server replacement - win2k3/linux dual boot

Hi All,

I'm wondering if anyone has decided to format an area51m hard drive and install a windows server os or linux on it? I'm a programmer by trade and although its nice that the laptop is geared towards gaming I've got more interest in its performance as a developer's portable server replacement.

I plan on killing everything on the hard drive and installing a dual boot windows 2003 datacenter and linux redhat and was wondering if anyone has had expierence with this. Since it seems Alienware's sales and technical support has much to be desired I'm hoping the community can help me fill in the empty spaces. Specificially does anyone know if there are any driver issues when running the hardware on another operating system other than an XP variant?

This machine will be pushed to the max with datacenter installed I plan on doing some intensive development which will have varioius different server side software running support asp.net/iis6, oracle, sql server, jrun, apache/tomcat, orion server, jboss, coldfusion, flash communication server, etc, etc.

Also plan on doing intensive video editing and 3d rendering using premiere, aftereffects, 3d studio max, maya, etc.

Like i said I need a laptop that is more a server replacement then just a desktop replacement, it looks like the area51m has the hardware but will it work without glitches? I worry that once I'm in the process of installing all I need there will be a driver issue of some sort or something else that will sneak up which will cause me to send the laptop back and opt for a dell or maybe even switch to a powerbook.

Any coders, designers, dbas or sys admins please I'd like to hear your thoughts. I would also be interested in any configuration ideas? Anyone know if I can call Alienware and ask for them to pump up my ram to 2GB???

BTW in case your curious I'm coming from a Dell Inspiron 7500 old skool style pIII 500mhz 512mb ram. Believe it or not most of what I'm asking the machine to do this lappy can do, not all but most. Only problem is it runs as slow as mollasses, but shh dont tell my dell that it may crash out of spite if it knows I'm about to replace it. have had it for 4 years now with minimal problems.

Thanks,

Subnero

I'm totally open to suggestions on a laptop options, but from what I've seen on google groups the only difference between a sager and aw is somewhere in the neighborhood of $200. If I'm wrong please let me know. And yes the eyes do have a level of attraction that is a bit mesmerizing (sic).

I'm curious why the aw would be a bad choice as well. Is it a forgon conclusion that area51m is not a quality product?

Thanks,

Subnero

Jeff:

That's actually part of the fun i wan to freak out my clients

That's cool, I'm still on the market actually plan on making the purchase on monday so I'm trying to decide this weekend if I'm going to go with it.

Smiley and Divine,

Thanks for the feedback.

Smiley,

Thanks for the advice if I decide to go AW will definetly make many calls to reafirm any info I can get. The driver potential issues was a question I had and was wondering if anyone had run into them already with different OSs.

Madcat,

I'm in a field that isn't necessarily traditional business and actually there are bonus points for having a non traditional look. Heck I'm getting ready to dunk my head in a blue paint bucket soon, if it gives you any indication of where I'm going

But am I right in assuming that the hardware used in Sager and AW is the same? In which case drivers will be more or less the same so I should run into relatively same issue or not regardless of which I go with.

I don't mind cleaning the HDD. I'd agree with you from the feedback so far that going with Sager would result in a better service expierence but my real hope is I never have to call them at all. Although I guess if I did would be nice to have someone that could help me although it's questionable if someone would considering I'm installing non mainstream OSs.

What about an upgradeable video card? Does Sager support that? I do have to say the bay for an extra hard drive is tempting, would be nice to do a RAID 0 for backup on the lappy.

I took a look at the sager site and other than the additonal HDD didn't see many other upgrades I could do to it beyond what I can do with a AW. BTW my price range is around $4k.

Thanks Madcat.

I don't mind taking the hit on the xp cost, call me crazy. However you bring up good points regarding architecture and upgradability something I am going to definetly consider as these are big issues for me.

Liteheaded,

As i was about to mention in the other post, datacenter is a requirement since i'm going to be developing some software for it and need to also do unit testing. Have the antivirus and other related software covered, i understand the differences and issues on the software side with the o.s. its the hardware drivers and related software communication that concerns me.

(btw, sorry adam if your reading this, just read the rules didnt know about asking for specific vendor pricing when it comes to sager distributors, bidding war or other was not my intention, was just looking for information, btw thanks for the heads up on the 8890).

Towner,

Thanks for the info!!! Puts things into more perspective for me.

towner,

i did see that review, but didn't realize they were thumbnails until i hit the link again and gave it a second look. very cool.

mykrat,

thanks for the advice and input, will do that later on.
I currently run windows 2000 advanced server on my dell inspiron pIII 500mhz 512mb. Haven't upgraded to win2003 on it though although i have a feeling i might be able to pull it off on this machine, its surprised the hell out of me so far but think i'll wait to get the new lappy.

litehedded,

thanks, i currently run win2k server so believe me i've run into the issues you mention which isn't a big deal for me. like i said not really interested in gaming or entertainment value, i hardly play games on computers anymore leave that for the consoles. CD/DVD Burning on the other hand would be an issue but i'm thinking if the drivers are cool then I shouldn't have a prob finding the right software to do the trick.