ixsystems server buying guide

11 Key Traits You Must Absolutely DEMAND From Your Provider

The Ultimate Guide to Buying a New Server for Open Source

If you are in the market to purchase new servers, now, or will need to in the future, then consider the next 10 minutes reading this guide to be a prerequisite to choosing a vendor.

You’ll learn the most common pitfalls that trip up too many customers when buying servers and learn exactly what you need to know to avoid them. In fact, you’ll know more than most

“experts.” The knowledge you gain from this guide can ensure you avoid the following:

Inaccurate and/or over-inflated quotes 4

Being sold the wrong hardware for your project 4

Poorly built servers 4

Missed deadlines 4

The frustrations of outsourced tech support 4

Myth: Buying a server or server system is as simple as collecting quotes from vendors and then going with the lowest quote.

Truth: Servers are not all created equal (as you will soon find out). Servers that reliably withstand the test of time and harsh punishment are the result of expertly assembled components and finely tuned software. These features are not a guarantee with all manufacturers, thus the need for this guide.

This guide was co-authored by a qualified third party with you, the consumer, in mind. The authors’ qualifications include years of experience building, installing, and maintaining servers on behalf of the U.S. Navy, Department of Homeland Security, and major municipal organizations from around the country. This information is based on their thousands of hours of real-world experience, where virtually every possible scenario and condition has been encountered.



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Familiarize yourself with the 11 key points below. Once you feel comfortable with them, you will be ready to interview vendors.

Tip: When talking to a vendor, avoid asking yes or no questions because they are too easy to answer. Instead, ask viewpoint questions that force them to provide quality feedback. If a vendor fails to impress you with even one of these 11 points, move on. The quality, integrity, and ongoing support you deserve exists, so don’t settle for less.

1. No-Cost Pre-Purchase Consultation with an Expert in Open Source Servers and SystemsIf you’re not a systems integrator or a server architect how do you know what products will best match your business’s needs when faced with shopping for servers or storage systems? According to Moore’s Law technologies shape-shift exponentially as time moves forward. CPUs, motherboards, hard drives, and all the components that make up servers and systems, literally morph overnight. Therefore, one-on-one access to an expert is a mission critical factor. You should be able to pick up the phone and get a real person on the phone within 2 minutes who is knowledgeable enough to answer all your questions, offer expert guidance, and provide unquestionably reliable recommendations for a server or system, free of charge.

“But why do I need to talk to anyone when a vendor offers an on-site free configurator?” you ask. Most vendors in this industry offer onsite tools called configurators. They advertise their ease of use. You plug in your specs and it spits out a recommended server system in a matter of minutes. So easy a 10-year old could use one. These tools are deceivingly convenient and designed to funnel customers through an automated order system. So, you’re right, you never need to actually talk to anyone. But is that a good thing?

The iXsystems ExperienceOnce upon a time iXsystems offered its customers an on-site configurator similar to those of its competitors. Turns out that in the course of providing post-purchase support, iX quickly realized that some of its customer’s biggest problems were because of the configurator. Customers were either being fitted with systems that were too small or too big and rarely with a solution



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that actually fit their business needs. It ended up costing both customers and iXsystems time and money. iX learned that they could mitigate a lot of the problems by scrapping the automated configurator in favor of pre-purchase consultations with their knowledgeable Solutions Architects. An unexpected advantage was that it simultaneously permitted the company to forge much stronger customer relationships right out of the gate. Their goal became to listen, first, then develop recommendations that came closest to delivering a perfect system as cost-efficiently as possible.

Get on the phone with Kevin or David, both Solutions Architects at iXsystems, and it’s instantly clear that you’re talking to a subject matter expert. They help distill your business requirements and goals, analyze those goals in terms of server options, then develop a recommended best-fit custom configuration guaranteed to work with your Open Source system of choice.

Because the company is all employee-owned, each person has a stake in delivering the very best products and customer experience. It’s literally their company.

iXsystems’ experts have guru-level experience with Open Source systems—real OS champions and possess intimate knowledge of all the latest products and components being released in the marketplace, something you should demand from any manufacturer.

2. Long-Term Relationship that Benefits You, First, and the Manufacturer, SecondLong-term relationships of any sort thrive on trust and loyalty. How does this apply to servers and server systems?

