Apple Soups Up Its Xserve G5

Apple Computer has upgraded its Xserve server with dual 64-bit, 2.3-GHz PowerPC G5 processors capable of delivering more than 35 gigaflops of processing power per system.

An Xserve system has a front side 1U server system bus that operates at 1.15 GHz, providing up to 9.2 Gbps bandwidth per processor, the company said Tuesday. With up to three 400GB drives, a configuration can reach 1.2TB of hot-plug storage.

In a statement, Philip Schiller, Apple's senior vice president of worldwide product marketing, said: "Xserve G5 ships with an unlimited client access license of Mac OS X Server that allows users to connect an unlimited number of Mac, Windows, or Linux clients to the server without additional software licensing fees."

Apple said the new Xserve G5, which is now available, comes with an unlimited client edition of Mac OS X Server version 10.3 Panther software already installed. The company noted that an Xserve G5 configuration can support up to three 7200-rpm 400GB Serial ATA Apple Drive modules.

The Xserve G5 is available in three configurations. A single 2.0-GHz PowerPC G5 processor with 1GB RAM, a single 80GB drive module, and additional standard hardware and software is offered at a suggested retail price of $2,999. Dual processor configurations start at $2,999 also.