according to Apple:"This update includes changes to the Lights-Out Management environment of the Intel-based Xserve. It addresses the intermittent issue that causes the LOM port to be unresponsive. This update is strongly recommended for all Intel-based Xserve systems."You can read the Knowledge Base article here.
Apple ships RAID cards for Mac Pro and XServe
Let me ask you something: do you like fast storage? Redundant, fast storage? Lots and lots of gigabytes of fast, redundant storage? Sure you do, buddy -- but what's with the software RAID on your Mac Pro or your Intel-based XServe? That's so last week, now that Apple is shipping the RAID cards for Mac Pro and XServe; you can now do hardware RAID 0, 1, 5, or (Mac Pro only) 0+1 arrays of SATA drives, or superfast SAS drives on the XServe, for the precise mix of speed and reliability that you're craving.Formerly only available as build-to-order options but now shipping as add-in parts for $999 each, the cards come with a raft of requirements. First, they're only for the machines mentioned above; G5 XServes are out of luck. Second, you can't mix and match drive types on the XServe, it's all SAS or all SATA please. Third, a minor point, barely worth mentioning really, but both these cards are listed as requiring some sort of OS update. Yes, on the heels of this morning's announcement of the MacBook revisions, we now have a total of three pieces of Apple hardware that demand Leopard to work at all.Update: Clarified that the cards were previously available as BTO parts. Note that even though the specifications say Leopard-only for these cards, existing RAID cards (and possibly these as well, for anyone brave enough to spend a grand to test them) continue to work with Tiger.via Apple Hot News -- thanks Nelson
New Xserves in the pipeline?
With the release of all the Leopard Server specs, eagle-eyed reader Tony notes that Apple's Server Administration information page shows a screenshot of an intriguing configuration: a 2x 2.7Ghz Dual-Core Intel Xeon-based XServe. No such machine with that processor config is currently available from Apple. Factor in that Intel doesn't actually ship a 2.7Ghz Xeon dual-core chip at the moment, and it seems that Apple and Intel may well be plotting a new build of the XServe on a new CPU for eager enterprise customers, just in time for Leopard Server.
Apple form factor evolution
Donationware app MacTracker is great for those times when you need to look back at the history of Apple's products or the stats of one particular machine. If you're interested in more of a visual history, however, this picture from art director and designer Edwin Tofslie should satisfy your cravings for pretty pictures. Tofslie collected images from most of the major design revisions Apple has made to many of their most significant products, including the Mac, Newton, iPod, Xserve and iPhone, as well as their displays, mice and even the AirPort Extreme stations. It's an interesting look back over the evolution of Apple's industrial design that seems to include all the major landmarks.
The Ultimate iTunes Media Server
I've been toying around with the idea of building a full Mac media server for my family, but this project by James Hodge puts any ideas I had to shame. His Ultimate iTunes Media Server is built around a PowerMac G4 with an Xserve RAID for storage. Content comes by way of over-the-air HDTV to Elgato's EyeTV, ripped DVDs, and iTunes Store purchases and is delivered to three Intel Mac mini clients over a gigabit Ethernet wired network. His total equipment cost is over $10,000. I think using the $5k Xserve RAID for storage really takes this one over the top. Anybody looking for some ideas for an iTunes server should check out the complete description of James' efforts.[via Digg]
Apple moving iron: #10 server brand
DigiTimes is reporting numbers from IDC which show that Apple posted impressive 73% on-quarter growth in server shipments in the first quarter of 2007, moving into 10th place among server brands. Apple shipped 8700 units overall, with the gains attributed to the fifth generation Xserve "adopting Intel Dual Core Xeon processors (Woodcrest)." Since the Xserve are now able to run Linux on a par with other machines, it would be interesting to know how many of these machines are running Linux instead of OS X Server (the report did not say). In any case, Apple is presumably happy either way.[via Macworld UK]
TUAW Rig of the Week: Crunching numbers
TUAW reader el frijole should have no trouble "crunching numbers" with this bad boy. A plethora of Xserves get busy...well, doing something important and demanding. Note the three empty slots that once housed dead drives. Poor little guys. "Number crunching" by el frijole If you'd like to see your own rig featured here, simply upload photos into our group Flickr pool. Each Sunday we'll comb through the most recent entries and declare a "Rig of the Week!"