On average a server, once past burn-in (testing) phase, is good-to-go for up to seven years. That’s a long time to try and put up with a server manufacturer or vendor if they have no reason to continue to deliver a best-in-class customer experience and expert support. Chances are good that over the lifecycle of your system you will require some level of support from your vendor. Don’t you want a company that puts your needs first, particularly when you’ve paid them a truckload of money for their products?

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Manufacturers often boast of “long-term relationships,” but then fail to back up that promise with action. They’re focused on the initial sale and not the follow-up. To get support you have to get on the phone and step through a frustrating gauntlet of menu choices. Then, when you finally get a real person on the end of the line it’s a Level 1 help desk technician, someone with rudimentary knowledge of servers and whose real purpose is to triage calls and keep customers from “tying up” the real experts’ valuable time. That’s a relationship that benefits who? The manufacturer, whose interest is in maximizing profit by minimizing the touch-factor.

When you are evaluating server manufacturers, is it clear that a long-term relationship is even an option?

Do you have a dedicated point of contact? 4

Does ongoing communication and support require you pay 4

additional fees?

Does the company have a proven reputation for integrity among 4

peers?

What kind of customer reviews can you find? Make sure they are 4

hosted on third-party sites and not reviews “curated” to pad the vendor’s website

To get the absolute most of your system and your company’s investment, it’s imperative that you consider the quality of the relationship available to you when researching manufacturers.

The iXsystems ExperienceiXsystems begins its long-term manufacturer-customer relationship from the very first communication. From the first expert consultation to every single turn of a screw on the production floor, every IX employee is hard-wired to nurture customer relationships and drive toward delivery of the best possible product.

This employee-owned company by its very DNA is hard-wired to attract customers who value the touch-factor and appreciate aptitude over attitude.



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3. Ability to Provide Accurate QuotesThe investment in a server system is significant—thousands, even millions of dollars are at stake in some cases. Is it too much to expect that when a manufacturer provides you with a quote it should be somewhat accurate? When an inexperienced salesperson or a configurator tool is permitted to be the “brains” behind your system configuration, it’s commonplace to end up with an unrealistic quote and in some cases, one that is completely out of the ballpark. Parts may be incompatible, prices out-dated, or you may be quoted a price for a system that will never meet your business’s needs.

The ability for a manufacturer to commit to providing accurate quotes begins with the initial interaction. Companies that push the configurator tool as a means to an end, may not be able to meet the accuracy requirement you should expect.

The iXsystems ExperienceiXsystems has a reputation for accuracy -- from its price quotes to its machinery, build processes, and workmanship. Because one-on-one consultations with experts are a recommended first step, you get a very accurate and reliable quote. Server systems as designed by iXsystems are custom configurations based on customer needs. You talk, iX listens and then develops a best-in-class solution.

They have:

Immediate access to Silicon Valley’s component manufacturers 4

Strong relationships with many of those companies 4

Finger on the pulse of the most up-to-the-minute fluctuations in 4

price and component so customers get the best price, just-in-time.

iXsystems will never quote the lowest price just to bag a sale. Solutions Architects are focused on a triad of aims:

Configuring as close to a perfect system they can based on 4

customer business requirements, which may be performance, speed, size, or a combo of needs

Integrating the latest technology in a system 4

Providing just-in-time prices that allow them to quote as low as 4



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possible in the moment

Consider what you have at stake when seeking accurate quotes.

4. Reputable On-Time DeliveryEnterprise-level projects are often already in-flight and dependent on new server systems when a customer begins shopping. There is little wiggle room for wasted time of any kind and especially time-to-deliver estimates that completely miss the mark for one lame reason or another. When a vendor is incapable of delivering on time, your project can be dead in the water and suddenly you’ve gone from hero to zero around your company’s water cooler.

The Reality: Many server vendors make it a habit to promise unrealistic de-livery timeframes just to make the sale. The risk: your project is compromised, you receive improperly tested machines, machines and components that are dead on arrival, and possibly incomplete or incompatible systems.

The iXsystems ExperienceOn-time delivery of a system is a matter of pride with this all employee-owned company. Customers sometimes come knocking at a point in their project that cannot possibly permit iXsystems to deliver a system on time. Leadership has a track record of candor – turning away customers whose expectations, at that time, simply could not be accommodated.

