Zyxel
ZyWALL SSL 10 Appliance: $349
www.zyxel.com

BUSINESSES WITH EMPLOYEES ON THE ROAD NEED SOME WAY TO KEEP them connected, whether it's to access email, shared sales collateral, or private documents on a personal workstation. Normally you'd set up a VPN to enable network access on the road, but for every associate with a laptop you also have to configure client software and run the risk of that device falling into the wrong hands. An SSL VPN appliance enables much more elegant remote access to the network.

Zyxel's ZyWALL SSL 10 is an entry-level VPN appliance that's easy to install yet provides that powerful SSL-based server access. Despite its SMB appeal, the SSL 10 still leverages the security that'll keep your customers' data safe. Support for Active Directory, LDAP, and RADIUS facilitate user databases while two-factor authentication ratchets security up a notch over traditional username and password logins. Drop the SSL 10 onto an existing network for heightened data protection.

Adaptec
Adaptec RAID 3405: $390
www.adaptec.com

AT LONG LAST, SERIAL ATTACHED SCSI has a strong foothold in its ascension to the top of business storage. The drives are readily available and controller vendors are showing the technology due attention. Adaptec's most recent SAS controller card, the RAID 3405, enables boatloads of very high-end functionality at a price point that any small business can still afford.

Though it only features four ports, the 3405 has no problem connecting to a server backplane with eight or 12 drive bays. A hardware-based storage controller drives the card, enabling accelerated RAID 0, 1, 1E, 2, 5EE, 6, 10, 50, and 60. Almost any configuration your customer can imagine, this card will support. It fits in a PCI Express slot and includes 128MB of DDR2 memory to cut back on the potential bottlenecks of higher-end configurations. The sub-$400 price tag is icing on the cake for any SMB buying reasonably powerful servers.

Konica Minolta
Magicolor 5430 DL: $599
www.konicaminolta.com

YOU'D BE AMAZED AT HOW many SMBs are still using inkjets because they think they're the most affordable printers. Instead of letting customers suffer through the often-lackluster quality and pricey consumables characteristic of inkjets, make them aware that they could be enjoying not only laser, but color laser. Starting at $599, Konica Minolta's SMB-oriented magicolor 5430 DL is a force to be reckoned with. Each page of monochrome printed using the magicolor costs roughly 2.4 cents, while color is kept at an affordable 11.1 cents per page.

Beyond low cost and great quality, Konica loads the 5430 DL with value. Prints fly out at up to 21 pages per minute. Built-in Ethernet lets the printer sit independently on a network, available to any workstation looking for sharp output. Replacement toner ships in an all-in-one cartridge, resulting in an easy drop-in. And quality is offered in spades thanks to a 2400x600 print engine.

Promise
SmartStor NS4300N: $499
www.promise.com

ADDING STORAGE TO A NETWORK CAN BE TRICKY SINCE MOST mainstream NAS boxes have fixed capacities and the higher-end stuff can get pretty pricey. Mixing in a capable, though vacant, enclosure gives you the freedom to custom-build the right amounts of capacity and price. Promise Technology's SmartStor gives you that flexibility. The four-bay box accommodates hot-swappable SATA drives totaling up to 3TB in capacity. Promise integrates RAID 0, 1, 5, and 10 to let you choose the best fit for any customer's application.

Four data protection features differentiate the SmartStor. One-touch backup initiates automatic client backup. SmartSYNC adds incremental backup capabilities, while Snapshot takes a complete volume image. Finally, Replication lets you duplicate the data from one NS4300N to another remote unit over the Internet. There's plenty of room there for resellers to install the drives offering the most value, configure the right RAID mode, and set up on- and off-site backup.

Western Digital
Raptor 10,000 RPM 150GB SATA: $249
www.westerndigital.com

BUILDING STORAGE SERVERS ON A SAS FOUNDATION AND POPULATING with a mixture of SATA and SAS hard drives makes good sense. When it comes time to actually buy those drives, you'll find that Western Digital's 10,000 RPM Raptor enables response times similar to faster SAS drives at a fraction of the price. The Raptor is built to enterprise specifications with a 1.2 million-hour MTBF and five-year warranty. As a result of its unique 10,000 RPM rotational speed, the Raptor delivers solid sustained throughput with quick reads and writes.

The drive's 150GB capacity makes it best for storing operating system files and performance-sensitive databases. You can house everything else on larger nearline drives, such as Western Digital's RE2. By mixing and matching Western Digital's enterprise SATA lineup, you can easily build custom-fit storage solutions without breaking the bank.