Laptops will tend to be more expensive and less reliable, spec for spec, as well as having a somewhat compromised bus architecture and poor expansion capabilities.
I'd suggest looking for a higher-specced compact PC. Or I suppose you could consider an x86 Mac Mini running Boot Camp.
But a mac mini is basically a laptop without a screen and keyboard :)
The idea of trying to install Small Business Server on Boot Camp sounds a little scary, and totally unsupported (not that support ever actually exists, and probably wouldn't happen on a laptop anyway)
My 1.8 GHz dual core laptop actually outperforms my 3 GHz single core desktop. Not by much, and that was running quite intensive Matlab simulations on some pretty big files.
As for reliability - if it's sitting in a cupboard all the time, and not being battered about, then I would have thought it should be ok. How bad are laptops? Assuming you don't get a dell with a manufacturing defect in the display :)
In your position, I'd be very tempted to talk to World of Computers. An Intel SR1530AH is £311 including VAT, and that's a 1U chassis with server mainboard. Add £120 for a Core Duo, £60 for a gig of RAM and £45 for a 250GB SATA drive and that makes a proper server for under £550 that you can rack-mount.
That system is the successor to the one I've left unattended in Docklands for two years without (touching wood) incident.
The server lives in the cupboard in my bedroom though and rack servers tend to be horribly noisy due to the small, high speed, fans.
Laptops tend not to be the most silent computers in the world either - some of them can be quite noisy when they decide it's getting a bit warm (small fans again). Home Theatre PC's can be quite quiet, but they tend to be quite pricey.
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I'd suggest looking for a higher-specced compact PC. Or I suppose you could consider an x86 Mac Mini running Boot Camp.
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The idea of trying to install Small Business Server on Boot Camp sounds a little scary, and totally unsupported (not that support ever actually exists, and probably wouldn't happen on a laptop anyway)
My 1.8 GHz dual core laptop actually outperforms my 3 GHz single core desktop. Not by much, and that was running quite intensive Matlab simulations on some pretty big files.
As for reliability - if it's sitting in a cupboard all the time, and not being battered about, then I would have thought it should be ok. How bad are laptops? Assuming you don't get a dell with a manufacturing defect in the display :)
Reply
That system is the successor to the one I've left unattended in Docklands for two years without (touching wood) incident.
Reply
Laptops tend not to be the most silent computers in the world either - some of them can be quite noisy when they decide it's getting a bit warm (small fans again). Home Theatre PC's can be quite quiet, but they tend to be quite pricey.
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