The company is opposed to industry practices that put the customer between a rock and a hard place and put projects and business at risk—the customers’ as well as their own. The guts to man-up on realistic delivery times has also given iXsystems a big advantage when it comes to fortifying the customer relationships it values so highly. Customers appreciate the down-home honesty that illustrates a commitment to integrity and delivery of best-in-class products and services. Some have returned at a later time to buy from iXsystems as opposed to other vendors who’ve burned them with unreliable delivery estimates or whose records of delivering poorly tested and even incomplete systems are not worth the risk.



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5. Servers Built to Meticulous Quality StandardsCarefully consider the quality and reputation of a manufacturer’s server builds when researching. Risks are that components are poorly assembled and then improperly tested. Servers can be delivered dead on arrival or fail soon after installation, driving down-time, emergency support, and parts and machinery replacement. There are differences in construction processes, personnel assembling servers with little knowledge of servers and systems, and in quality of materials used. And then again, some vendors build nothing! They intake the customer’s order (can you say “middleman”?) and another manufacturer actually builds the system—ZERO interaction with the customer. Don’t let your server build be outsourced!

The iXsystems ExperienceAll server parts themselves are often the same—manufactured by the same factories in China. It’s not the parts themselves that make the difference, but the quality of assembly, the expertise of the architects putting those parts together, and the rigor of the quality and performance testing.

iXsystems uses a double quality check process (“double QC”). The first quality check occurs mid-point in the build and the second at the end of the build. Other manufacturers use a single QC process—at the end of the build. Wondering why iX spends the time on this additional step?Despite iXsystems’ addition of the mid-point quality check, this double step process actually decreases their server build time! By subjecting the machinery to a mid-point quality check, problems are caught and corrected sooner, before they become bigger, more complicated, and more deeply embedded in a fully assembled machine. Thanks to this meticulous process, iX has significantly fewer problems to troubleshoot at the end of their server builds and arguably a better-built machine.

iXsystems takes special care even in the way cables are packed into the server chassis. The company’s chief systems architect has everyone trained to his specifications. Cables are meticulously packed to maximize air circulation, vastly reducing heat build-up that can fry machines. The company also spends a bit more on its CPU grease to get the brand that transfers thermal conductivity at a higher rate--just two examples that illustrate the lengths to which this company will go to perfect the quality of its products.



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Don’t you wish every manufacturer were as committed to quality?

6. Time Invested on Better Built ServersAnyone can assemble a server relatively quickly once parts are onsite. But is it assembled correctly? Has it been assembled by knowledgeable systems architects who understand the duress under which most servers function?

Ask a vendor, for instance, if they build their own servers. Some are only order-takers, the middlemen who outsource your order to another vendor who actually builds your machine. How are quality and integrity ensured? Are there records of test processes and proprietary build procedures? If you need support after purchase, who is going to provide it and will they know anything about your system or have the level of expertise you deserve?

The iXsystems ExperienceiXsystems sits squarely in the heart of Silicon Valley, still ground-zero for technical masterminds. Given its proximity to all the best and brightest companies in the industry, architects can have all server parts needed for a build onsite and on the production floor within a day of a confirmed order.

The company’s just-in-time philosophy offers advantages to both customer and manufacturer. As a manufacturer, just-in-time translates to no need for costly warehouse space because there is no large inventory to store. As an iXsystems customer, you reap the benefit because materials are ordered as needed, at the lowest price available, at any point in time. The company’s location puts it within 10 to 15 minutes of most parts vendors, eliminating long distance transport and shipping costs. But this company will tell you that they require a 7-10 day lead-time. If a server can be built so quickly with parts readily available, what takes place during this 7-10 day period?

The time this company invests in building any of its servers is proof of its high quality standards.