Xserve Fibre Channel card now has 4Gb
Sorry about the original headline, folks: editing error on my part. Apple quietly added two more high-speed Fibre Channel cards to the product lineup last week: dual and quad-port 4Gb cards are now orderable from the Apple Store with ship dates 7-10 days out (dual-channel card) or 4-6 weeks out (quad-channel card). These cards are PCI Express and compatible only with the Mac Pro or the Intel-based XServe.For those feeling the need for speed, keep in mind that the XServe RAID still tops out with the built-in dual 2Gb FC ports. To get the benefit of the 4Gb channels on the new cards, you'd have to connect to a 4Gb fiber switch with aggregated bandwidth from several RAIDs (typical of an Xsan deployment).[via Macenterprise/alienRAID]
XServe IP Failover not quite Universal yet
It may not be the most-used feature of Apple's XServe, but IP Failover -- the ability of a standby server to take over the IP address and service responsibilities of a failed primary box -- is vital in enhanced-availability setups and one of the "marquee" qualifications for the use of Apple's iron in BigCorp server rooms. With OS X Server's support for FireWire networking, you can use a single 6-pin FW cable between the two servers as the private 'heartbeat' network that lets the understudy know when the leading lady has slipped on the stairs, so to speak.Unfortunately, as Ars Technica and MacFixit have explicated (based on a recent Knowledge Base article), there's a problem or two: not only is mixing G5 and Intel XServes in a failover configuration currently verboten, the failover tools don't work on any of Apple's Intel-based hardware. Drat! We can only hope that this is fixed before Leopard Server comes along.
Apple bumps its Xserve RAID to 10.5TB, SATA where art thou?
Being the torrent junkies we are -- you know, those GPL'd Linux ISOs, somebody's gotta download 'em -- we were kind of stoked about that rumored SATA-based Xserve RAID we spied last week and the supa-cheep storage it would provide. Unfortunately, it looks like Apple is going to stick with Ultra ATA for the moment, though at least you can squeeze a bit more storage out of the unit now: Apple is including support for 750GB drives, allowing for a whoppin' 10.5TB of storage for under $1.31 per gigabyte. That's great and all Apple, and those dual or quad-channel 2Gb fibre-channel PCI cards are swell too, but when are we going to see the real deal with six built-in fibre-channels and that SATA sweetness?[Via TUAW]
SATA-based Xserve RAID coming
Ruh roh, Stevie J isn't gonna like this. Looks like AppleInsider landed some rare and much coveted pre-release Apple product pics; no, it's not of the iPhone sans phone or ultraportable MacBook Pro, it's of the long overdue Xserve upgrade to the Xserve RAID, which finally puts cheap and plentiful enterprise SATA drives in the enterprise enclosure. Other improvements AI claims Apple have made to the above "Q57" prototype include an additional four fibre-channel ports, although the fibre-channel controller has apparently yet to be made redundant. We're sure there are more than a few enterprise Mac users hoping they won't have to wait until WWDC 2007 to check this thing out, but we don't have any timeline for release, so we'll all be keeping an eye out for release.
Turn your Xserve into two machines
Not literally, of course, but Tom Yager writes that he has been able to replace two of his Windows servers with one Xserve, running Windows 2003. How has he accomplished this feat? By the good graces of Parallels Desktop and the wonders of virtualization. Tom promises to give more details about his setup, but he claims that the 3 servers running on his Xserve (one OS X, 2 Windows 2003) are smokin'.Tom Yager is a big fan of the Xserve, but I have to wonder about the wisdom of running enterprise level software in a consumer oriented virtualization product. I know I wouldn't be comfortable running any mission critical servers in Parallels since it is missing many enterprise level options that industrial strength virtualization solutions offer, and rightfully so. Parallels is working on a server version of their software, though I don't know if they plan on supporting OS X. Their website mentions running Windows, Linux, OS/2 or FreeBSD on the host machine, though they don't say what OS the host machine has to run.
