Olivetti NetStrada 2600ideRAID

Graphics are dealt with effectively by an Nvidia Vanta AGP card with 8Mb of SDRAM, while an Intel PRO/100 S dual-speed Ethernet adaptor looks after the network connection. Base systems come with a single 300W power supply, but redundancy is also on the cards, as the review system was fitted with a second hot-swappable supply.

Orchestra is Olivetti's software solution for easing installation blues, although it's short on features when compared to the likes of HP's NetServer Navigator or Compaq's SmartStart. Supplied on a bootable CD-ROM, Orchestra has info on installing your chosen operating system and creating driver disks, but it doesn't actually assist in the process itself. With a PC motherboard under the bonnet, server monitoring and management facilities are also relatively modest. The 2600 is supplied with MSI's PC Alert III utility, which can monitor the local system and other networked systems that have an MSI motherboard and the client component installed. PC Alert provides a simple interface with real-time graphs showing processor and chassis temperatures, fan speed and various motherboard voltages. Thresholds can be modified by clicking on a graph and entering a new value and, if this is exceeded, a warning message is displayed, accompanied by an alarm buzzer, although there are no options for sending an email or activating a pager.

Competition in the entry-level server market has never been so intense. Obviously, the NetStrada's main selling point is storage and power redundancy and, compared to servers such as Compaq's IDE-based ProLiant ML330e (see enterprise 85, issue, p230), it does offer good value. However, the PC motherboard shows its limitations when it comes to management and monitoring, and the hard disk cage could have been far better designed to allow easier access to the drives in the event of a failure.

Author: Dave Mitchell