HAGERSTOWN, Md. — Washington County Commissioners voted unanimously Tuesday to spend nearly $183,000 on 175 desktop computers, reversing a technology strategy adopted about four years ago after officials said maintaining the existing system had become prohibitively expensive.
The county will purchase the computers from Dell Technologies for approximately $1,045 each, replacing workstations that depend on centralized servers. Officials said the server infrastructure supporting those workstations now costs more than $700,000 annually to maintain.
The county switched to a system known as thin clients approximately four years ago. Instead of operating as independent computers, those workstations rely on centralized servers to provide their computing capabilities.
“The cost for maintaining a cloud desktop for all of our employees has ballooned to over $700,000 annually just for the servers,” County Administrator Michelle Gordon explained. “So, it makes more sense at this time for us to switch back to a desktop version rather than a cloud version.”
Commissioners question costs, security
Commissioner Randy Wagner questioned why purchasing new computers would be more economical than upgrading the existing system and whether abandoning the centralized arrangement would compromise security.
“I guess the question I have is, it seems like it’s update IT or buy new computers,” Wagner said. “I think it doesn’t make a lot of sense to me, but it will to Josh. I mean, are we giving up security here?”
Josh O’Neal, the county’s Information Systems director, explained that replacing the servers would be substantially more expensive than purchasing desktop computers, particularly because of rising prices for memory and storage components.
The county would otherwise need to replace six aging servers dedicated to the thin-client system, along with renewing the software needed to operate them.
Although centralized systems are easier for information technology personnel to manage, O’Neal said the county would not sacrifice computer security by returning to traditional desktops.
The county will retain other servers that support its computer network and applications. Only those dedicated to the thin-client workstations are being phased out.
January deadline sparks urgency
The county faces a January deadline to renew the software subscription supporting its current workstations.
Officials said the replacement computers must be installed before that deadline to avoid another software payment and the need to invest in replacement servers.
Continuing to operate outdated equipment could also create reliability problems and jeopardize the county’s insurance coverage, officials warned.
The county currently has approximately 220 thin-client workstations. After reviewing employees’ equipment needs and identifying workers who already have other computers, the Information Systems Department determined that 175 new desktops would be sufficient.
Discounted pricing
The commissioners approved purchasing 175 Dell Pro Slim QCS1255 desktop computers for $182,820, or $1,045 each.
Dell’s September 25 quotation lists a regular price of $2,247 per computer, with a 53.5 percent contractual discount. The machines will come equipped with Windows 11 Pro, 16 gigabytes of memory and 512 gigabytes of solid-state storage.
The purchase will be funded through the county’s existing Capital Improvement Plan, under its Information Systems Replacement Program.
The county is using a national cooperative purchasing agreement, which allows it to buy equipment at pricing negotiated through a larger government contract rather than conduct its own bidding process.
Commissioners approved the purchase 5-0.
