Finding that perfect ratio when making a purchase is always a desirable goal. You don’t want to pay for something that you are never going to use. And under-purchasing is even worse because it is usually more expensive to have to add in materials that you lack after the fact. This problem is a big deal in the world of servers as it relates to RAM. RAM (Random-Access Memory) is the short term memory of a server. And it can be expensive. Getting just the right amount is something that requires a lot of deliberation. Here are some things to consider when purchasing server RAM.
Present and Future Size of Your Business
Most people buy servers for business reasons. The thing about businesses is they tend to grow, if they don’t that is a whole different problem. So when you buy a server, you have to think about not only how much RAM you need now, but also how much you may need in the future. Unless your business happens to be a psychic agency, this is a problem. Even Shawn Spencer would have a difficult time trying to finagle his way around this complex issue. But of course he would try, and so will you.
The first and most important thing to keep in mind when trying to predict the amount of RAM your company may need in the future is an average rate of growth. Fast growth spurts will require more RAM than a slow but steady growth over time. I guess the tortoise really does always win.
The second thing to consider is how many employees you have. This is related to company growth obviously because the bigger the company is, the more employees it has.
What You are Using the Server For
If your system responds slowly or accesses the hard drive constantly, then you need to add more RAM. If you are running Windows XP, Microsoft recommends 128MB as the minimum RAM requirement. At 64MB, you may experience frequent application problems. For optimal performance with standard desktop applications, 256MB is recommended. If you are running Windows 95/98, you need a bare minimum of 32 MB, and your computer will work much better with 64 MB. Windows NT/2000 needs at least 64 MB, and it will take everything you can throw at it, so you'll probably want 128 MB or more.
Linux works happily on a system with only 4 MB of RAM. If you plan to add X-Windows or do much serious work, however, you'll probably want 64 MB. Mac OS X systems should have a minimum of 128 MB, or for optimal performance, 512 MB.
The amount of RAM listed for each system above is estimated for normal usage -- accessing the Internet, word processing, standard home/office applications and light entertainment. If you do computer-aided design (CAD), 3-D modeling/animation or heavy data processing, or if you are a serious gamer, then you will most likely need more RAM. You may also need more RAM if your computer acts as a server of some sort (Web pages, database, application, FTP or network).
Another question is how much VRAM you want on your video card. Almost all cards that you can buy today have at least 16 MB of RAM. This is normally enough to operate in a typical office environment. You should probably invest in a 32-MB or better graphics card if you want to do any of the following: Play realistic games, Capture and edit video, Create 3-D graphics, Work in a high-resolution, full-color environment, or Design full-color illustrations.
You should also consider what kind of RAM to get. It should be compatible to your server, which can be denoted by the part number, which usually looks like this: 345113-051. You also want to make sure that whatever you buy is a DDR2 DIMM, which is the latest version of RAM and much faster than the other models.
Present and Future Size of Your Business
Most people buy servers for business reasons. The thing about businesses is they tend to grow, if they don’t that is a whole different problem. So when you buy a server, you have to think about not only how much RAM you need now, but also how much you may need in the future. Unless your business happens to be a psychic agency, this is a problem. Even Shawn Spencer would have a difficult time trying to finagle his way around this complex issue. But of course he would try, and so will you.
The first and most important thing to keep in mind when trying to predict the amount of RAM your company may need in the future is an average rate of growth. Fast growth spurts will require more RAM than a slow but steady growth over time. I guess the tortoise really does always win.
The second thing to consider is how many employees you have. This is related to company growth obviously because the bigger the company is, the more employees it has.
What You are Using the Server For
If your system responds slowly or accesses the hard drive constantly, then you need to add more RAM. If you are running Windows XP, Microsoft recommends 128MB as the minimum RAM requirement. At 64MB, you may experience frequent application problems. For optimal performance with standard desktop applications, 256MB is recommended. If you are running Windows 95/98, you need a bare minimum of 32 MB, and your computer will work much better with 64 MB. Windows NT/2000 needs at least 64 MB, and it will take everything you can throw at it, so you'll probably want 128 MB or more.
Linux works happily on a system with only 4 MB of RAM. If you plan to add X-Windows or do much serious work, however, you'll probably want 64 MB. Mac OS X systems should have a minimum of 128 MB, or for optimal performance, 512 MB.
The amount of RAM listed for each system above is estimated for normal usage -- accessing the Internet, word processing, standard home/office applications and light entertainment. If you do computer-aided design (CAD), 3-D modeling/animation or heavy data processing, or if you are a serious gamer, then you will most likely need more RAM. You may also need more RAM if your computer acts as a server of some sort (Web pages, database, application, FTP or network).
Another question is how much VRAM you want on your video card. Almost all cards that you can buy today have at least 16 MB of RAM. This is normally enough to operate in a typical office environment. You should probably invest in a 32-MB or better graphics card if you want to do any of the following: Play realistic games, Capture and edit video, Create 3-D graphics, Work in a high-resolution, full-color environment, or Design full-color illustrations.
You should also consider what kind of RAM to get. It should be compatible to your server, which can be denoted by the part number, which usually looks like this: 345113-051. You also want to make sure that whatever you buy is a DDR2 DIMM, which is the latest version of RAM and much faster than the other models.