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By the DynaSis Team

With fewer than eight percent of companies (of all sizes) adopting Office 365 (per a May 2014 Bitglass survey of 81,000 firms), we have to ask ourselves, “What is holding organizations back?” Office 365 is a great product, and its subscription model makes it affordable for firms of all sizes while eliminating the hassle of licensing upgrades. Yet, adoption has been slow.

Based upon investigation and our experience, we postulate that several factors are impacting organizations’ decisions. One reason may be concerns about cloud security. Per the Bitglass survey mentioned above, 42% of companies are currently eschewing cloud adoption due to security concerns.

We find this development unfortunate, because the cloud absolutely can be safe with stringent security mechanisms and a reputable provider. However, that is a discussion for a different article. For the purposes of this discussion, it is evident that even this amount of “cloud concern” cannot be the only factor hampering Office 365 adoption.

In our opinion, another issue is the complexity of the move, itself. Office 365 is a great productivity tool, once it is up and running. However, implementing it is more involved than most organizations realize and ongoing operation is not completely hands-off. Consider these key tasks involved in the migration:

• Determine which versions of on-premise Office are running and who is using them. Decide if everyone is a migration candidate.
• Choose an Office 365 model. There is a variety of price points for the offerings, each of which includes a different set of applications and tools.
• Install the on-premise versions of all applications on user’s machines and devices (up to five per user), potentially with hardware upgrades being involved.
• Document all email accounts and confirm which ones should move to Office 365. If they are web-based, determine if they should remain open and accessible individually (Office 365 will sync with rather than replace them) or if the users can migrate to Office 365’s email service completely. Back up the email stores and import them into Office 365. Notify all contacts of new email addresses, if appropriate.

After migration, the organization will also need someone to administer Office 365 and provide Help Desk support. Commonly requested support issues include resetting passwords, setting mailbox and/or folder permissions, and more.

We suspect (and have heard from others) that many companies run the Office 365 “trial” with the intention of adopting it fully. Then, they realize they do not have the time and expertise to merge all their Office resources and set up Office 365 completely. Alternatively, they end up with a partial migration that creates a mess and so abandon the product. In other words, they cannot manage a do-it-yourself move.

Microsoft recently initiated a program, called Fasttrack, designed to help companies get Office 365 up and running smoothly. Unfortunately for small and medium sized business owners, it is optimized for installations of 150 seats or more, and all of the help is remote or online. It also cannot start until a company purchases Office 365. Taking such an approach extends adoption time, because organizations cannot work with a tech team to perform advance planning.

For any company wishing to adopt Office 365, we recommend working with a local IT expert that has technological competence with Office 365 migration and management. We just happen to be one of those firms, so if you would like to know more or discuss such a solution, please fill out our inquiry form or give us a call at (770) 569-4600.

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By the DynaSis Team

In last week’s blog, we introduced you to Shellshock, the software bug that has the entire technology world reeling due to its potential implications. Many firms, especially those with web servers, may have affected (but not necessarily infected) machines on their network and not even know it. Those with UNIX/Linux and Apple OS machines are at the highest risk level, but any network that connects to the Internet could be compromised by it.

As promised in last week’s article, this week we’ll talk a bit about network assessments and software audits. A network assessment is a process by which an in-house technical expert or a third-party provider evaluates all the devices running on a corporate network, including servers, desktops, laptops, tablets, smartphones and all other connected devices. It’s an important preventive measure against Shellshock.

At a minimum, a network assessment should be able to scan and see all the network hardware and determine whether it is protected by security software and/or devices. It should also be able to determine if the network and its devices are properly configured for optimal performance. An advanced assessment will also include a software inventory (audit) of all the software running on every machine. This level of assessment is needed to give companies a total picture of their vulnerability to the Shellshock bug.

Equally important to corporate productivity, the individuals or company performing any network assessment should be able to conduct their exploration in the background, with no impact on network resources. If software-based “discovery agents” are used, they should transmit no sensitive data out of the network. They should also be virtually undetectable by system users and should leave behind no traces of their process.

