Looking to start a new law firm, question about sql server?

From what it sounds like, if you're just starting out, Small Business will be enough for you. You don't need the full enterprise version of SQL Server just because you won't be pushing around that much data on a small internal connection.

The only word of caution I would throw in there is to check the requirements for running the PC Law software (I'm not familiar with it). If it says you have to have Standard or that it's not compatible with Small Business, then your decision is pretty much made for you.

I would also advise against running exchange on the same box as your database server. Just from the perspective of you don't want one negatively impacting the other and that there is no advantage to having them share resources.

Best of luck.

SQL Server is a database *program*. A business server is a *computer*.

As far as what you need, you'll need the software that PC Law uses. If it comes with its own database program (the free version of a program like SQL Server, MySQL or SQLite or another external-to-PC Law program), that's what you should use as your database. Putting 2 databases on 1 computer is a waste of resources, especially for a light job like looking up clients and documents.

As far as a server, what we call a laptop today was something you couldn't buy in a server 10 years ago - there wasn't anything that powerful. You don't have to spend $5,000 on a "server" to run what you need, a $500 desktop is probably more powerful that you need for your domain server and you can run SQL, email and, probably, PC Law all on that same box. Windows Server 2008 (if you choose to use Windows) will cost more than the server (over $1,000). Linux is free (and better than Windows). We run most of our "servers" in the same boxes they were running in 10 years ago (and we have over 100 users, most of them accessing a pretty large database [that runs on a pretty powerful computer, but that's the only thing running on that computer]). Unless you have a few thousand users, a server doesn't have to be a powerful computer.

For email, it's easier to use your provider's email service, but if you want your address to be @yourcompanyname.com, you'll have to run your own POP3 server. (You can run your own SMTP server if your provider doesn't block SMTP, or you can use their server, but the From: address will be you@yourprovider.com.)

For what it would cost, I'd say that your best option would be to hire a consultant to figure out exactly what you need and get you set up. What you waste doing it wrong yourself would probably be more than the consultant would charge you. (For instance, you'd probably buy a server costing $5,000. Consider that a $4,500 saving if the consultant recommended a $500 computer. And that's just on the server.)