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I'm always searching for
and evaluating cloud products, services and vendors.
Here is a list of IT functions I can help you migrate to the cloud:
Collaboration and Communication:
Using
cloud-based messaging and collaboration applications requires no
premises software and needs minimal administration, which creates IT
cost savings for your organization. All application upgrading and
patching occurs behind the scenes. You get up-to-date application and
collaboration services without taking on the housekeeping chores.
IT Asset Management:
Cloud-based
IT audit and inventory services are the easiest way to manage your IT
hardware and software assets. Accurate and frequent inventory scans let
you know what hardware you have and what software you are using. You
can view your inventory reports at any time, be informed about potential
risks from unauthorized software installation, and keep track of your
software licenses.
PC and Server Security:
Using
security services in the cloud is an innovative way to manage PC and
server security. Gone are the days of running your own server to push
out resource-hogging security clients and their updates. A
“lightweight” security agent installed on your PCs and servers
communicates with “cloud security central” which utilizes the
“collective intelligence” of all the reporting security agents to
quickly react to new security threats. This keeps your systems more
secure than was previously possible with premises-based solutions.
E-Mail Archiving:
Archiving
your e-mail messages and attachments in the cloud allows you to search
and produce any archived message or attachment whenever you need it.
Premises-based archiving solutions require more hardware and software
and someone who knows how to maintain it, which all costs you more
money. Cloud-based e-mail message archiving has unlimited capacity and
works with virtually any premises-based e-mail messaging system. The
archived e-mail messages and attachments are encrypted for your
protection, and you are in control of who can search the e-mail
messaging archive. For legal reasons many organizations are now
required to archive the contents of their e-mail messaging systems. For
others, it just makes sense to archive old messages that do not need to
be kept on-line in your messaging server's database.
Data Backup and Restore:
We all
know we should make backups of critical data but many small
organizations don't have the internal resources to see that the job gets
done regularly. Cloud-based enterprise backup and restore services are
now available for small and medium size businesses. A good cloud backup
and restore service can do “block level” backup and handle multiple
operating system files while de-duplicating and compressing the data
being backed up. Remote management, synchronized local and off-site
backup and agentless backup of databases are other important features.
Of vital importance is on-site encryption with storage in commercial,
high-availability data centers where your data is accessible only to
you. Don't confuse personal consumer grade cloud backup services with
the real thing. Your data keeps you in business. Backup it up in the
cloud and sleep better at night.
Disaster Recovery:
If losing
your data means losing your livelihood then you should have an off-site
disaster recovery plan for your valuable data. The problem is 50% of
small businesses don't. Why? Until recently, it has been too expensive
for small businesses to even consider doing it. Today it is possible to
utilize a cloud -based service that “slices and dices” your backup data
then encrypts your backup data and redundantly stores it on multiple
nodes located on the Internet. By being part of a “cooperative storage
cloud” you avoid per Gigabyte charges and pay only a modest monthly fee
per server or PC being protected. Backing up your local backup into a
“cooperative storage cloud” provides you with cloud-based disaster
recovery storage for your data backup without burning a hole in your
wallet
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"Like all IT vendors, cloud providers
need to be vetted. We sort through the field and find and test products
so you don't have to. We work with vendors who understand the importance
of having experts like us close to you, the customer. We're there
to provide the interface between your business and the cloud."
Tim Wessels
Cloud Navigator |
