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By the DynaSis Team

At DynaSis, we are continually working to make improvements, providing our customers with products and services that are faster, more powerful and more secure. This year, we have taken great strides in several areas, including introducing an affordable, secure cloud file system that just may revolutionize your business model.

If you haven’t been introduced to our new offerings yet, we invite you to call us for a complimentary consultation. You may be pleasantly surprised at how much our solutions can propel the success of your business

Automated Monitoring and Alerting: In February, DynaSis launched a cloud-based, high-availability monitoring and alerting service gives that gives engineers in DynaSis’ network operations center a dashboard view of customers’ infrastructure at all times. The service conducts analysis and inspection of DynaSis customers’ on-site infrastructure and networks, 24/7/365, scanning for issues such as low disk space, servers being overwhelmed by too many user requests, and other problems that affect availability and performance. Offered at no additional charge to DynaSis’ Managed Services customers, it added a further layer of scrutiny on top of DynaSis’ already robust network and infrastructure management and maintenance solutions.

Partnership with Veeam: In March 2013, DynaSis announced a partnership with Veeam, a leading provider of disaster recovery services for small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs). Partnering with Veeam gave DynaSis yet another best-practices disaster recovery option for its clients. With the Veeam solution, DynaSis customers’ data and servers are replicated from their virtual servers to DynaSis offsite data centers, eliminating the need for onsite backup appliances or servers. Customers enjoy instant file-level recovery, application-item recovery and virtual server recovery plus deep support for VMware and Hyper-V virtualization environments.

DynaSis BLUE: In September, DynaSis announced the launch of DynaSis BLUE, a solution that turns customers’ on-site file servers into in-house cloud servers. To deploy BLUE, DynaSis installs a tiny software agent on a client's file server and then configures the in-house cloud environment to meet the customer's specifications. DynaSis BLUE enables firms to harness the power of cloud-based file sharing and storage without relinquishing control of corporate files to a third-party provider. With 448-bit Blowfish encryption, two-factor authentication, full auditability and granular user-access and security controls, DynaSis BLUE provisions companies with a comprehensive, 100% synchronized and backed-up solution that offers significantly better governance than leading competitors.

These products and services are some of our 2013 highlights, but they are far from our only accomplishments. We’re also planning some great new additions for 2014.

We hope you had a great holiday season and wish you a prosperous New Year. From all of us at DynaSis, here’s to a great 2014. We look forward to working with you in the future!

Have you thought about The Cloud recently? We're not referring to the puffy bits of condensed moisture that float above us, but rather to the interconnected web of data, applications, services and other components, both public and private, that we now know as The Cloud. DynaSis thought about The Cloud quite a lot earlier this year, when we launched our cloud-based storage and sharing solution  DynaSis BLUE.

BLUE is incredibly flexible and secure, with granular management that gives companies real control over their content and how people access it. As a result, we hope you'll check it out, if you haven't already. But, BLUE isn't what continues to amaze us, as proud of it as we might be. No, that honor would go to The Cloud, itself.

We can across some statistics on cloud adoption and growth recently, and they blew us away like a leaf in a strong wind. Here are a few tidbits that might make you feel the same way.

So, have you poked your head into The Cloud yet? If not, the sooner you begin leveraging the productivity and operational benefits of cloud computing, the more money you can save. Adopting cloud computing will also help your company level its "playing field" in relation to larger competitors.

DynaSis can show you how to adopt the cloud securely and efficiently, without even giving up your in-house hardware, if you prefer. (Our approach to this hybrid solution is called Ascend.) You can start slowly, with cloud-based Microsoft Exchange or basic file storage and sharing for collaboration and remote working through DynaSis BLUE.

If you'd like to learn more, we have a great white paper on cloud computing you can peruse. The Cloud is waiting... what are you waiting for?

[featured_image]By the DynaSis Team

In case you have forgotten, the $500,000 Section 179 tax deduction, which was extended to 2013 through approval of H.R. 8: American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012, has not been carried over for 2014. Although Congress is considering extending the bonus depreciation rules for another three years, it’s pretty obvious that they won’t extend the Section 179 deduction above its base threshold of $25,000 (with a $200,000 investment ceiling) before the beginning of 2014. U.S. business owners could easily be left in limbo for the majority of 2014―as they were in 2012―before Congress decides to take action retroactively.

A much better option, tax experts say, is for businesses to take advantage of the 2013 Section 179 tax deduction while they have it. The Section 179 deduction covers most new and used capital equipment―in fact, most depreciable assets that have less than a 20-year life. It also includes certain software.

