It is the time of year that most small business owners are revising their plans for the upcoming year. Technology equipment and software are key elements of that plan.
A common question we receive is: How long should my server last and at what point should I seriously consider replacing it?
Onsite Logic recommends planning for a 4-5 year upgrade cycle for most small business owners.
The traditional rule of thumb is to expect 5-7 years for the life of the server hardware.
But the age of the equipment is not the only factor to consider:
- If using the server is core to your business, are you losing efficiency because of the slowness of older equipment? We are installing servers this week with a minimum of 8GB of memory and have put in systems with 24 and 32 GB of memory and higher (not drive space, memory)
- How well has the server been maintained? Has someone, at least once a month, taken care of issues as they arise, even ones that may not be visible to users but that are logging errors in the event logs? Is it patched up-to-date monthly? Have regular maintenance items, such as disk maintenance, clearing temp folders, blowing out the systems, happened regularly?
- How stable is the power to the building? Are you using a voltage regulator? Does your UPS kick in more than once per year?
- Are there any problems, noises or errors?
- How confident are you in your backup? Do you know where all of your CD’s, license keys and account passwords are?
In a single server environment, you have to get serious about considering replacing the server before it breaks. In other words, waiting until the server has problems to begin thinking about replacing it is not a wise strategy (some would argue it isn’t really a strategy at all). While we can walk into a number of stores and pick up a replacement desktop or laptop; that is not true for servers. If it crashes and the only option is ordering a new one, you are, at best, going to be down for a week.
Since 1996, Microsoft has come out with a new Server Operating System approximately every 4 years. Onsite Logic recommends planning based on server upgrades or replacements on a 4-5 year cycle, but that plan should also include regular maintenance of the investment. There are a number of ways to redeploy the old server so that it continues to add value in non-business-critical areas.
Get remote support while on the phone with an Onsite Logic technician to allow immediate access to fix your system remotely. 
