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We suggest that anyone considering a small-business server appliance should take a look at what Cobalt Networks has done with the latest edition of its RaQ line of server appliances, the RaQ XTR.
Although this system, with its built-in Web, file and e-mail servers, can't compete with the breadth of applications that a full- featured Windows 2000, Solaris or even fully maxxed-out Linux server can accomplish, Cobalt continues to be the leader in both ease of use and ease of manageability. And we can say that based on our previous examinations of Windows-based Internet appliances from Compaq and IBM as well as non-Windows offerings of more powerful single-purpose file servers from Connex and Snap (see More Online).
The RaQ XTR, which replaces Cobalt's previous flagship, is fundamentally a heavier-duty, rack-mountable version of the Cobalt Qube 3, which we reviewed last November (www.internetweek.com/ reviews00/rev112700-2.htm). The internal software is very similar, and to a remote operator, the platforms are identical and easy to manage. However, the RaQ XTR's hardware is more scalable and robust and more appropriate for an enterprise or service-provider environment, making the server definitely worth considering for Web hosting and other related functions. Still, by introducing the RaQ XTR at more than twice the price of the RaQ 4 server, Cobalt is showing that its products aren't as much of a bargain as they used to be.
So, what's the business case? It's that this machine is easier to set up and manage than comparable servers running Windows, NetWare or even an off-the-shelf copy of Linux.
The suite of software that Cobalt has preinstalled and the top- quality management interface mean that organizations can easily train PC power users or even PC-savvy office managers to perform routine maintenance and moves/adds/changes on the Cobalt platform. Where there are already experienced server managers, the simplicity of the Cobalt interface means that administrators can keep track of a relatively large number of machines. In the service-provider environment, the ease with which separate customer accounts and sites can be configured on the RaQ XTR server means that many small sites can be located on one server, reducing the number of machines that must be purchased, installed, powered and managed.
Inside The Blue Box
The RaQ XTR is...