Apple Introduces Mac Pro Server Workstation
Wow, a new Mac computer without any fanfare from Apple? That's odd. But
this whole situation is an unusual one. Let's start with the departed. Apple has offered a rack-mount Xserve Mac OS X server system for a
handful of years now, but they have always felt like an oddball. Apple's
not really in the enterprise business, and it was one of just a few
enterprise products offered by the company. Now, with their consumer
products doing so well, it seems that Apple is shifting their focus. The
Xserve has just been killed, with the final sales set to occur at the
end of January 2011. So if you want an OS X rack-mount server, you
better get it within the next couple of months. The good news is that
Apple Xserve support will continue even after that date, so existing
users will be looked after.
But rather than simply getting out of the high-end server business altogether, Apple has actually replaced the Xserve. The company's Mac Pro lineup has now grown by one, with the Mac Pro Server being introduced to fill the void left by the exit of the Xserve. This helps Apple to have one less major hardware design in the supply channel, as the Mac Pro Server uses the exact same chassis as the other Mac Pro workstation machines. There's honestly not too much that differentiates the Mac Pro Server from the standard Mac Pro; the main difference is the operating system, as this new one ships with OS X Snow Leopard Server, an unlimited-client license version.
Other specifications for the $2,999 based model include a single 2.8GHz quad-core Intel Xeon "Nehalem" CPU, 8GB of ECC memory, two 1TB hard drives, ATI Radeon HD 5770 with 1GB of video memory, and one 18x DVD writer. The machine will ship in 2-4 weeks.
But rather than simply getting out of the high-end server business altogether, Apple has actually replaced the Xserve. The company's Mac Pro lineup has now grown by one, with the Mac Pro Server being introduced to fill the void left by the exit of the Xserve. This helps Apple to have one less major hardware design in the supply channel, as the Mac Pro Server uses the exact same chassis as the other Mac Pro workstation machines. There's honestly not too much that differentiates the Mac Pro Server from the standard Mac Pro; the main difference is the operating system, as this new one ships with OS X Snow Leopard Server, an unlimited-client license version.
Other specifications for the $2,999 based model include a single 2.8GHz quad-core Intel Xeon "Nehalem" CPU, 8GB of ECC memory, two 1TB hard drives, ATI Radeon HD 5770 with 1GB of video memory, and one 18x DVD writer. The machine will ship in 2-4 weeks.
