Apple Releases New 'Server' Configuration of Mac Pro to Replace Xserve

One item of interest that was overlooked in this morning's news that Apple is discontinuing the Xserve is that the company has added a new standard configuration to its Mac Pro lineup. The new "Server" configuration offers an entry-level 2.8 GHz quad-core processor with 8 GB of RAM, two 1 TB hard drives, and Mac OS X Server for $2999.

The specs on the Mac Pro Server configuration can be boosted with a full range of build-to-order options, including processor options up to dual 2.93 GHz six-core Westmere chips, up to 32 GB of RAM, additional hard drives, a second optical drive, RAID card, Fibre Channel PCI Express card, and Xsan storage area network software. 

While Apple's "non-server" Mac Pro options could (and still can) be configured with Mac OS X Server, the new Server configuration offers an optimized starting point for building a machine to focus on server tasks rather than act as a workstation.