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You are correct on the USB port part, but not all Xserve systems have a DVI port. Only the Intel and PPC G4 versions have video out ports (DVI and VGA, respectively). PPC G5 need a PCI card installed.
Damn, I knew I missed out something when transitioning from a G4 to an Intel Xserve :) Thought it was the same scenario as it happened with the G4 (ADC/DVI) and G5 (DVI) towers.
 
Damn, I knew I missed out something when transitioning from a G4 to an Intel Xserve :) Thought it was the same scenario as it happened with the G4 (ADC/DVI) and G5 (DVI) towers.

Haha, right? Frankly, I find it odd that they skipped adding a pretty cheap part, even a cheap VGA port would have been nice.

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Well, got written permission to post the rack set up in public, I'll be doing that in a few

Great!
 
That rack doesn't look deep enough for a G5 Xserve. But I do like the nice cable management within it.
 
That rack doesn't look deep enough for a G5 Xserve. But I do like the nice cable management within it.

It's difficult to tell from this photo but the rack appears to be too shallow. It's also small enough that cooling is likely to be an issue.
 
G5 Xserves are 28 inches deep, that's over 2 feet. Don't forget to include breathing room behind them for their hot exhaust air. A rough minimum depth would be able 30 to 32 inches.
 
G5 Xserves are 28 inches deep, that's over 2 feet. Don't forget to include breathing room behind them for their hot exhaust air. A rough minimum depth would be able 30 to 32 inches.

Wow, thats pretty big. I always used Mac Minis or Pros as servers. Never really had to deal with a rack until the current setup. OP, Intell brings up a great point to prolong the life of the server, heat dissipation.
 
One thing I've seen done with Xserves is they were mounted vertically on the wall. With the front/intake at the bottom and the rear/exhaust at the top. The whole thing supported with some brackets right against the wall. Maybe not ideal for your setup unfortunately, but still something to consider. You could disguise it with a painting or potted plant.
 
One thing I've seen done with Xserves is they were mounted vertically on the wall. With the front/intake at the bottom and the rear/exhaust at the top. The whole thing supported with some brackets right against the wall. Maybe not ideal for your setup unfortunately, but still something to consider. You could disguise it with a painting or potted plant.

I'll measure it. It is not too deep. It is a standard one.

Dang it! yeah forgot about cooling :/ That's gonna be a challenge, but the air conditioner is pretty close to the rack.
 
While also not ideal, you could sit the Xserve on top of the rack until a longer term solution is decided on.

I can also offer the same deal for a PowerMac G5, DP1.8GHZ, 1GB RAM, OS X 10.4.11. If your school can use that I can give that for shipping only instead of the Xserve. Of course it will not fit in the rack either though....
 
G5 Xserves are 28 inches deep, that's over 2 feet. Don't forget to include breathing room behind them for their hot exhaust air. A rough minimum depth would be able 30 to 32 inches.

Not deep enough. Only 20 inches deep.

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While also not ideal, you could sit the Xserve on top of the rack until a longer term solution is decided on.

I can also offer the same deal for a PowerMac G5, DP1.8GHZ, 1GB RAM, OS X 10.4.11. If your school can use that I can give that for shipping only instead of the Xserve. Of course it will not fit in the rack either though....

I was thinking that. Also, I could place it on a small table here.

The school can definitely use it. I can put it on my desk and move my stuff to the small table :D
 
Not deep enough. Only 20 inches deep.

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I was thinking that. Also, I could place it on a small table here.

The school can definitely use it. I can put it on my desk and move my stuff to the small table :D

You could use the G5 as the main work computer and the Xserve as the server.
 
I'll measure it. It is not too deep. It is a standard one.

Dang it! yeah forgot about cooling :/ That's gonna be a challenge, but the air conditioner is pretty close to the rack.

What did you end up doing about the server? It is very interesting to see Macs implemented in a Windows environment. Then again, I love Apple in networking.
 
What did you end up doing about the server? It is very interesting to see Macs implemented in a Windows environment. Then again, I love Apple in networking.

Well, it stopped working last friday again. The Smart Array controller is giving me a lot of headaches.

Some backstory:

So, the computer lab was abandoned for about 2 and a half years. I worked nonstop for about 2 weeks to restore it and managed to rescue 3 computers that were left for dead.

When I started, the server worked once per week. It took me 2 months to finally get permission to open the server to see what was the issue with it. Turned out that the smart array controller (Nice job HP) had this RAM module for "extra speed" buuuut the RAM that goes on the RAM module needs to have a lithium battery attached to it. It leaked, so that did small damages to the smart array controller.
 
Well, it stopped working last friday again. The Smart Array controller is giving me a lot of headaches.

Some backstory:

So, the computer lab was abandoned for about 2 and a half years. I worked nonstop for about 2 weeks to restore it and managed to rescue 3 computers that were left for dead.

When I started, the server worked once per week. It took me 2 months to finally get permission to open the server to see what was the issue with it. Turned out that the smart array controller (Nice job HP) had this RAM module for "extra speed" buuuut the RAM that goes on the RAM module needs to have a lithium battery attached to it. It leaked, so that did small damages to the smart array controller.

The brilliance of Hewlett Packard. However, that is a fairly common design. How did the computer lab go abandoned for 2 and a half years? Anyhow, what are you doing server wise?
 
The brilliance of Hewlett Packard. However, that is a fairly common design. How did the computer lab go abandoned for 2 and a half years? Anyhow, what are you doing server wise?

Well, the last person that was working there quit 2 and a half years ago. I apply for the position and the government took 2 years to finally get the funding for position.
 
Well, the last person that was working there quit 2 and a half years ago. I apply for the position and the government took 2 years to finally get the funding for position.

Okay, that makes sense. So what type of server are you going to use. To be honest, all Mac Minis from that era are underpowered for server duty. It wasn't until 2009 that the Mac Mini really became a good platform for server tasks. I am sure many will disagree with my statement however.
 
Okay, that makes sense. So what type of server are you going to use. To be honest, all Mac Minis from that era are underpowered for server duty. It wasn't until 2009 that the Mac Mini really became a good platform for server tasks. I am sure many will disagree with my statement however.

I'm gonna have some talks with Tampa and we will see. But yeah, the server is something that I have to replace soon :(:(:(
 
Cool! Just wish I could find like 3 or 4 more, to equip the computer lab. Currently we have 17 old windows pc (one just died) :'(

If only we all could have Mac labs and rid the world of easily broken Windows. Anyhow, for the server, just make sure it has at least 2 GB of RAM if not more.
 
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