The process is detailed and time-consuming:

Serial numbers for every component in a build are scanned into a 4



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database

MAC and NIC addresses recorded 4

Architects with experience in Open Source, server architecture, 4

cabling and networking assemble the parts and select only the best materials

Unique double quality check process is in place – server build is 4

tested mid-point, problems corrected, and then tested again at the end of the build

Proprietary cabling practices are utilized 4

Post-build burn-in testing is conducted for a straight 48 hours, 4

problems corrected, and tested again

Test data is recorded on iXsystems’ own server; this serves as 4

a historical snap-shot of performance, pass/fail data, and all component-related information, and is designed to be the ultimate go-to source for post-purchase support

RAID is set up and servers tested for operation with a customer’s 4

OS of choice

7. Battle Tested Burn-In and QA Processes Ninety-nine percent of server mortality occurs within the first 90 days. An aggressive burn-in and QA process on the vendor’s part can mitigate this. Look for a vendor who is unafraid to aggressively test beyond the norm and prefers to deliver a product that’s been pushed to excess, brought to failure, and improved, all to withstand the punishment it will get throughout its lifecycle.

The iXsystems ExperienceiXsystems’ QA guru has written a proprietary test script that is the crux of the company’s burn-in process. His code is loaded onto iXsystem’s own test server, affectionately named, “The Overseer.” The script aggressively hammers every part of a server for a straight 48 hours, vastly compressing the first 90 days of the server’s lifecycle. The test stresses all components, including CPUs, motherboard, and RAM, and includes components no one else tests. If failure is going to happen, then it will in most cases happen here, on iXsystem’s production floor within this intensive 48 hours.

The Overseer logs all test data and saves it for future reference as part of



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the support processes. Admittedly, the team occasionally discovers failed motherboards and bad CPUs, proof that there are defective components on the market and so the need for intense testing and QA process.

8. White Glove Post-Purchase SupportFind out beforehand what type and level of support you can expect after you purchase a vendor’s server system. Some companies are sadly “just not that ‘into’ you.” You should expect that at some point in the lifecycle of your system that you or someone at your company will need to access your vendor’s support—whether it’s for performance or hardware issues, or even simply guidance in setting up a new system. Do yourself a favor, ask vendors up front what they provide on the back-end.After dropping thousands of dollars, ask yourself if you really want support that subjects you to the following all too common “support” practices:

Fee-based support subscriptions 4

Other bewildered customers offering tips and tricks on support 4

forums

A phone menu that drops you into a frustrating gauntlet of Level 1 4

help desk personnel and hours spent on hold

The iXsystems ExperienceThis is an example of a company that “gets” that their back-end support is as critical as their pre-purchase consultations, maybe even more so. The iXsystems experience comes auto-bundled with concierge-level post-purchase support that is free of charge. All support technicians start their iXsystems experience as systems architects on the production floor! Before they are authorized to serve as support personnel, they are required to learn firsthand the ins and outs of server assembly, the quality processes unique to iXsystems, and participate in the burn-in and QA phases.

iXsystems support personnel are engaged, concerned, attentive, and supremely knowledgeable. You’ll find no Level 1 help desk grunt here! This company’s family-feel combined with experts everywhere you turn, instills confidence in customers who come seeking timely solutions to server and system problems.



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Support resources include:

Detailed burn-in data and all pass/fail tests for servers and 4

components sold is available whenever necessary

Support personnel are within a few hundred feet of the systems 4

architects and able to initiate on-the-fly troubleshooting with the experts who built and tested the system

Systems specialists are able to replicate customer problems on 4

servers that are exactly like those the customer owns thanks to the meticulous system specs maintained on all customer servers

What kind of support are you willing to settle for?

9. Strong Guarantee and BeyondYou’re planning on investing anywhere from a few thousand to possibly a million or so dollars of your company’s cash on a server or entire server system. How do you begin to evaluate and compare various manufacturers’ guarantees? What other post-purchase assurances are important?

First, make sure any vendor you are researching provides a warranty that covers parts and labor for some length of time. Also, consider the other assurances that may be available—free post-purchase support, access to knowledgeable systems personnel who can answer questions and come up with viable solutions if ever needed, a record of thorough burn-in and QA testing processes that can offer you another level of confidence in the product, etc. Lack of any of these should be a red flag.

