What Is an Enterprise Server and What Are Their Advantages?
An enterprise server can be defined as a computer that consists of programs that collectively serve the specific needs of users. Simply, an enterprise has several needs and departments working for various purposes.
Programs are specially designed and integrated with a computer to serve specialized applications. This also helps the goal of each department.
The enterprise servers offer close connections, broadcast, TCP/IP, or multicast. This also consists of user-defined conflation and hibernation tools, resulting in an improved network and excellent desktop performance.
Benefits:
Defense Against Viruses:
When computers are networked, there’s a considerable risk that the entire network could get infected by one corrupt file that originates from a machine. Typically, in a client-server setup, a central server provides data to various clients connected to the entire network.
The server centrally controls security so every user gets the latest updates and patches about the ongoing scenario. In addition to this, as your company grows, the server enables access controls.
Protection Against Losing Data:
Servers are an integral part of a disaster recovery plan of any organization. These compact servers are designed to run during hardware or power failures by featuring hot-swappable components that can be replaced while the server runs.
Compliance with Industry Requirements:
Conversely, if you have healthcare clients, you’ll need a HIPAA server that follows specific compliance guidelines designed to protect health information. HIPAA server needs include complete data encryption, encryption key management, unique user IDs, dedicated infrastructure, server backups, secure data disposal, and audit logs.
Processing Power and Storage Space:
Heavy-duty software such as accounting programs, customer relationship management tools, and human resource systems shouldn’t be stored on individual PCs. Using cloud methodology for software deployment isn’t always an ideal solution.
Typically, Dropbox and Google Drive can store files, but you can’t host applications on them for multi-user access.
Remote Access:
During the pandemic, flexibility was the critical component that drove small organizations to do productive work-from-home-based strategies. Companies have to give remote access to the company’s network, such as Virtual Private Network(VPN).
A VPN routes all the network traffic with the help of an encrypted tunnel. It hides your data and IP address, so your identity and location remain secret. VPN protects all types of traffic, some containing proprietary data.
When employees work remotely with the help of a VPN, they connect to the company’s internal network using the public internet. This exposes employee traffic to potential security breaches.
With growing businesses, everyone needs a centralized systems server storage solution. A server helps organize your company’s IT management by managing user permissions, software, and security.
Data Redundancy:
Enterprise servers commonly support RAID (Redundant Array of Independent Disks) configurations, which provide data redundancy and fault tolerance. RAID levels like RAID 1 (mirroring) and RAID 5 (striping with parity) safeguard against data loss due to disk failures. This redundancy is crucial for maintaining data integrity and minimizing the risk of downtime caused by hardware failures.
Manageability:
Enterprise servers feature robust management and monitoring capabilities. They often include integrated management controllers (such as HP iLO or Dell iDRAC) that enable remote administration, monitoring, and troubleshooting. This remote management functionality streamlines IT operations, reduces the need for on-site visits, and accelerates issue resolution, ultimately lowering maintenance costs.
Virtualization Support:
Enterprise servers are well-suited for virtualization technologies. They offer the computational power and memory capacity to host multiple virtual machines (VMs) simultaneously. Popular virtualization platforms like VMware vSphere and Microsoft Hyper-V are optimized for integration with enterprise server hardware. Virtualization allows organizations to efficiently consolidate workloads, improve resource utilization, and reduce the number of physical servers required.
Compliance and Governance:
Enterprise servers are designed with compliance and governance in mind. They offer hardware and software features that assist organizations in meeting industry-specific regulations and internal governance policies. This includes secure boot processes, hardware-based encryption, and support for audit trails and access controls, ensuring data protection and compliance adherence.
Customization:
Enterprise servers can be customized to meet specific business needs. Organizations have the flexibility to choose hardware configurations that align with their workloads and performance requirements. This customization ensures that IT infrastructure is tailored to the unique demands of the organization, optimizing resource allocation and efficiency.
Support and Warranty:
Enterprise servers often come with comprehensive support and warranty packages from reputable manufacturers. These packages provide businesses with peace of mind, knowing that technical assistance and replacement parts are readily available in case of issues. This support infrastructure minimizes disruptions and ensures prompt problem resolution, contributing to uninterrupted operations.
Energy Efficiency:
Many enterprise servers are designed with energy-efficient components and power management features. This eco-friendly approach not only reduces operational costs but also aligns with sustainability goals. Energy-efficient servers contribute to a smaller carbon footprint, which is increasingly important for businesses focused on environmental responsibility.
High Availability Clustering:
Enterprise servers support clustering technologies that enable the creation of highly available configurations. Clustering provides failover capabilities, ensuring that critical services and applications remain accessible even if a server experiences hardware or software failures. This redundancy enhances business continuity and minimizes downtime.
Backup and Disaster Recovery:
Enterprise servers can be seamlessly integrated with comprehensive backup and disaster recovery solutions. These solutions automate data backup processes, create backups at regular intervals, and facilitate swift data recovery in the event of system failures or data loss. Robust disaster recovery planning and testing ensure that businesses can quickly resume operations with minimal disruption.
Remote Management and Monitoring:
The remote management and monitoring capabilities of enterprise servers enable IT teams to oversee and maintain infrastructure resources from anywhere with internet access. This remote visibility and control streamline IT administration, reduce the need for on-site presence, and expedite problem resolution. These features are particularly valuable in distributed or remote work environments.
Application Hosting and Support:
Enterprise servers offer support for application hosting, ensuring that critical applications run smoothly and securely. They provide the necessary resources and reliability to host various applications, including database servers, web servers, and enterprise software. Robust support features include application performance tuning, updates, and troubleshooting assistance.
Multi-Cloud Management:
Multi-cloud management features allow organizations to manage resources across different cloud providers and platforms efficiently. With these capabilities, businesses can optimize resource allocation, monitor performance, and control costs across multiple cloud environments, promoting flexibility and agility in their cloud strategies.
Bottom Line:
An enterprise server is the cornerstone of a robust IT infrastructure, offering businesses reliability, scalability, and enhanced security. It offers high performance, data redundancy, and support for resource-intensive applications, empowering organizations to streamline operations and drive productivity.
