How Much Does a Server Cost for a Large Business?
Servers and networks have become a core component of business operations. Every corporation – regardless of the number of employees – needs reliable and secure servers to establish their online presence and run business processes smoothly. But for businesses with thousands of employees, creating and managing their servers is a must-have investment.
So how much do large businesses pay for their servers? A small business with its own server spends around $1000 to $3000, but large enterprise servers cost anywhere from tens of thousands up to millions of dollars. This all depends on the number of employees, hardware, software, and other maintenance costs.
The Cost of Building Servers for Large Businesses
Large enterprises are companies that have 250 or more employees in different departments. It’s important to define large businesses and differentiate them from small to medium-sized enterprises because it determines the number of work-related tasks and business processes, as well as the type and volume of sensitive data within the network.
Enterprises that manage tons of data and perform different tasks need high-powered servers that scale up to what the company needs. This often requires them to purchase more expensive and higher-end hardware and software components. Depending on the company size and the equipment used, building and maintaining servers usually cost large companies thousands up to a million dollars.
Establishing a New Server vs. Buying a Pre-Built Server
Building an entirely new server and buying a pre-built one are two options for businesses. Creating a server from scratch allows the IT team to customize the server according to what exactly the business needs. This might cost about half a hundred thousand up to a million dollars initially plus yearly costs of about a few thousand dollars in maintenance and support.
On the other hand, buying a pre-built server takes the hassle of shopping around for different equipment. Companies also get bundled software, support, and warranty from the manufacturer of the pre-built server. The initial cost is lower than when building a server from scratch, but corporations have to pay at least $50,000 monthly for an organization of 250 employees. A pre-built server seems like a great choice for companies cutting down on costs, but it might still require them to invest in other additional equipment.
Everything You Need When Building a New Server
For many large corporations, having a dedicated IT team that manages the in-house server offers more than a pre-built one. It’s highly customizable and the issues are easily addressed by the company’s IT department. Here are the important costs to consider when building a server for a large company:
1) Server Hardware
When building a server for a company, IT teams have to find and purchase all the needed components. This allows them to find the exact equipment that the company needs, based on their operations and goals. The total cost is about $1658 per set of server equipment, but this typically only covers the needs of a small business.
Larger businesses on the other hand need several sets of servers to handle all the data they transmit between employees, clients, or customers. Here’s a breakdown of that $1658 per set of server equipment to give you a rough estimate of how each hardware costs:
- Hard Drive – about $240 for two 1 TB SSD
- Memory – about $329 for a 64GB ECC RAM
- Chassis – about $160 for a Supermicro 1U Chassis
- Motherboard (with Processor) – about $929
2) Server Software
After gathering all the hardware to build a server, the next step is to look at the operating system and applications needed to run the network smoothly.
- Operating System – a Windows Server costs about $500 up to $4000. Linux OS is usually free, but the team or the employees in the company might not be familiar with how it works.
- Other Required Server Software – applications like Exchange, SQL, Citrix, and SharePoint cost extra depending on which ones you need and which packages you choose. They may range from about $400 to $4000 per application.
3) Other Important Costs
In addition to the initial costs of buying hardware and monthly pay for the applications used in the server, there are also other important costs to consider like:
- Maintenance and Replacement – it takes about $731.94 yearly to maintain an average server. This cost might skyrocket if some of the physical servers get hacked or damaged because companies have to buy new parts.
- Power Supply and Ventilation – large companies pay about $500 yearly for a set of running servers alone. Since they usually have multiple sets of servers in a designated room, the cost easily racks up to thousands of dollars yearly
- Software and Hardware Support – the average salary of IT support personnel in the USA is about $52,000 yearly. Remember that large companies need all the help they can get to keep the servers and network secure, so they need an entire team of in-house IT personnel that manages the devices of at least 250 employees.
3 Industries that Need Large Servers
Modern organizations and companies from different kinds of industries use server hosting services to build their presence online, automate tasks, store sensitive data, and streamline their business processes. But some industries are more reliant on servers than others. Organizations in these three industries should consider investing in high-end servers:
1) Banking and Finance
Many consumers prefer digital banking instead of transacting with actual banks, which is why banks and other financial institutions need to be accessible online. A large server, secure database, and an excellent IT infrastructure is the key to managing finance clients and mitigating cyber risks effectively.
2) Healthcare
Doctors, nurses, and hospital management personnel rely on EMRs stored in a server to access patient information and retrieve important data like insurance, medical history, and recommendations from other physicians. Servers are also responsible for facilitating administrative processes like inventory, accounting, and project management.
3) Retail and E-Commerce
Many e-commerce stores and retail brands have started investing in servers that help them improve data security and enhance the customer service experience. If companies wish to survive the extremely competitive industry, they should also start developing their own server that meets the demands of different clients and customers.
Why Enterprises Need to Have Their Own Servers
Servers are places to store and exchange data. It’s also the basis for a company’s information technology (IT), which is why businesses of all types and sizes should have a server. Large enterprises and corporations handle a ton of different business and customer-related data. It’s easy for their team to get disorganized so they use servers to help them get back on track.
Aside from storing data and streamlining business operations, servers also protect confidential data from cybercriminals. Corporations are the target of many hackers who want to gain access to different kinds of stored data. Secure servers limit data exchange. This gives corporations complete ownership of the data they gather, use, and store for business purposes.
Should You Consider Cloud-Based Servers?
Since physical servers cost a fortune even for large enterprises that produce millions of revenues yearly, many in-house IT teams look for a different alternative that cuts costs but works just the same as on-premise servers – like cloud-based servers.
A cloud-based server uses virtual technology that allows companies to access all the applications and data they need offsite. Clients only have to pay for the resources they use – there’s no need to worry about maintenance costs. Data is also regularly backed up so there’s less risk of data loss.
While cloud servers are more accessible and cost less compared to physical servers, there are still downsides to this option. For example, the configurations might not be exactly what the company needs. There’s also the issue of inaccessibility if the provider’s cloud is experiencing downtime.
But when choosing between these two options, make sure to assess what the company needs first and how much resources are allotted for maintaining or building a server. You can also consult IT experts to help you make an informed decision about the company’s IT infrastructure.
Server and Network Solutions? Abacus Can Help
At Abacus, we have a team of highly-skilled support personnel and IT engineers to help businesses with their IT needs. We’re responsive and dedicated to providing our clients with server and network solutions to support them as they operate and expand.
Consult with our friendly and knowledgeable IT experts today for the best server and network solutions for your company. Call us at (856) 505 – 6860 to book an appointment.
