Dinah's questions

I have a new 3.5" 2 TB hard drive. Using a Windows 7 laptop + a docking station, I quick formatted it to NTFS. Next, I put this hard drive on a docking station that's hooked via eSata to a rack server -- Windows Server 2008 Enterprise. Now, the server can't see the drive. My Computer shows nothing new nor does the disk management tool. The server's dock works with other hard drives and this hard drive is also still usable by my laptop. Since the server doesn't see the drive, I can't even use the server to reformat it. How do I get this drive usable on the server?

BTW: Don't ask why this setup exists, it predates my employment here and I'm fighting to change it. For now though, it is what it is.

Edit:
Dock claims it can support up to 2 TB
Model: Thermaltake BlacX ST0005U: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817153071

I've now worked at a few tech companies ranging from 10 people to ~150 and I've never encountered a real DBA. How big does a company need to get before it merits getting a DBA? What are the criteria that need to be met?

(I also posted this on Stack Overflow. It's only in both places because a moderator there suggested, "This might be one of those rare cases where it's worth it to ask on both SO and SF")

There are a lot of opinions out there of which hardware vendors are good and which are not. What are the best hardware vendors to trust for company use?

• Server-grade: esp. harddrives and backup solutions
• Desktop-grade: any/all components but esp. focused on common desk workers though that are using MS Office, the web, a few internal apps, and little else. Not graphic designers, developers, or power users -- their needs are too specialized for something like this

My company (and I assume we're not unique) focuses on desktops being middle of the road but reliable. Downtime is very very bad -- time is money. Likewise with server grade stuff although they're more willing to spend some real money on quality servers.

This is not intended to start a war or be argumentative If you have real information or experience please share. And please support it with FACTS when possible

My boss is confident that Blackberry phones are safe for company use (having it connect to the email server, etc.). He is less confident about iPhones. Regarding connecting to a corporate email server where security is a huge priority, is there anything different about the iPhone which would make it more of a risk.

Regarding keeping a server room cool: on the low end, there's box fans. On the high end, there are architectural changes to the building.

What are some practical ways to keep the room cool without resorting to either of these extremes?

Up until now, I've only managed networks with Windows users and the occasional *nix server. Soon, a few users with Macs will get added to our network. What are some "gotchas" to look out for when adding Macs to the network? Key concerns here: compatibility with Active Directory and security