Mac Mini as server?

[labkeydave]

Has anyone out there successfully setup a Mac Mini to be a server machine on a network? We're wanting to setup a Mac build agent for a continuous integration server, and the Mac mini seems like it would be a good, lower-cost option than a Mac Pro or XServe.

However, we are currently fighting with an old Mac Mini (~4 years old) that insists on going to sleep (and disconnecting from the network) after a period of time. I also saw this thread on the Apple support boards that seems to indicate that this might be a common issue with Mac Minis:

http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=1005729

If others have been able to use Mac Minis as servers, that would make me feel more confident about just buying a new one and assuming our current problems are due to a hardware problem with that specific machine.

 

[rkdiddy]

I haven't had any issues <knocks on wooden desk> with my Mini. You should note that the post you pointed to is from back in '07.

I'm anxiously awaiting my SL cd - I'm sure you will know soon enough if there are any sleep issues.

 

[srexy]

I'm not using Leopard server on mine but I am using vanilla Leopard on my Mac Mini 2.0ghz (early 09) for a Plex HTPC box/media server for the rest of the house. It's on 24/7 w/a FW800 dual HDD enclosure attached to it for storage and backup. I haven't had any downtime except for power outages and software updates.

Seems to me that it would be a fine option if Leopard server will run on it ok.

 

[alphaod]

Has anyone out there successfully setup a Mac Mini to be a server machine on a network? We're wanting to setup a Mac build agent for a continuous integration server, and the Mac mini seems like it would be a good, lower-cost option than a Mac Pro or XServe.

However, we are currently fighting with an old Mac Mini (~4 years old) that insists on going to sleep (and disconnecting from the network) after a period of time. I also saw this thread on the Apple support boards that seems to indicate that this might be a common issue with Mac Minis:

http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=1005729

If others have been able to use Mac Minis as servers, that would make me feel more confident about just buying a new one and assuming our current problems are due to a hardware problem with that specific machine.

If you need enough people who do it:
http://www.macminicolo.net/macmini.html

 

[Hberg]

I'm not using Leopard server on mine but I am using vanilla Leopard on my Mac Mini 2.0ghz (early 09) for a Plex HTPC box/media server for the rest of the house. It's on 24/7 w/a FW800 dual HDD enclosure attached to it for storage and backup. I haven't had any downtime except for power outages and software updates.

Seems to me that it would be a fine option if Leopard server will run on it ok.

I recently purchased the 2.26 Mac Mini. I have a similar setup as the above quote, and mine never sleeps.

 

[Andrew Henry]

I use Leopard Server on my 1.66 CD Mac Mini and it's rubs like a champ, if you look on eBay you can find OS X Server pretty cheap in the retail box, I got my 10 client version for $200.

Andrew