The 2013 Section 179 Deduction Limits for 2013 (and 2012 retroactive)- 2013 Deduction Limit = $500,000

Under the current law, bonus depreciation (which companies take on new equipment only) also ends Dec. 31. Companies can use bonus depreciation to deduct half the cost of new capital purchases in the first year.

Bonus depreciation can be more valuable than the Section 179 deduction, because the IRS limits the Section 179 deduction to business taxable income with any excess carried forward. However, if you’re actively involved in running a business, you claim losses generated by bonus depreciation against other income in 2013. Then, you can carry any still-unused losses back for two years and get a refund check from Uncle Sam.

To be eligible for these deductions, you must purchase equipment and put it into service before December 31. From assessing and upgrading IT infrastructure to upgrading outdated versions of Windows on company workstations (support for Windows XP ends in April, 2014), many firms are accelerating their purchases to take advantage of this year’s deduction.

It’s Not Too Late!
Don’t think that it’s too late to make purchases and put them into service. DynaSis’ Virtual CIOs and technicians are at the ready to help you decide which purchases are appropriate for your business and get them into service before the stroke of midnight on December 31. Call us to initiate fast-track project planning or to accelerate execution of your current plan.

by Dave Moorman

Given the state of the economy in the past few years, many small and medium businesses (SMBs) have taken a “wait and see” approach to IT spending. While this attitude is understandable, it positions companies to become reactive rather than proactive.

The reality of IT is that things break; they fail; they become outdated. Companies that don’t have a solid IT plan to address at least the core replacement cycle risk lowering productivity and/or making unplanned IT expenditures that do not fit into their overall strategic business goals. Beyond basic needs, companies also need a strategic vision for using IT, not simply to enable their business (or worse, just prop it up), but rather to drive its future success.

If your company has a strategic IT vision and is implementing it, then I congratulate you. If not, I urge you to allocate time, early in 2014, for IT assessments and planning. Commit—right now—not to spend another unplanned dime on technology.

Whether you are a business owner or an IT executive, take concrete steps to make this happen. First, ask company personnel to submit a list of IT equipment and tools they think would invigorate their productivity in 2014. Ask them to persuade you with a compelling explanation of why they need these enhancements and how they can benefit the company’s success.

Then, sit down with executive management and other IT staff or your services provider and consider such important issues as:

Armed with this information and other insights you will gain along the way, you and your associates can develop an IT plan and budget. Only then should you consider the 2014 purchase cycle.

For companies that have not previously developed and implemented a strategic IT plan, this can be a tall order, but it’s a crucial one. At DynaSis, we strongly urge our customers not to embark on any IT program without an up-to-date IT plan. If a firm is uncertain how to implement its plan without blowing the budget, we ask them to pinpoint the most important of three core benefits (reduce costs; minimize risk; increase productivity) IT can provide and to focus on plan items that will accomplish that goal, first.

For companies that don’t have a plan and don’t know where to start, we provide numerous assessment tools and techniques that can help them develop a plan and make these decisions. If you would like us to help you assess and plan your IT future give us a shout!

[featured_image]By the DynaSis Team

I read an interesting article in Forbes online recently, about “the death of the office.” In it, contributor Jeanne Meister postulated about what the office of the future will look like. One comment struck me as especially worthy of further consideration:

“As work becomes more flexible and communication more mobile, the office is turning into an increasingly complex and even abstract concept. As we look to the future, we have to ask: Will the workplace be on-site at our employer’s property, or on-demand at a collaborative space? Or will work simply be a mindset independent of place or time of day?”

That last concept―work as a mindset that has no bearing on place or time of day, is a notion that seems increasingly likely. Already numerous studies report that the newest generation of workers, the Millennials, does not want to be tied to a specific place or time to work. (DynaSis is putting the final touches on a white paper about these workers. To request a copy when it’s ready, fill out our inquiry form, putting “Millennials White Paper” in the comments section.)

Realistically, who among us doesn’t like the idea of being freed from the constraints of time and space that a physical office places upon us? Certainly, there are people who crave the social nature of an office environment, and team collaboration and brainstorming on some projects seems to work best when the group works together physically, rather than virtually.

However, for at least some of our office tasks, having the freedom to do them whenever and wherever is highly beneficial for both employer and employee. And that, many experts predict, is what the office is becoming―a place where cloud and mobile technologies enable workers to perform some, if not all, of their work, wherever they are and whenever it suits them.

