Great article overall with many good points worth considering. Nothing is one size fits all so I won't get into the crux of the article: "just get one big server". I recently posted a comment breaking down the math for my situation:
For the most "extreme" option of buying your own $40k server from Dell I'm always surprised at how many people don't consider leasing. No matter what it breaks the cost into an operating expense vs a capital one which is par with the other options in terms of accounting and doesn't require laying out $40k.
Adding on that, in the US we have some absolutely wild tax advantages for large "capital expenditures" that also apply to leasing:
https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=32250470#32253635
For the most "extreme" option of buying your own $40k server from Dell I'm always surprised at how many people don't consider leasing. No matter what it breaks the cost into an operating expense vs a capital one which is par with the other options in terms of accounting and doesn't require laying out $40k.
Adding on that, in the US we have some absolutely wild tax advantages for large "capital expenditures" that also apply to leasing:
https://www.section179.org/section_179_leases/