Server / Virtual XP Mode PC Question

[DanTheMan]

My nephew wants me to build him a pc that he will use for server applications and it must have Win XP virtual mode capabilities. I know that I must get Win 7 Pro or Ultimate to do this but I'm not sure which Processor/Motherboard combination would work best? He has an overall budget of $600 max (for HD/low end graphics/CPU/MB/RAM) but I may be able to help him with more money and some used parts (case, etc...) that may allow him to get more bang for the buck. Looking for advise for the best CPU/MB combo advise for his setup?

Also is there anything special that I will have to have or install for a server setup?
Sorry for the server noob questions.

Thanks in advance for your advise!

 

[BraveSoul]

used a beat up 2.2ghz athlon single core comp with 1gb ram for my first sever,, did what i needed from it

 

[newtekie1]

You don't necessarily need Win 7 Pro/Ultimate. Why does he need XP Mode? Virtual PC can be installed on other versions as well, it just doesn't integrated like XP Mode. The only thing XP Mode adds is set it up so that when a program is installed on the XP Virtual PC, it appears in the Win 7 start menu and can be launched directly. If that is necessary, then you can just get any version of Win 7.

And actually, I would look into VMWare Player, it is better than Virtual PC, IMO for running virtual computers.

As for hardware, you want RAM RAM and more RAM. If you are going to dedicate 2GB for the virtual computer, then that is 2GB taken away from the main computer. I would say 8GB would probably be a good idea. Also, a processor with Virtualization tech would be good too. A decent quad from either AMD or Intel would do good.