- #Mac mini server alternative how to#
- #Mac mini server alternative series#
- #Mac mini server alternative mac#
Who are the big providers in the Mac colocation world? For quite a few years, it has been Macminicolo, a company that basically came up with the idea of hosting racks of thousands of Mac minis.
(Mac minis and SAN storage at a Macstadium data center. That location can be local, regional, or even international I personally know of several Mac-based businesses that are based in Europe but use colocation services in the US. What that means is that someone else can set up and maintain a macOS Server for you at another location, usually a secured data center. The first alternative we’ll talk about here is using Mac server colocation. Part 4: Setting Up File Sharing and Wikis.Part 3: Router Configuration and Open Directory.
#Mac mini server alternative series#
In case you’ve missed them, the previous posts in this series include: In this last post, I’ll discuss two alternatives that can provide nearly equivalent services but without some of the issues that can make server setup and maintenance a hassle. What you may have discovered during the series is that there are a lot of decisions to be made and hidden costs to setting up and maintaining your own server.
#Mac mini server alternative how to#
Either way, it’s awfully convenient to keep a server around-which is why, 20 years after I started, I’ve still got one.This is the final in a series of articles about macOS Server and how to set up the many services it can provide for small to medium-sized workgroups.
If I were starting from scratch today, I might consider a NAS-but I suspect that it wouldn’t be compatible with everything I use my Mac for, especially connecting to my home weather station. You’ve got to stick it somewhere, and it’s just another thing cluttering up your house.Īll in all, I’m glad I’ve got a Mac server in my house. But if you’ve got, say, an iMac, you’re stuck with the big screen. More junk: You can run a Mac without any keyboard or monitor attached, in which case your server can take up very little space. Or just remember to turn it on when you want to watch videos or listen to music. I haven’t measured, but I’d imagine that I would use a lot less energy if I dumped my Drobo and Mac mini duo and replaced it with a single low-power NAS.Īn extra device: If you’ve got a Mac you tend to use most of the time, you could make it your “household server” by leaving it on all the time, rather than dedicating an additional device. Most modern NAS devices are designed to be power efficient. You can put an old iMac, Mac mini, or even laptop into service as a server with little or no financial investment.īuying one of these is cheaper than buying a Mac.Įnergy: Running a Mac server all the time, especially if it’s attached to external hard drives, can use a lot of power. Once I got a fresher model, the old one went in the closet and served me for a few more years as my server. My first two Mac servers were both hand-me-down Power Macs. You have to administer them from a webpage and if there’s trouble, you will be entering a world of troubleshooting that can get alien and frustrating in a hurry.Īvailability: One of the best sources of Mac server hardware is an old Mac you already own. You probably know how to share files and folders, run iTunes, the works. Reasons to use a Mac serverįamiliarity: If you’re a Mac user, you know how to use a Mac. Not everyone can stream HD movies with impunity. And if you use an online backup service, such as CrashPlan or Backblaze, you can back up that Mac and all of your precious files will be backed up, too.įinally, if your home Internet service is slow, spotty, or metered, having a home server allows you to stock up on content-especially music and movies-and have them available to watch on a moment’s notice.
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