Once complete, the results should be outlined in easy-to-read reports about the network, its security weaknesses and its performance issues, as well as in an overall “score” that gives management a solid, at-a-glance idea of how their network performs. The assessment package should also include suggestions for urgent, recommended and optional improvements, with details about the issues these changes will resolve and/or benefits they will provide.

At DynaSis, we perform network assessments using a custom-built, secure solution that meets all these criteria. However, we have worked with many organizations who ordered network assessments that did not meet some―or any―of these standards.

As a comparison for your own evaluation, here’s a list of what our network assessment findings include:

• A summary of your overall risk score, with charts identifying problem areas and conflicts.
• A Best-Practices Deviation Report of pressure-point issues that warrant investigation.
• An inventory of network devices (routers, printers, PCs, servers and more), including rogue devices operating without the organization’s knowledge.
• A list of network access weaknesses (e.g. insecure passwords or outdated permissions).
• An inventory of installed applications, per machine.
• An inventory of servers (Web, Exchange, SQL) and recommendations for better configuration and management.

Even if your network assessment and software audit reveal that Bash isn’t in use on any of your machines, it will undoubtedly root out performance and/or security problems you didn’t realize were there. After all, nine out of 10 corporate networks have network issues that are hampering worker or company productivity.

To learn more about network assessments or to ask us questions about the current threat landscape, please fill out our inquiry form or give us a call at (770) 569-4600.

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By the DynaSis Team

Have you heard of “Shellshock”―the newest computer vulnerability to hit the news? If so, you may be wondering if your firm is at risk. Or, perhaps you heard that Shellshock doesn’t affect Windows devices, so you have dismissed it as a non-event for your office. In either case, we encourage you to read this alert.

Discovered on September 12 and made public on September 24, Shellshock (also known as Bashdoor) is actually a family of bugs in a program called Bash. Written more than two decades ago, Bash is a “command shell” program―it interprets commands from users and other computers and relays them to the machine on which it is installed. Experts now believe that the bugs in Bash may have been introduced into the software code accidentally in 1992.

Bash can run on devices and systems that use the Linux or UNIX operating systems or Apple OS X, but vulnerability doesn’t stop there. UNIX is deeply ingrained into the Internet, and experts estimate that as many as 70% of Internet-connected devices run Bash. It’s also used frequently in consumer electronics, from watches to cameras.

Here are the takeaways you need to protect your firm.

• The National Institute of Standards and Technology rates Shellshock a 10 on a 10-point severity scale. (Heartbleed was a 5.)
• Firms running Windows are at risk, because a variant of Bash that runs on Windows is vulnerable, as well. Furthermore, if employees visit compromised websites, they could pick up malware distributed by the site. Firms that run web servers or have UNIX, Linux, iOS or Android devices on their network have a heightened risk of attack.
• Unlike Heartbleed, a hacker can only exploit Shellshock if the targeted machine uses Bash. Having it installed isn’t enough to result in exposure.
• It is an unsophisticated vulnerability, making it is easy for hackers to make use of it. Unlike Heartbleed it doesn’t just steal information. It takes remote control of computers and can do just about anything with them or the networks to which they connect.
• Companies that run Bash are issuing fixes and patches rapidly. Unfortunately, many of them have been incomplete or ineffective. This situation should improve over the next few weeks.
• As a precaution, companies should ensure all their software is fully updated and check to see if the websites they or their employees use have been patched.
• Internet-connected firms that have not had a network assessment (including a software audit) recently should conduct or order (outsource) one, soon. Proactive assessments, auditing and policy implementation are some of your most important defenses against this bug. (More about that in next week’s blog.)

From a broader perspective, we find it deeply concerning that a software flaw could have existed for 22 years, undetected. It makes us wonder how many other “low-level” programs―perhaps that are also deeply ingrained in the Internet or other systems―have similar flaws.