The iXsystems ExperienceThe company offers a 3-year parts and labor guarantee on all servers with a dedicated Solutions Architect and Support Representative assigned to your account. Considering iXsystems’ over the top burn-in process, malfunction on servers and systems is almost a non-issue. As part of its commitment to a superior customer experience, this employee-owned company prefers to handle customer problems on a case-by-case basis. Largely, iXsystems products are so well built and malfunction so rare that it’s difficult to document requests to return product. Other manufacturers experience customers who want to return servers and report failures due to a complete lack of



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understanding of the initial customer needs and incomplete or weak assembly and testing processes.

iXsystems invests time in the pre-purchase stage talking to customers ensuring they get exactly the servers and systems they need to meet their business goals. They do this by pairing a customer with an expert Solutions Architect instead of driving them to an automated configurator where iXsystems believes problems first arise.

Additional perks of working with iXsystems is the opportunity for a 4

company tour of its San Jose facility in the heart of Silicon Valley.

iXsystems’ customer experience, preferred products and services, 4

integrity and overall philosophy, inherently guarantee their products and services.

10. Customer Reviews that Reveal the “Real Dope”Customer reviews, Facebook “friends,” and active Twitter feeds, have become the social proof for which companies hunger as a tactic for driving sales and boosting reputation. But does that mean you should consider every review you read to be reliable and real?

Absolutely not and here’s why:

It’s a common practice among many companies to hand-pick stellar 4

customer reviews for publishing on their website, as well as invite customers to “friend” them on Facebook and leave comments on Twitter—all content under the control of the company. Bad reviews and off-color comments? Removed. Let’s be clear: these are curated customer reviews and feedback that may not tell the whole story.

How to best separate the wheat from the chaff in online consumer reviews:

Seek out a third-party consumer site where you can find customer 4

reviews on a wide variety of companies as well as their products and services. An example of a popular third-party site is Angie’s List – where reviews are aggregated without bias for any one



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company or its service or products. You can get the real dope, so to speak, from everyday folks who have actually used products and services.

The iXsystems ExperienceiXsystems company leadership intentionally chooses not to follow in the footsteps of other manufacturers. Others hand-pick positive customer reviews that pad website content and artificially boost appeal and likeability. iXsystems, on the other hand, builds a long-term experience with its customers and puts its confidence in that relationship to create sales and referrals and an untouchable reputation, no social padding needed!

For non-curated, unbiased customer reviews on iXsystems and its products and services you can visit Customer Lobby, a third-party site. The dialogue and high touch interaction iXsystems devotes to its customers is testament to their commitment to a unique customer experience— an iXsystems experience.

11. Champion for Open Source Open Source is a development model and philosophy that goes far beyond the mere ability for a vendor to build a server capable of running an open source operating system. Many manufacturers can advertise to build a server for open source. If Open Source is your goal—and for most enterprise level deployments, it is—consider how intimately engaged a vendor is with the Open Source world at large and how plugged in to the community they are. Can they provide you with clear guidance on Open Source solutions? Do they have architects with experience on Open Source projects? Can they provide you with post-purchase support for an Open Source system?

The iXsystems ExperienceiXsystems specializes in building servers and systems that run Open Source operating systems of all kinds, most commonly FreeBSD and various flavors of Linux. However, this is not to say that they cannot build servers that are compatible with Windows operating systems, if that’s the customer’s need. And they unconditionally support all Open Source systems.

The open development model by its very nature attracts adherents with






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enthusiasm for shared knowledge and a zest for collaborative development communities. These traits have permeated iXsystems’ business model, thanks in large part to the employees themselves, many of whom remain intimately involved in the Open Source community.

The Open Source mindset, then, is hard-wired into iXsystems’ DNA and the company as a whole benefits. It has likely influenced their high-touch, high-engagement customer experience, and their willingness to foster creativity and innovation among employee-owners.

The Cost of Opportunity - ConclusionWe hope this guide has helped blaze a clearer path through the server-buying woods. The stakes are high – for your business, your project, and your reputation. The opportunity cost can be high, too. * How do you successfully navigate this choice? Study this guide. Whether you ultimately purchase a server or system from iXsystems, Inc. or another vendor, we hope you are confident in your final decision.

Call us today:(855) GREP-4-IX Toll-Free (USA Only)Visit our website today: iXsystems.comCopyright © 2013 iXsystems, Inc. All rights reserved.

If you believe colleagues or peers can benefit from this material we invite you to share it.

According to Investopedia, “Opportunity Cost is what a person sacrifices when they choose one option over another.”


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