Cloud 9: Is Cloud Storage All It’s Cracked Up To Be?

Computer storage has been evolving over the years in great leaps and bounds, with new innovations allowing you to carry terabytes in the palm of your hand when not so long ago a few megabytes occupied the physical space of a large refrigerator. It’s interesting to speculate where the future of personal physical storage will lead us, but as for right now, the industry faces an alternative in Cloud storage. Many herald it as the next step in personal and professional data storage, and posit that traditional storage methods will soon intersect with cloud means, ushering in a different user experience all together. While Cloud storage does present us with some interesting possibilities, is it really all it’s cracked up to be? Here, I’m going to play the devil’s advocate and present you with a few key points as to why the cloud isn’t all it is cracked up to be.

                I suppose the place to start would be at the most obvious weak point, that being the necessity of an internet connection to access and retrieve data. Sure, we live in a modern age where reliable internet connections are a continuing staple of day to day business and casual applications, but what about mobile users? Certainly you can think of a time where an internal drive suited your purposes much better, be it at home where you opted for the cable package only or on a road trip. The constant connectivity required by Cloud storage chains its accessibility, limiting the Cloud as a whole.

                Second is a matter of security. Think about what type of data or hosting services you would task to a Cloud provider. For businesses, it is everything from the hosting of their website and other online services to entire databases of very valuable information. For the personal user, everything from personal documents to credit card statements, depending on the degree of shared files. What would happen if somebody were intent on accessing a Cloud server, and what if they gained access to hundreds of users’ information? Beyond that, you’re trusting everything to people you’ve never met with face to face.

                Lastly is price. Cloud storage reels a lot of people in with the option of low cost storage solutions, but let’s take a look at what that low cost solution really entails. Most services charge on a cost per gigabyte basis, meaning you can scale as far as you’d like. Prices vary, but on average you can expect to spend $0.09 per gigabyte of storage per month. So what does that mean if you want, say, a terabyte of data? Somewhere between $80 and $90 a month! Sure, it might seem reasonable if you only need a couple gigabytes, but at that price you can afford a refurbished Sun Fire X2100 in a little over a month, and that’s a whole server. Physical hard drives are more affordable in the long run. That just about rounds out my list of why Cloud storage is overrated. Let me know what you think in the comments.

Sun Fire X4100

                Since Oracle’s acquisition of Sun back in 2010, the popularity of Sun servers has remained roughly the same. What kind of loyalty does that illustrate, that even after a company’s merger and the discontinuation of several product lines, people remain loyal to the product? Obviously, the majority of people with Sun products have found their investment to be a good one. As the Sun market continues on, the demand for Sun servers and parts has only risen. Are you currently checking into getting a Sun server for your next model? The great part about Sun servers is their extensive degree of manageability and affordability. Not sure which Sun server is right for you? There are plenty of entry-level Sun servers out there, but among the most popular is the Sun Fire X4100. Check it out below.

Rack Optimized

The Sun X4100 is a rack optimized server model. Rack servers have the advantage of vertical scalability. Why take up more room than necessary with multiple tower servers when you can “stack” servers atop one another in a rack or a cabinet? The Sun X4100 is a 1U model, taking up one unit of vertical space. While some rack servers take up to six unites, the 1U remains a nice and slim model, easily incorporated into existing server arrays.

Performance

The Sun Fire X4100 features support for AMD Opteron 254 processors. With two processors each clocking in at 2.8 GHz with a 1 MB L2 cache, the Sun Fire X4100 is great for mission critical processing and cuts down on down time due to processing bottlenecks. The dual processor capability is also backed up by a minimum memory configuration of eight gigabytes, and a maximum DDR SDRAM of sixteen gigabytes. The X4100 also supports two seventy-three gigabyte hard drives with spindle speeds up to ten thousand RPMs. SCSI drives with that high a spindle speed offer some of the fastest data writes on the market, making for even faster performance.