To learn more about Shellshock or to discuss proactive software updates, vulnerability assessments and/or software audits, fill out our inquiry form or give us a call at (770) 569-4600.

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By the DynaSis Team

We recently came across a study, released earlier this year, about the challenges that professionals face with remote collaboration. The survey, which queried some 5,000 business professionals at various levels, was quite interesting.

As a whole, the group named poor audio and video quality to be their number one remote collaboration challenge, with 39 percent of respondents selecting that option. The group cited numerous other leading causes of remote collaboration problems, with technology-related issues popping up quite frequently. Among respondents, 35 percent said they had a hard time sharing content in a remote meeting, and 27 percent indicated that unreliable technology was a challenge for them when collaborating remotely.

Despite these challenges, respondents overwhelmingly said remote collaboration was valuable.  Among methods for collaboration, web conferencing and video conferencing were their top two preferred methods (27 percent and 25 percent, respectively). The least preferred method was instant messaging at 12 percent.

Here’s where it gets even more interesting. Unlike a few years ago, when executives and professionals often cited financial benefits as the primary reason for remote collaboration, according to the study they now cite benefits such as increased corporate efficiency and improved work-life balance.

In other words, many of these professionals believe that remote collaboration has become an important driver, not just of savings, but also of both business productivity and professional satisfaction. Executives, in particular, stressed these aspects. Among respondent CEOs, 88% stated that remote collaboration is key in helping their organizations meet objectives.

What does this tell us? That companies―and especially their executive leadership―are embracing the notion that workers and clients in distributed locations can have productive, collaborative engagements. “Remote” in the traditional sense of “far away and isolated” is no longer an accurate definition. The problem, it seems, is that professionals need a better way of achieving the collaborative environments they seek, no matter where they and their peers, clients, vendors and other partners might be.

At DynaSis, we’ve spent more than two decades helping our customers adopt the latest productivity tools, and we believe that mobility means more than being able to check email from the road. It means having the ability to achieve your work goals remotely, not only when you are working alone, but also when you want your entire team “with” you, even though they are really far away.

We’ve spent quite a bit of time researching the options for small and medium-sized businesses to achieve this goal, and we’d be happy to share our insights with you. For more information, fill out our inquiry form or give us a call at (770) 569-4600.

By the DynaSis Team

The results of a survey, conducted this year at an IT support conference, indicates that corporate IT departments are stretched way too thin and at the same time constricted by lack of budget (36 percent), resources (24 percent) or team skills (20 percent). Furthermore, 44 percent of IT managers polled for the survey said lack of technological awareness at the executive management level has created a divide between the board room and the IT department, in terms of priorities.

If you are an IT professional reading this, you are probably nodding your head in agreement. If you are a small or medium-sized business (SMB) owner, you are probably thinking, “That doesn’t apply to my firm.”  This disconnect is precisely where the problem lies.

According to the survey, if given free reign over IT decision-making, 58 percent of IT professionals would prioritize long-term, back-end infrastructure investment. Another 24 percent would pursue virtualization, and 18 percent would add more storage. Yet, according to survey respondents, none of these long-term investments topped the priority list at the upper management level. The executive priority most often cited by survey respondents (20%) was upgrading productivity software―such as Microsoft Office.

We’re not discouraging anyone from upgrading their productivity software. In fact, DynaSis is behind Office 365 (Microsoft’s new subscription-based licensing model for Office) 100 percent. We even offer a solution package for this product that includes planning, migration and support.

We are suggesting that the ability of many companies to operate effectively and competitively is being hampered because overtaxed IT professionals are trying unsuccessfully to run shoe-string operations with stressed out, often insufficient or inadequately skilled IT teams. In some cases, they’re trying to do everything themselves.

Technology is simply too important―and too much of a productivity builder―for executive leaders not to listen to their IT managers and work towards giving them the budget and resources to do their jobs. This doesn’t mean that organizations have to hire and train more workers or make major directional shifts.

