Boston GP 230 review

The GP 230 certainly has a low audio footprint, as the processor fan is almost silent with only the power supply fan making any noise. The bottom line is this server is well suited to small offices that value their peace and quiet.

The Atom also made its mark in our power tests. With the server connected to our inline power meter we saw a minute 2W power draw with it in standby; with the server running Windows Server 2008 Enterprise x64 and idling along, consumption settled to an amazingly low 27W. More impressive was the fact that with SiSoft Sandra pummelling the life out of the Atom to 100% utilisation, the power draw rose only slightly to no more than 31W.

Businesses that see the latest series 5500 Xeons as total overkill for their requirements will find the GP 230 offers an interesting alternative. Performance of the Atom processor is the weakest link, but this compact server is virtually silent, is cost effective and has an incredibly low power demand even under full load.

Author: Dave Mitchell