In addition, these hard drives are also hot-swappable. Hot-swappable means you can exchange a hard drive without needing to power down the server. This is especially important considering potential downtime caused by hard drive failures. It would be much better to keep a server running from a single hard drive than power down to perform maintenance on a failing or broken hard drive.

Purchasing

Owing to the limited availability of Sun equipment, finding a Sun Fire X4100 can sometimes prove to be quite difficult. You may be able to find a server online via various ecommerce sites, but you run the risk of defective equipment. A more direct and reliable method involves visiting a refurbished reseller. Refurbished computer stores often stock systems and parts, and can configure whole systems from components to order. When purchasing a refurbished Sun Fire X4100, always make certain it has been tested for quality and has received a warranty for all work performed on it.

The Worst Three Computer Breakdowns

                It’s an inevitable fact of computer ownership; sooner or later something will break. It might be a physical break, a banged enclosure or a chipped panel perhaps, or maybe a software error that renders your computer an unresponsive paperweight. Either way, you should be prepared for all possibilities, be they easy fixes or something a little more troublesome. Whether the computer you’re using is a business optimized server or a simple desktop deployment you keep in your home office, there are certain breakdowns which translate into “worst case scenario” regardless of the make or model. So you can be prepared for these worst case scenarios, here they are: the three worst computer breakdowns.

Number Three: Melted Processor

The processor is essentially the brain of any computer, crunching all the numbers and performing all logical operations which it receives. Without a processor, the computer can no longer compute, rendering the whole namesake of the machine into a “name only” designation. A fried processor can result from any number of problems. Processors are relatively fragile, and if by chance your computer’s fan failed along with the safety protocols, the internal components would get hot enough to damage the processor. Why is it so bad? A processor can’t easily be repaired because of its very small size, and often requires replacement.

Number Two: Hard Drive Failure

Depending on your level of preparedness, a hard drive failure can either be a minor inconvenience or a potentially expensive, high-risk problem. Since most hard drives consist of moving components (a disk spinning at speeds up to fifteen thousand rotations per minute, for instance) when a hard drive breaks, it can result in irreparable drive damage. Computer professionals can attempt to recover data from the disk itself, but sometimes the damage exceeds the ability of technician retrieval. Consider losing all of your business data in one fell swoop. It’s a potential business ender if not a major impediment to success. Most business have several redundant drives for their important data, but data which isn’t backed up regularly runs the risk of being lost forever. For this reason, a hard drive failure is number two on our list.

Number One: Fried Motherboard

If the processor is the brain of a computer, then the motherboard is like the secondary nervous system. It conducts all the electrical signals for the computer. A fried circuit board may potentially fry any other electrical component attached to the circuit board, making it the number one worst computer breakdown. We had a motherboard which shorted due to environmental factors. We ordered a new 42w7652 motherboard as a replacement and were lucky enough not to need to replace much else. A motherboard short is the worst computer breakdown because it may, in certain circumstances, entail many more repairs. The 42w7652 is a central hub for every computer component and peripheral. If something happens to a motherboard, every component is rendered worthless until a replacement can be found and connections made. Keep an eye out for these problems and you’ll be quick to react should anything happen.

Power To the Non-Gamers

                Cool it, gamers, and let me reassure you: this is not an article trying to sleight computer gaming in any way. Rather, it is an article focused on informing the non-gamers among the computer community what their options for a powerful computer are if they aren’t interested in a preconfigured gaming computer. If you’re one of those non-gamers that is still looking for a cost-effective computer solution without all the bells and whistles (like a great graphics card or a flash computer case) then read on! Finding a powerful computer that isn’t optimized for a special purpose (like computer gaming) can be a bit difficult, and oftentimes those viable alternatives are overshadowed by the popularity of those gaming computers. So where can you begin while keeping costs low? Consider the Dell Dimension 8400.

Dell Dimension 8400

The Dell Dimension 8400 is a powerful and affordable computer in the high performance market. There are several reasons the Dimension 8400 is an optimized machine, but not optimized for gaming. For starters, the 8400 doesn’t come stock with a high-performance graphics card, nor does it require multiple fans (as many gaming computers do). Gaming computers oftentimes require a single fan that sounds like a jet engine or multiple fans that fill the room with white noise like an overhead fan. While there isn’t necessarily a problem with a noisy fan (I would disagree, personally) the Dimension 8400 runs very quietly considering the degree of performance it puts out.