At DynaSis, we have long assisted companies in a “back-up” capacity―coordinating closely with IT managers and taking over important tasks, such as help desk support or hardware installation, that they do not have time to manage effectively. In doing so, we give them the “breathing room” they need to focus on planning, coordination and strategic initiatives.

Of course, at some point business owners also must increase their budgets and give their IT managers some measure of control over decision-making to achieve the best outcomes. Frequently, we find that once business leaders stop and really look at the bottom-line benefits that more technology can bring them, they find those increases aren’t as painful as they expected.

If you are a business owner (with or without an IT manager), we would be happy to sit down and talk with you about what your next step should be. If you are a frustrated IT manager, we can help pull together the metrics you need to persuade executive leadership to see things your way. We can also back you up, wherever and whenever you need help. For more information, fill out our inquiry form or give us a call at (770) 569-4600.

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By the DynaSis Team

In August 2014, a new study about small and medium business (SMB) adoption of VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol―also known as Internet calling) was released by Software Advice. The results were so compelling we thought we’d share them with you.

The study found that although SMBs still rely heavily on landlines (31%) and mobile phones (13%) as their sole business telecommunications medium, VoIP is now the frontrunner. Of the 350 SMB owners surveyed, 42% have already adopted VoIP for at least some of their phone communications and 57% indicated they were currently exploring VoIP solutions for the first time.

Perhaps more important for the future of VoIP in the business market were the reasons these business owners cited for exploring VoIP. Seventeen percent of respondents said they were experiencing reliability issues with their current phone systems and felt VoIP would be more reliable. Another 15% said their current solution had outgrown the business, and a VoIP system would be more scalable, and an equal percentage thought VoIP would be more affordable.

Coming in a close fourth was “increased functionality,” with 14% of business owners citing this reason for evaluating a VoIP platform. Finally, respondents overwhelmingly preferred a hosted (cloud-based) solution to an on-premise one, a move that is proven to increase reliability (assuming the business uses a quality provider).

We consider these results pretty amazing, given that only a few weeks earlier, Software Advice published another report that indicated 71% of consumers could not even define VoIP, and many had serious concerns about its reliability. In other words, the small business owners had a much better handle on VoIP and its benefits than did their consumer counterparts.

This is great news for both business owners and VoIP providers, because VoIP technology truly does deliver exactly the results that these business owners anticipate. VoIP provides companies with an amazing arsenal of special features, including automated attendant (the top feature SMB owners wanted), voice mail to email, Internet faxing, remote location services and more.

Furthermore, VoIP systems are more readily scalable than traditional landlines and more affordable than mobile-only platforms. Moreover, when a VoIP solution is hosted, business owners have the confidence of greater reliability―and a partner that is managing the service. If you have not looked at VoIP yet, or you are considering making the switch to a new provider, we’d love the opportunity to discuss the technology with you. DynaSis has partnered with some VoIP providers who are truly turning the industry on its ear. To learn more, fill out our inquiry form or give us a call at (770) 569-4600.

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By the DynaSis Team

In our last article, we talked about some important technology assessments and their value to your business and IT success. In this article, we’ll talk about another type of IT assessment― establishing a workable goal for the level of “uptime” (technology continuity) you require.

Ultimate availability, in the technology world, is 99.999% uptime. At that level, companies should have barely five minutes of unplanned downtime (system outage), per year. In reality, obtaining such an uptime figure is prohibitively expensive for the average business. Even dropping a decimal―to 99.99% (approximately an hour of yearly downtime)―doesn’t reduce the cost substantially.

So, how can you decide where your business falls, on the scale of attaining maximum uptime and productivity? In our viewpoint, a more realistic goal for many businesses is 99.9% uptime or better. At that level, a company can anticipate fewer than nine hours of unplanned downtime each year.

