[ale] Server Hardware

[hbbs at comcast.net]

In more recent years, I've advocated buying servers from manufacturers who use high-quality standard-issue motherboards to include the same manufacturers who make the motherboards themselves as opposed to the typical Dell/HP/IBM sourcing that's so prevalent in industry.

My experience has been that even though the Dell/HP/IBM warranty, support, and field service are supposed to be the big compelling draw and are supposed to justify the cost, in reality:

* Field service is often slow, ineffectual, and/or incapable of making sound technical evaluations of situations yet won't take your word for anything
* Parts - from cooling fans to motherboards - are not typical COTS items, so you're dependent on the manufacturer and/or field support for even the slightest issue
* Shoddy workmanship, poor QA, and shipping damage run rampant

On the other hand, manufacturers that integrate and produce servers out of COTS still give you a decent enough warranty but leave you able to source parts from where you feel like it for the sake of expediency or post-sale modification, and you can easily buy and store extra power supplies, RAM, mobos, drive sleds, and power supplies so that a server that has gone dead and won't POST can be brought back to life by on-hand staff in a few minutes' time.  

1.  Is this valid today?  Was it ever?
2. What manufacturers have you had a good history with?  What vendors sell their products?  

I personally bought a Supermicro SuperServer from HL Computer locally a while back, and once I replaced its dodgy power supply it's been fine, running without a reboot up at QTS for over 500 days.  HL does not ordinarily carry such equipment so I'd like to find a vendor who has a good history of selling this sort of equipment.