Would someone please tell me why servers are usually the rachmount style? Is the only consideration space?
If i get a t1 line and only want to put 1 or 2 machine on it and space is not an issue, is there any reason i shouldn't use tower cases?

Thanks
Mark

In that case you'd probably be better off going with the tower cases, would be less chance of overheating, and more room for fans. :)

Edit: Also, checkout www.rackshack.net, one of (if not) the largest dedicated provider in the world, they use tower servers. (check their webcams)

Regards,
Matt

usually when colocating (in small quantities) you are charged in rack units, hence the size consideration, hence the popularity of 1U and 2U cased servers.

The definate advantage to rackmounts is space. When renting rack or cage space you don't want to be filling up all of your space with useless emptiness inside of towers. In the office here I have a row of towers as there is room to spare. Rackmounts generally cost more as more goes into the design to be able to get proper air flow and fit as much as you can into a small space.

For your situation where space is not a problem just use towers. Ensure that you do purchase a quality power supply and also make sure there is proper air flow through the box.

obviously 1u machines are more expensive than towers/midtowers

Also, if you purchase a rackmount server from a quality provider, it's going to be built and configured from the ground up for 24/7 reliable operation. Using proper server motherboards and so on rather than those designed for use in workstations and desktops can make a huge difference too. If you had to stake your reputation on the uptime of a server, I'd want to do it on a quality rackmount ;)

You can get some cheap but good desktop servers or u can get some expensive good rackmounts. just all depends on how much space you have to work with