Staying proactive with your IT maintenance can save your business a lot of money, but a lot of people don’t know exactly how they can go about doing this. In this month’s newsletter we are going to discuss how proactive maintenance works and how it is a crucial part to any evolved managed IT strategy.
Many businesses struggle with IT maintenance and management. Maybe they don’t have the resources to perform in-house maintenance due to a lack of funding and, consequently, the inability to hire full-time technicians. Maybe they believe that their technology is perfectly fine as is and doesn’t require regular maintenance. We’re here to burst that bubble; you should always have maintenance at the top of mind, and in today’s business environment, there is no excuse not to.
Managed IT services are well known for being an incredibly useful service for a business as it helps offset the cost of keeping their technology up and running. What they aren’t as well known for are all the other services that they do to add value for their customers.
It’s time to face the fact that those times when your technology acts up, you don’t have the time to spare waiting around for the issue to just go away...you need to react. Many small businesses just don’t have the means to maintain an in-house IT resource to solve their problems. What if we can offer you a different solution.
There are some tasks that are essential to the health of your business’ network. For example, you need to make sure that you are engaging in regular network management activities. Do you know what this task entails?
Network security is an important part of keeping both your business and your staff away from online threats, but it’s not enough to implement the best, most comprehensive solutions on the market. There are a surprising number of facets to network security, and in order to optimize protection against online threats, you’ll need to know all of them. Thankfully, you don’t have to do this alone.
Today’s businesses still require a lot of hardwork and dedication, but technology assists with day-to-day tasks, and gives more opportunities than we could otherwise imagine. As such, it needs to be in optimal shape, but what business has the time to see to that? Well, with the help of remote monitoring and management, yours does.
If your business experiences a technological failure, how many operations simply stop dead in their tracks until the problem is resolved? While it might seem like you have no control over your business’ technology (at least the issues that cause downtime), this is far from the truth. If you take action now, you can prevent issues from cropping up in the first place rather than reacting to them later, after they have already caused considerable problems for your business.
If you think about it, waiting to fix problems as they appear is simply accepting that downtime will be an issue. This is a dangerous and wasteful mindset to have. If you can prevent it from happening, then you should. Your bottom line will thank you for it.
Unfortunately, it’s not always easy to add new initiatives to the docket, whether it’s because you have plenty of other responsibilities or you don’t have the budget to hire new staff members to handle it. Thanks to a service called remote monitoring and management (RMM), you won’t have to worry as much about these problems. The Connection, Inc can provide your business with remote maintenance to catch issues early and resolve them before they cause trouble. Here are some of the benefits:
The Benefits
The benefits of RMM basically mean that you’re putting all the time you would normally spend worrying about keeping your business functional back into your schedule for other tasks. If this sounds like a great deal for your organization, reach out to The Connection, Inc at (732) 291-5938.
It’s imperative that you keep your IT infrastructure under control, but many organizations push it to the side. The problem is that ignoring IT often makes it so that you aren’t properly evaluating your technology infrastructure and support, meaning that you could be wasting time and resources that would be better spent elsewhere. Ask yourself the following questions to determine whether or not your IT systems are being maintained properly.
If you feel like you can’t get anything done due to IT troubles, then you’re throwing money down the drain. Downtime is a major waste, but some of the most recognizable ones include computers that are slow or constantly breaking down, as well as employees who can’t get anything done due to computers that simply don’t work the way they’re supposed to. One of the most devastating downtime incidents--hardware failure--can lead to extended periods of wasteful downtime and large quantities of data loss. It goes without saying that having someone periodically check on IT is a necessity in the modern workplace.
...or is your current IT provider waiting for you to call them?
Imagine the frustration of getting to your office and having your computer not boot up as intended. Now imagine how much time that costs you if each of your employees encounters this problem. IT can’t always solve issues immediately, but it needs to be able to provide triage and issue support accordingly. If your IT can’t address problems with downtime and connectivity, then perhaps it’s time for a change.
If downtime isn’t treated like the problem that it is, then you’re wasting time and money waiting for issues to be addressed. 10 employees who can’t get their work done due to technology issues means that you’re paying 10 salaries for not completing tasks. This is a waste that your organization can certainly do without. If your IT people aren’t prompt with emergencies, it’s time to find some new IT people.
Employees might be worried about asking for support because they are afraid it will cost your business. A ticketing system can be used by employees who run into issues so that they can get the support needed as per your service level agreement. Once the issue has been reported, they can get back to work.
Each device on your network, including desktops, laptops, servers, printers, routers, access points, switches, VoIP phones, and everything else, needs to be documented. Documentation should include when the device was purchased and installed, including who installed it, the model and serial numbers, warranty information, and access information.
Without your data, you can’t expect to be successful. If you can’t recover your data in the event of a disaster, your future could be placed in jeopardy. Therefore, your IT people need to take your data as seriously as you do.
