Fujitsu Primergy TX140 S1 review

The Primergy TX140 S1 is one of Fujitsu's first Xeon E3 tower servers and packs plenty of features into its large chassis. Dave Mitchell delves deeper to see if it's a better choice than the latest entry-level servers from Dell and HP.

IT Pro Verdict

Pricewise, there’s little to separate the Primergy TX140 S1 with the new Xeon E3 tower servers from Dell and HP as they are all good value. However, Fujitsu beats Dell’s PowerEdge T110 II as it has more storage potential and better embedded remote management features. It’s a closer call between Fujitsu and HP, but we think the ProLiant ML110 G7 has the edge as it packs an equally good specification into a more compact chassis.

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The price shown includes a 3.1GHz Xeon E3-1220 processor teamed up with 8GB of DDR3 memory which can be expanded to 32GB. For processors, Fujitsu offers a couple of cheaper Core i3 models and a Pentium G620, but bear in mind these don't support the ECC feature of server grade memory.

The price also includes a USB DAT72 tape backup drive, although we don't believe this is a sensible choice for server backup anymore. We reviewed this fifth generation DDS tape drive technology in 2006 when we looked at HP's StorageWorks DAT72 tape drive and even way back then we said it was far too slow for server backup.

The TX140 S1 comes as standard with Fujitsu’s embedded iRMC S3 controller for full web-based remote management.

The TX140 S1 comes as standard with Fujitsu’s embedded iRMC S3 controller for full web-based remote management.

The TX140 S1 comes as standard with Fujitsu's embedded iRMC S3 controller for full web-based remote management.

Fujitsu's management features paint a brighter picture as the server comes as standard with an embedded iRMC S3 controller which has its own dedicated service port or can share access with the first Gigabit Ethernet network port. There's also an optional LAN service port which fits in the front panel allowing management access to be physically secured behind the grills.

The iRMC S3 controller has a tidy web interface with plenty of details about critical components. Full access to the power supply is provided so you can remotely turn the server on and off or reboot it. To activate KVM-over-IP remote control and virtual media services you'll need the advanced upgrade which costs around 192 ex VAT.

For systems management software Fujitsu takes a different tack to Dell and HP as its ServerView Suite concentrates on server management only. Consequently, we found it much easier to deploy and use than Dell's Management Console or HP's Insight Control software which both want to manage everything on your network.

Dave Mitchell
Dave Mitchell

Dave is an IT consultant and freelance journalist specialising in hands-on reviews of computer networking products covering all market sectors from small businesses to enterprises. Founder of Binary Testing Ltd – the UK’s premier independent network testing laboratory - Dave has over 45 years of experience in the IT industry.

Dave has produced many thousands of in-depth business networking product reviews from his lab which have been reproduced globally. Writing for ITPro and its sister title, PC Pro, he covers all areas of business IT infrastructure, including servers, storage, network security, data protection, cloud, infrastructure and services.

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