The Dimension 8400 has a Intel Pentium 4 560 processor with a clock rate of 3.6 GHz. Intel Pentium may sound old now, but consider that the first generation of i7 processors had 2 GHz with a boosted 2 GHz for a total of 4 GHz. Having nearly 4 GHz of engaged processing speed is an excellent choice if you’re planning on business applications which require fast performance. With one gigabyte of RAM standard (expandable to 8 gigabytes), the Dimension 8400 should probably receive a memory upgrade if you plan on multitasking. Despite this, a full RAM configuration does not add that much cost to the overall build. Many of these parts can be ordered refurbished at a fraction of the cost. In addition to the processor and memory included in the basic configuration, the 8400 standard build comes with two 160 GB SATA drives, a DVD + RW dual layer drive, a CD-RW drive, eight USB ports, a FireWire port, and a decent sound card.

Why Not New?

If you’d like to find a brand new performance computer, be prepared to spend quite a bit of money. Most high performance business computers on the market today run in the area of a few thousand dollars. A Dimension 8400, on the other hand, can be purchased refurbished at a fraction of the cost. While refurbished is a more cost-effective alternative, you must be certain that your reseller offers a warranty on refurbished computers, and has a great history of customer satisfaction.

Stacking Up: The ProBook Advantage

                At some point, you just have to shrug your shoulders and admit that your current computer isn’t cutting it. Whether it is an ancient processor, frequent crashes, insufficient storage, or a small amount of RAM, your old computer just can’t compete with the constantly evolving technology industry and the rapid pace it has set. Your computer is a central component to the success of your business, and slowdowns will cost you time and, consequentially, profit. Basic computers are great – provided you only focus on basic functionality. As your technology needs increase, so too must the performance of your computer. A common choice among industry professionals is a computer built specifically for professional applications. HP offers a powerful and versatile series of computers: the HP ProBooks. ProBooks balance advanced configurations and affordability, translating into the powerful machine that is right for business applications. The HP ProBook 6550B Notebook PC is among the most popular portable options HP has on the market today.

The HP ProBook 6550b Notebook Advantage

So what’s the big difference between your current computer and the ProBook 6550b? It’s the same difference between a minivan and a Super Duty truck: more power. The HP ProBook 6550b offers an impressive set of configurable specifications, which is especially advantageous considering the need of many professionals to configure to their individual needs.

The 6550b Notebook is a workhorse for a notebook computer. This computer supports Intel’s latest i-series of processors, including Intel Core i7 quad-core, i7, i5, and i3 dual-core processors. With the addition of vPro technology and accelerated processor boosting, the performance of a ProBook such as this is demonstrable from boot to intense processing. A highly functioning quad-core processor such as the i7 has proven results in multiprocessing capabilities.

With the option for speedy processors, expandable RAM, and great storage capacity, you might think the 6550b is a complete package as is. While the internal specifications are impressive, there are several other advantageous aspects of the 6550b. It features a 15.6 inch diagonal HD LED screen modified to reduce glare on the display. This option is especially attractive for professionals in the visual media professions. This capability is further complimented by Intel HD UMA graphics or, as is my personal preference, the great-performing ATI Mobility Radeon HD 540v. With several options of battery life, this ProBook can serve as a stationary workstation or work on the go.

The advantages of ProBooks extend beyond just system specifications. Considerations of the professional world have also been taken into account. For instance, a partial boot allows a user to access email and HP QuickWeb applications without waiting for the entire operating system to boot. Need to send a quick email or check stock prices quickly? Just choose the quick-boot option and you’ll be browsing the web or your inbox in moments. The 6550bProBook is a perfect choice if you are considering an upgrade from your current slow laptop. ProBooks are the right choice for business professionals who need a business laptop that reflects their commitment to efficient and quality work.