IT is about making technology work for you, so if they aren’t doing this, then you should ask them to sit down with you and help determine their worth. It’s even better if they decide to initiate the conversation so they can learn how to best serve you. You need to have an account manager that is willing and able to help you put together a full IT roadmap and plan for the future. If they’re not there to help you get the most from your technology and get ahead of the competition, then what are you paying them for?
The Connection, Inc can be the ideal IT solution for your business. To learn more, reach out to us at (732) 291-5938.
There are certain processes within an organization that take a considerable amount of time to do. These include applying patches, monitoring network traffic, and updating software as needed. While it might seem like something your business can handle on its own, some small organizations struggle to accomplish everything they set out to do--especially with a limited budget or workforce. Our staff’s powerful monitoring and management tool can aid in this initiative.
“The good old days” usually refer to times long past, where things were more simple. Businesses a few decades ago didn’t have much complex technology in their office, but nowadays organizations have multiple server units and plenty of workstations--all of which need more maintenance than ever before. What’s the best way for your organization to approach IT maintenance?
Small businesses often don’t have many choices when it comes to IT maintenance. Either they have a small in-house team that dedicates itself entirely to maintaining the company’s technical assets, or they don’t have one at all. Either way, they are either receiving barely passable maintenance that covers the bare minimum of what’s required, or they’re not receiving any maintenance at all. Both of which are unfortunate circumstances that can easily be solved with the help of a managed service provider.
A managed service provider helps your business by delivering dedicated IT services to help an organization handle all their technology-related tasks. These responsibilities could be something as simple as setting up an email server, or as complex as managing and maintaining the entirety of your IT infrastructure. Basically, whatever you need out of your technology, it’s the managed service provider’s responsibility to offer prompt and efficient support.
One of the biggest ways that managed IT providers offer value to clients is through remote support. More often than not, a business’s employees need help with their technology solutions. Think about it, how often during the day do you get complaints about technology not working as intended? What if you had a dedicated professional organization ready and willing to help you with any technology issue that surfaces? A help desk is the perfect solution in this case, and is something that a managed IT provider can offer you completely remotely.
This is what The Connection, Inc provides for small businesses like yours. We offer a comprehensive list of managed IT solutions that can help you take a proactive and preventative approach to technology management. This includes network security, remote maintenance and management, data backup, disaster recovery, email management, and so much more - all to keep your operations moving as smoothly as possible.
Did you know that most IT maintenance can be performed without an on-site visit? This just adds to the value you get from working with a managed IT provider like The Connection, Inc. Our technicians can remote into your devices to resolve any issues that are present, before they turn into large problems that require more work and present more risk to your company’s computing infrastructure. Furthermore, since issues don’t necessarily need an on-site visit to be resolved, you save both time and assets that are better spent elsewhere.
Does your business need a hand with technology management? If so, we’ve got the answer. To learn more, reach out to us at (732) 291-5938.
Do you understand what the event logs of your network are, and how they keep your organization secure? If not, you could be ignoring one of the most basic components of network security. Event logs are important for spotting significant issues on a workstation or laptop.
What are Event Logs?
Event logs keep track of events and notifications stored in the background of your computer. Event logs record errors and other important details going on under the hood of your PC, even those that might not appear directly in front of you. If there’s suspicious activity on your workstation, the event logs are one of the ways to tell.
Take, for example, the likely occurrence of a hacker posing as one of your network administrators to gain access to privileged data. If they’ve stolen the proper credentials through either a data leak or a targeted spear phishing attack, they can use a legitimate access method to discover even more sensitive material.
Since the hacker is using a legitimate method of accessing your network, the system won’t flag it as a malicious attempt. Even if you’re using an access log, you might run into problems unless you pay attention to the IP of the user or the physical location. For example, it would certainly be suspicious if you had a network administrator sign into your network from the other side of the world. Therefore, it makes the most sense that you forsake an automated event log monitoring solution for one which is being watched by professional IT technicians who know what to look for, including the aforementioned discrepancies.
Event logs can also help a technician identify a hardware or driver issue before it starts to affect the end-user. By doing so, this eliminates downtime and serves as an early-warning system.
Remote Monitoring and Maintenance
By now, you’re probably wondering how you can always keep an eye on your logs, even when you’re as busy as you are. One way is hiring in-house network administrators whose responsibilities include monitoring event logs, but the average small business may not have the budget to sustain this type of preventative measure. Instead, the easier way is to outsource remote monitoring and maintenance to a managed service provider who can keep a close watch on your network and IT infrastructure.
The Connection, Inc can equip your business with the tools it needs to monitor its event logs and ensure maximum network security. Our team of professionals can remotely monitor and maintain your network for any strange or unauthorized activity. To learn more, reach out to us at (732) 291-5938.
When your technology breaks down, can you rely on your IT provider to be there in a moment’s notice? What if you need someone to talk you through a troubleshooting procedure? During the weekday you expect them to be available, but what if you’re burning the candle at both ends over a weekend to finish an important project? Furthermore, your office might be closed, but your IT infrastructure still needs to be attended to.