Think about it: for corporations, the savings in energy and office space alone could be substantial. In the area of employee health and productivity, the “insomnia” that plagues so many people might disappear. Workers who lie awake at night, worrying about a project, could instead get up and work on it until they were tired, and then go back to bed. This would be possible because they could also sleep late, rather than getting out of bed, groggy, to be in the office by 8 or 9am.

In 2011, Live Science published an article that postulates waking during the night for a few hours before returning to sleep (called biphasic sleeping) is natural behavior for humans. The anywhere, anytime office would enable employees to embrace this behavioral predisposition rather than fight it.

When we view the “Mobile Office” in this context, it’s evident that it’s about more than mobility. It’s about achieving functional flexibility that not only drives productivity for businesses, but also helps employees mold their jobs to suit their preferences―and possibly their innate natures. It’s about providing easy, non-technical solutions that are secure, seamless and always available, no matter where workers need them.

We’ve been testing some new technologies here at DynaSis, and we’ll be telling you more about them, soon. We’re calling our initiative Modern Office, and we think you’ll love it. Stay tuned…

[featured_image]By the DynaSis Team

Earlier this year, we offered some information and advice on malware and cyber-attacks, but the news surrounding these threats has become so concerning that an update is in order. Recently, a new Trojan horse named CryptoLocker surfaced. (A Trojan horse is malware that masquerades as beneficial.) CryptoLocker is especially crafty―it disguises itself as a legitimate attachment and then, when activated, it encrypts file types―such as Word documents and Auto Cad files―stored on your computer systems’ drives.

CryptoLocker stores the decryption keys for these files on its own servers, and infected users see a message that offers to decrypt the data and return access to it for a fee (usually around $300). It also warns message recipients that it will delete the key if a certain deadline passes. In November, a group assumed to be the perpetrators launched an online site that purports to unlock CryptoLocker-encrypted files after the deadline passes for 10 Bitcoin (more than $2000) per file.

For the encryption, CryptoLocker uses 2048-bit RSA public-key cryptography, which is virtually impossible to break. Removing the program is not difficult, but it does not afford companies access to their files, which remain encrypted. So, firms are faced with two choices unless they have a recent backup―pay the ransom or lose the file. Of course, no one wants to pay criminals ransom, but the alternative may be loss of important corporate data.

CryptoLocker usually spreads through a zipped (compressed) attachment to a seemingly safe email message (often appearing to originate from a legitimate company). Given that it only targets Microsoft Windows PCs, it presents a significant threat to U.S. companies, the majority of whom run Windows computers.

DynaSis is launching a new anti-malware service that will defend companies against CryptoLocker and other insidious threats. We are also following up on a new report, just released, that indicates many recent cyber-attacks may be shared development and logistics operations masterminded by broad consortiums of cyber-criminals.

If this is true, it increases the likelihood of attacks becoming even more frequent, ferocious and difficult to block. We will report on this issue in the next few weeks. In the meantime, to learn how we can protect you against these threats, give us a call.

[featured_image]By DynaSis

With the release of Windows 8.1, which tweaked Windows 8—and addressed some user complaints about the excessively "mobile-style" interface—many companies may be wondering if it is time for an upgrade. After all, Windows 8 gives uses a near seamless experience from the desktop to mobile devices, and Microsoft touts it as the most productive and stable user operating system, ever.  (For more about Windows 8 features, read this month's newsletter.)

Whether or not that's enough reason to upgrade depends on which version of Windows your company is running. Support for the hugely popular, widely deployed Windows XP ends in April 2014. Despite rumored pleas from corporate users to give it a softer landing, Microsoft will likely stick with that date, or something close. As a result, Windows XP usage is plummeting—from nearly 40% of businesses and users in July 2013 to 31% in October 2013 (per statistics firm NetMarketShare).

The end of support means more than not being able to pay Microsoft for phone assistance. After Windows XP's official "end of life" date on April 8, 2014, Microsoft will stop providing patches and security updates. Patches are crucial to system security, and be assured that hackers follow how many Windows XP machines are still in operation. After that time, they will likely start targeting them aggressively—and successfully. To avoid extreme exposure to malware and other nasties, companies should upgrade to a current version of Windows. (There is no sense in moving to Windows Vista or any other version of Windows before 7.)

Windows 7 has the largest Microsoft OS install base (near 50%, per NetMarketShare) among Windows users. However, Windows 8 is gaining ground, quickly—it has a nearly 10% install base within the first year, which puts it on a trajectory close to that of Windows XP when it debuted.

