Microsoft .NET Enterprise Servers offer consistency, simplicity, scalability, reliability, and support in both operations and development. We would have had multiple technologies from multiple vendors. The risk was just too high for what we wanted to achieve. All of the performance advantages of the Windows 2000 Datacenter Server and the Microsoft .NET Enterprise Servers support FreeMarkets' mission to deliver a successful online B2B marketplace, and to increase the company's competitive advantage. Server consolidation has reduced cost of operations, including the cost per bidding event, thus improving profit margins.
Scalability also ensures that operating costs remain low, even as auction volume grows quickly.
In a business that is growing rapidly, the ability to expand existing servers without adding new ones has a huge impact on profits. Reliability The Windows 2000 Datacenter Program is specifically designed to address the demanding requirements of enterprise customers, and promises the highest level of reliability and availability. This has a huge impact on our buyers and suppliers. Deploying integrated operating system, software services, and hardware in tested, certified configurations provides FreeMarkets the greatest assurance of achieving their goal of 99.999-percent availability. This will allow taking advantage of the reliability and availability of Windows 2000 Datacenter Server.