Cheap atom PC as a file server

[RebateMonger]

The MSI Wind 330 barebones is not obsolete. It's a superb box as long as you don't need more than two hard drives (or a single hard drive if you also require a built-in CD/DVD drive). The Wind is dead quiet, very low power, and easy to set up. I built a WHS server using the previous model and it's working great for the owner.

If you want a Windows Home Server and don't mind spending $300 to $400, then the prebuilt HP servers are ideal. Also quiet and pretty low power, they make adding extra drives (up to four total) a dream. They bounce in-and-out of sale and rebates and you can watch out for a deal. There's at least one other low-price WHS server on the market now: the Acer.

 

[Zap]

Originally posted by: RebateMonger
If you want a Windows Home Server and don't mind spending $300 to $400, then the prebuilt HP servers are ideal. Also quiet and pretty low power, they make adding extra drives (up to four total) a dream. They bounce in-and-out of sale and rebates and you can watch out for a deal. There's at least one other low-price WHS server on the market now: the Acer.

Acer Aspire EasyStore Home Server

It is almost like a cheaper version of the HP (but IIRC HP had some proprietary management software). Regular price is $400 and that includes a 1TB HDD, 2GB RAM and the capability to hold four HDDs (1TB is one of the four). It also comes with Windows Home Server operating system, which I hear is pretty nifty and self descriptive.

There was a hot deal thread on this around a month ago for around $306 - which IMO is smokin' hot.