Xserve unboxing
When the Xserves started shipping I asked that someone post some unboxing pics when they received their shiny new Xserve. Some ridiculed me (shocking, I know), but the kind folks at PowerMax met the challenge and posted a bunch of pics of their new Intel Xserve.Now excuse me while I fufill my Xserve desire by looking at these pictures for awhile.
Intel Xserves shipping
We mentioned before that the new Intel Xserves were shipping in mid-November. If you check you calendar you will notice that it pretty much is mid-November right now, and yes the Intel Xserves are shipping. The Apple Store reports that a base configuration Xserve will ship in 3 to 5 business days. If anyone out there has ordered on of these babies feel free to take some unpacking pics and send 'em our way.Thanks, Brandon.
Tom Yager reviews the new Xserve
The Xserve, the jewel in Apple's enterprise crown. We all know that Apple missed their target ship date, but that's ok if you believe what Tom Yager is saying. His two part review (part one, part two) paints a picture of a near perfect 1U server that is more than capable of handling most jobs. Tom does warn that if you are just looking at the list of parts that make up the Xserve you won't see the full picture. As with all Macs the Xserve is more than its components, it is also the software that is running on it. All Xserves come with Mac OS X Server 10.4 Unlimited-Client Edition at no extra cost, and once you power it on this thing is ready to go.Now, Tom mentions that this isn't a perfect server and if you're looking only at numbers you can build on for yourself at a cheaper price, but you'll be missing out on all the nice touches: the OS, the mix and match hard drives, the large number of Firewire and USB ports, and so much more.
Xserve shipping next month with quad Xeon 64-bit action
Remember that new Apple Xserve we heard about in August? Yeah, the new one with the two dual-cores under the hood? Well, those up to 2TB of storage and up to 32GB of RAM rackmount servers have just gone on sale and will begin shipping next month. Of course, the very barebones configuration is $3,000, while that 32GB of RAM will add an extra $23,700 to your order. Just something to consider.[Thanks, Clint M. and Evan D.]
Tom Yager on the new Xserve
How I love servers. It seems that Tom Yager might love them more than I do. He waxes eloquently about the newly redesigned Intel Xserve. Sure, it may look the same on the outside (for the most part) but on the inside this beast is new, and completely modular. Popping out the fans, switching out the motherboard, and getting at the RAM is an exercise in simplicity, according to Tom. I can't wait to get my hands on one, though I imagine it'll be awhile before anyone lets me near their Xserve.
Could new Intel-based Xserves tip the IT scales for Apple?
Apple, of course, boasted how fantastic of a deal they're offering on stage with these new Xserves, but it's always prudent to hear it from the actual community these products are targeted at. Fortunately, reader Jonathan Fingas pointed us towards just such an article from IT Jungle that analyzes the offering and opportunities of new 64bit, Intel-based Xserves that can run Not only Mac OS X and Linux, but now Windows as well. They do their own price breakdown between other Enterprise server software offerings, as well as a hardware match up with a (somewhat) comparable HP server. They conclude that Apple has quite a killer offering on the table, no matter how you slice it.Check out the IT Jungle article for yourself, and since most of us aren't exactly Enterprise gurus, keep tips like this rolling in, as they're a great window into how this particular community is reacting to Apple's big changes.
Apple bumps Xserve line with "quad Xeon" action
Alright, we're going to clear this up right here: "quad processors" is different than dual dual-core processors. Despite the best efforts of Steve Jobs and his Reality Distortion Field. But with that said, we're not complaining. Dual dual-core chips sure is plenty of juice to be getting on with, and Apple's Xserve line sure manages a lot of power for its 1U rackmount design. The configurations mirror that of the Mac Pro, ranging up to dual 64-bit dual-core 3GHz Xeon "Woodcrest" chips. Apple added in redundant power with the space savings from losing those steamy G5 processors, and also made room for 2.24TB of storage. Configurations start at $2,999, range beyond the amount of cash we'll see in our lifetime, and should be available in October.