More importantly, Microsoft has made Windows 8 very affordable to all companies running any version of Windows, enacting no pricing "penalty" for upgrading, no matter how old the version of Windows it is replacing. It is keeping this approach with Windows 8.1, which will cost $119.99 per user for companies running Windows XP, Vista or 7; $199.99 for the Pro version.

Best of all, Microsoft is offering full-version software at these bargain prices. In other words, the purchase conveys a license for Windows 8.1 on any machine, previously running any operating system (OS). Each OS install is completely fresh, so there will be no upgrade "glitches" to work through. (All data stays intact; but existing software must be reinstalled.)

Of course, you may need hardware and possibly software upgrades, depending on the age of your equipment and applications. Nevertheless, the situation is only going to get worse, and companies that start the process now can budget and plan for avoiding danger before April 2014 rolls around.

With Windows XP support ending—and the OS already being a target of hackers for its less-than-robust security—we strongly recommend all our customers move to Windows 8.1. It's a bit different from what you are used to, but you'll be able to stick with it longer than you can Windows 7. If you don't upgrade, you won't perish, but you will be left standing in the cold, with you and your IT provider unable to fully protect your systems from the attacks that will ensue.

To discuss the upgrade process or start creating your plan, give us a call.

[featured_image]By DynaSis

Earlier this month, I talked about unplanned downtime in the context of disaster recovery and business continuity. That discussion got me thinking about the cost of the incidental downtime―the little inconveniences that impact some businesses on a regular basis. Things like employees not being able to log into the company’s network because the firm’s IT guy forgot to update everyone with new passwords on the first of the month. Or, even the tiny amounts of downtime that result when you work with a reliable (but not best practices) data hosting service.

This incidental―and incremental―downtime can really add up. Take, for example, the variations in “high availability” among Internet and data center providers. How much difference can there be between 99% uptime (industry average) and 99.99% uptime (what DynaSis delivers)? As it turns out, the difference can be substantial.

Let’s assume you have 50 employees that rely on their computers at the workplace each day. Let’s also assume your burdened hourly rate (pay plus benefits) is the national average ($29.11 per hour, per the U.S. Department of Labor; yours might be much higher). 50 times $29.11 equals $1455.50. That is your cost, per hour, of having your computing systems and/or network unavailable for an hour.

Now, let’s extrapolate that cost in terms of a network/systems provider’s availability over one year. If your provider promises 99% availability (uptime), over one year you could expect your systems to be down for 88 hours―365 x 24 x 1%. If your provider promises 99.99% availability, over the course of a year you could expect your systems to be down for .88 hours―365 x 24 x .01%. That’s a big difference.

Multiply that figure by the average burdened hourly rate we established earlier to get your downtime risk, in terms of wasted employee resource, and the comparison becomes even starker. With 99% uptime, your downtime risk is $128,084 per year. With the 99.99% availability provider, it’s $1,280.84.

Of course, these downtime figures include “down hours” in the calculations―periods when the office is closed and no one is using your systems. If you calculate the figure using eight hours per day rather than 24, the numbers drop substantially.

However, unless you work with a 24/7 managed IT systems provider, there will be no one in the office to note the downtime when it occurs. Depending on the nature of the event, it might interrupt backup operations, necessitate server reboots, and cause other disruptions that will result in unplanned downtime the next morning.

Furthermore, if your company relies heavily on technology―if you offer 24-hour e-commerce or service; for example, the cost of downtime escalates considerably. (When Amazon.com went dark for 30 minutes in August, it lost more than $66,000 per minute.) Furthermore, these calculations don’t account for lost business or reputation, which can occur frighteningly quickly in today’s “instant gratification” marketplace.

Finally, these figures are for availability of the data center and its network delivery mechanism, and do not include downtime from problems within your internal systems, like incorrectly configured network settings or server crashes. Take those into account, and unless you have a trusted rapid-response team, downtime can be a lot greater.

So, here’s a thought. If you currently work with a network provider or data host that isn’t delivering 99.99% uptime, or you have been disappointed by an IT consultant or in-house resource that cannot trace and resolve downtime problems quickly, give me a call. We’ll show you the “up” side to implementing round-the-clock systems monitoring and support.

By DynaSis

In my last few mobile productivity articles, I’ve talked about specific challenges and solutions. This time, we’ll look at mobile productivity from a strategic perspective. Few people still dispute that workplace mobility is both valuable and inevitable for firms that wish to remain competitive. Analysts Frost and Sullivan announced―in 2010―that enterprises were the new catalyst behind the growth of mobile.

