server software/hardware selection

I am hoping for some direction on purchasing a 'first server' for our company. I purchased an HP Proliant miniserver with MS Small Businness Server 2011 Essentials installed but have not powered it up yet. My concern is that the more I read the more I don't think it is a good choice. I can send it back and get what I need if only I knew what that was. The more I read the more confused things become. We are a small company with only 5 employees and we would like file sharing along with running software such as quick books, estimating tools etc that can be accessed from anywhere on the web. I have been reading about 'virtual' servers running on a single server which uses other software. I hope someone can help in directing me to the correct software platform and hardware choices that I may have to accomplish the purpose. We are not going to host email or a website. This is strictly for business software and files. Thank You in advance...

A ten year old computer running windows XP can handle basic file sharing for five people and probably handle Quickbooks.

Speaking of Quickbooks, they have an "on line" version that might be of interest. No installation needed on any of your computers.

You should find a local IT Pro to help you out.

As far as the server goes, a lot depends on how resource hungry your application are that you need to run... Again, a local IT pro could help you out.

No need to think about running Virtual Servers, I doubt you need anything like that.

We can provide cloud-hosted server for your needs. We can even setup apps for you to achieve your end objectives. Contact us for professional consultation and services, if interested.

e: gorav (at) impactservices.in, skype: impactservices.in