Most organizations would prefer that their technology infrastructures be available and functional to their employees at all times. This includes someone keeping tabs on the infrastructure during off-hours. Can you reach your provider after-hours and on weekends or other times that you may not normally need assistance?
Why You Need 24/7 Support
Countless problems could occur when you least expect them to, especially when nobody is in the office to respond to them. What happens if you’re hit with a sudden DDoS attack, or a piece of hardware experiences some sort of critical failure? Such a large issue could cause widespread damage and downtime that places your budget and reputation at risk.
Most importantly, however, you need to consider just how your employees or customers will react if they try to access your services and are unable to do so. If you don’t have someone to resolve the issue, chances are that you’re going to be the one taking that 3:00 a.m. phone call telling you that your server is down. Really, it’s in your best interest to make sure that someone is on-hand and ready to fix the issue so that you don’t have to.
Network Monitoring is Also Crucial
Of course, not every IT provider will want to make this sacrifice for your company; though any who dare to call themselves an IT service provider will put their sleep schedules on the line to make sure you don’t have to. At the very least, you need an IT provider that can offer your organization 24/7 network monitoring in some capacity. This type of monitoring can be accomplished by having a dedicated technician keeping a close watch on your infrastructure for any oddities. In situations like this, a technician is contacted to resolve a problem remotely should there be a problem. It’s about as easy and hands-off as you can get.
To learn more about proactive monitoring and management, or to understand your technology support options, contact us today at: (732) 291-5938.
A small business is just as susceptible to the many problems that face large enterprises, and the dangers only multiply with the more technology you implement in the office. The larger your network gets, the more difficult data distribution and storage becomes. The more employees you work with, the more devices that will appear in the office. The more data you work with, the more likely you are to get hacked. These are all very real risks. What are you doing to protect your company from these threats?
We’d like to present one surefire way to dodge the majority of problems associated with business technology management: outsourced IT services from The Connection, Inc. We can use our proactive approach to take care of your technology so that you can focus on running your business. While we offer many different types of services, here is a brief rundown of some of our popular ones.
Data Backup and Disaster Recovery
Have you taken the time to think about what your business would do if it suddenly lost all of its data? If not, do so now. It could be much more than just a couple of months’ worth of leads put at risk. An untimely hardware failure could have lasting effects on the way that your business functions. You’ll need to replace the hardware, which could take several days, or even weeks. During this time, your business isn’t working as intended, which can severely damage your productivity. Instead of suffering from this unfortunate occurrence, you can implement a BDR to take multiple copies of your data and keep them safe for recovery at a later date. BDR is designed to eliminate downtime and take a proactive stance against data loss due to natural disasters, hacking attacks, user error, and more.
Remote Monitoring and Maintenance
Most problems with your technology can be resolved remotely, without the need for an expensive on-site visit. Managed IT services capitalize on this convenience by allowing you to get the help that you need, when you need it. This cuts out waiting for the technician to arrive on-site and keeps downtime caused by the issue to a minimum, allowing you to get the problem fixed right away and get right back to work. Furthermore, we can apply any necessary patches and security updates remotely so that you will always be protected from existing and developing threats.
Network Security
Hacking attacks and security threats will always be one of the most dangerous parts of running a business. Some of the scariest threats currently on the Internet include ransomware and botnets that enslave Internet of Things devices. Only a cybersecurity professional knows how to identify and prevent infections from known threats. We can equip your business with a comprehensive Unified Threat Management solution to limit infections on your network in the first place. The UTM includes an enterprise-level firewall, antivirus, spam blocker, and content filter.
Cloud Hosting
Why host your data on-site when you can outsource the responsibility to us? When you think about it, hosting your data on your own servers is a bit of a hassle. Unless you have on-site technicians to take care of it, you’ll be left at a disadvantage. Maintaining servers is certainly not a job for amateurs. The Connection, Inc can store your data in our cloud, which we can maintain ourselves. You can remotely access your data through the use of cloud services, allowing you and your team to be productive from anywhere at any time.
What are your thoughts on this type of technology management for your business model? If you’re ready to give it a shot, reach out to us at (732) 291-5938.
We all know the fleeting moment of fear as a computer slows to a grinding halt, taking forever to perform the most basic of tasks. At the same time, we also know the relief of when you find out there’s nothing wrong with your PC. Still, what if that relief never comes? What if you’re dealing with one of the most dangerous computer issues of all: a hard drive crash?
The world’s largest terrestrial vehicle is the German-made bucket-wheel excavator known as “Bagger 293.” Used for open-pit mining, Bagger 293 hulks over the landscape at a length of 722 feet, and a height of 310 feet (twice the size of the Statue of Liberty). As a bonus, this beast-of-a-machine is made more ferocious thanks to remote technology.
By now, you’re well aware of the Internet’s Catch 22 nature. Your business needs it so that employees can be equipped to do their jobs, but it can also be a major distraction and kill productivity. For this week’s tip, here are three ways that you can cut back on Internet distractions and maximize productivity.
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