However, embracing the concept of mobility is different from implementing a comprehensive mobile strategy. Many companies―especially small and medium businesses (SMBs)―simply avoid the issue altogether. They either operate in near or total lock-down mode (with some employees adopting or expanding the mobile office without management’s consent) or they throw up their hands and treat mobility―and especially BYOD (bring your own device)―like a child that’s run amok. They try to keep it in their sights and bear the expense and fall-out of whatever damage it does.

To end this impasse, companies need a clear mobile strategy, thoughtfully developed and equitably implemented and governed. With such a plan enacted, SMBs can move beyond the distraction of BYOD and other challenges and focus on the real goal of mobility―to drive better business outcomes.

So, what are the pillars of a mobile strategy? They’re surprisingly similar to those we recommend for business IT strategies, overall.

Opportunity Development and Analysis: The first issue you should consider (although it may be the last you finally resolve) is what you hope to gain from a mobile program. What level of risk can you tolerate in order to achieve those goals? How will you quantify the effort and measure its success? What mechanisms will you use to adjust your strategy if it is not successful, and how often will you make adjustments?

Governance: With an idea of what you want to accomplish, you can begin to set the framework for achieving your targets. Governance helps you codify such pivotal concerns as who handles administration and management of the effort, how you will comply with regulatory requirements, if any, and whether (and how) individual department managers can authorize activities, define specialized operating parameters, create department-specific apps, etc.

Platform: Will you standardize on a single mobile device operating system (OS) such as iOS or Android, or do you want workers to have true BYOD flexibility? Supporting multiple-OS devices (and even multiple device types under the same OS) increases management complexity but enhances worker satisfaction.

User Experience: What do you want the user to be able to DO with their mobile devices when operating within the company’s framework? Does your choice of device management platform support users’ expectations? If vendors or customers will be able to access your mobile resources, do you want their experience to be branded?

Security: What data in your organization absolutely cannot end up on user devices, and how will you secure it? How will you secure the information that users CAN access from mobile devices, and how will you handle lost/stolen devices?

At what level will you support BYOD (if at all)? If personal devices will be allowed, will IT want permission to wipe the data if the device is compromised or the worker leaves the firm? How will you handle security training and what will your policy be for workers who break the rules?

As you can see, there are a number of important issues to consider when planning your mobile strategy, and the examples I have given do not cover every aspect of the challenge. Many of these issues may seem unrelated to productivity, when in fact they are essential. If management and workers are operating without a clear strategy and related policies in place, neither companies nor their employees know what to expect from mobile working. That uncertainty will stifle enthusiasm and productivity growth, hamper adoption, and cause staff to be uncomfortable with the entire effort. To learn how DynaSis can help you develop a mobile strategy that works for your firm, give me a call.

By DynaSis

I was perusing the Internet recently when I saw a pop-up ad for an IT services firm that offered both cloud storage and managed cloud storage. Essentially, this company rents its clients raw space on cloud servers for a very low fee, but if a client wants any help getting its data to the servers, or managing it for optimal efficiency and access, there is an additional cost―and a pretty hefty one, too.

For large enterprises with a team of in-house IT experts, I can see the appeal of utilizing the “storage only” option. Why pay for third-party cloud management when you have staff that can load your files to the cloud, manage the security and continuity of connections and access mechanisms, and otherwise keep the cloud functioning?

The problem for small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) is that they usually don’t have the expertise to perform these tasks. They buy some of the cheap cloud storage, realize they are out of their depth, technically, and end up spending big bucks for minimal assistance creating and managing their cloud environments.

Companies that plan their move to the cloud and thoroughly explore their options can avoid such unnecessary, tacked-on expenses. Many competent IT providers―and not just bulk cloud storage vendors―host managed cloud servers and include IT assistance as part of an economically priced package. For even more ROI, they often can bundle them with other services that help secure a company’s on-site network and IT resources, as well.

Furthermore, there are now solutions that can turn a company’s local (in-house) servers into cloud servers quickly, inexpensively and with very stringent security. DynaSis recently developed one of these solutions, DynaSis BLUE, for its customers. A tiny software agent, installed on an in-house server, enables authorized individuals to access company-designated files, folders and applications securely over an Internet connection. The agent consumes minimal space and system resources on the server itself.

This is just one example of the many ways companies are going to the cloud without blowing their budgets on unexpected, tacked-on expenses. Our Cloud Readiness Assessment can help you evaluate whether your company is ready for the cloud and determine which model might suit you best.

To learn more, give me a call.

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