Some companies decide they can live with even more downtime. At 99% downtime, businesses experience approximately 87 hours of downtime, per year. We don’t recommend any business set its bar so low, especially if it relies heavily upon technology. Nevertheless, every business owner has to decide what is appropriate for his or her firm. Some business owners find a happy medium by opting for higher availability for mission-critical systems like email, but accepting a higher level of risk and downtime for information they can go a day or two without.

Beyond deciding how much downtime you can live with, also consider how much business disruption you can tolerate. Given that the work day consumes only one-third of each 24-hour period and most firms are closed on weekends, most business owners might assume that with 99% uptime, they would experience far less than one-third of their 87 hours of downtime during the working day. In many cases, they would be wrong.

The reality is that systems tend to fail when they are under heavy load. In many cases, issues can arise at night or over the weekend, but only when workers start using their systems do those issues cause trouble. If an IT provider proactively monitors your network and systems 24/7, troubleshooting and resolving issues as they arise, there is a good chance most of your downtime will happen when the office is closed.

If your provider doesn’t guarantee after-hours monitoring and problem resolution, then system glitches and issues may result in office-hours disruption while you wait for a technician to arrive. Furthermore, your availability figures may be skewed unfairly in the provider’s favor, because the provider also may not be monitoring your availability after hours or on weekends. As a result, no downtime that occurs outside business hours will count in any performance penalties you negotiate.

Finally, many IT providers exclude “planned” downtime (such as system maintenance) from their uptime guarantee. Before you sign with a company that takes that approach, be sure they’ll perform your system maintenance after hours or on weekends, or your total downtime figure could soar.

In the final analysis, finding your “sweet spot” for system availability requires more than deciding what level of unplanned downtime you can live with. It also involves partnering with a provider (or hiring an in-house team) that supports your goal in the least disruptive manner possible.

If you’d like to learn more about how the IT industry approaches downtime, as well as other considerations for achieving IT continuity without unpleasant surprises, fill out our inquiry form or give us a call at (770) 569-4600.

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By the DynaSis Team

There’s an old adage that says, “You can’t know where you are going if you don’t know where you’ve been.” With technology, we think it’s more accurate to say, “You can’t decide where you want to go unless you know where you are, right now.” Many companies work with technology every day without any real idea where they are―how well their networks are working, whether their systems are functioning efficiently or even what IT assets they have in the building.

Not knowing this information makes it impossible to prioritize and manage technology initiatives cost effectively, and it also opens the door to downtime, security issues and other problems, big and small. A great way to address such a knowledge gap is with a variety of IT assessments. Following are a few that we recommend to our customers.

Network Assessments: This procedure incorporates network performance tests to benchmark how efficiently and securely your network is running. The test is (or should be) followed by reports that identify network issues and weak spots and provide recommendations for resolving urgent network security and performance issues. Network assessments should also include a “risk score” and recommendations for better server and device configuration and management. They should be secure and invisible to company personnel when they are running (little to no effect on network performance.)

Asset Inventories: This process gives you a clear picture of what devices are operating in your business― and what applications are running on them (which also helps you explore whether or not you are in compliance with licensing requirements). In many cases, your network assessment will include an inventory of network-connected devices such as routers, printers, PCs, servers, etc. as well as an inventory of installed applications, which is why we recommend it, first.  (DynaSis’ network assessment includes this inventory.) Depending upon how many devices you have that are not network connected (and what their condition is), a second, physical assessment might also be appropriate.

Strategic Assessment: With this process, you explore and adjust (or develop) your current IT approaches and plans to ensure they support your business objectives. Usually conducted with a “CIO” level resource (either in-house or third-party), a strategic assessment moves beyond operation conditions to such considerations as optimal replacement cycles, anticipated challenges, future business plans and other aspects of business operation that involve technology. The result should be a comprehensive IT strategy that will reduce unplanned equipment downtime and replacement, boost productivity and keep budgets in check.

Would you like to explore where your company currently is, in terms of its IT solutions? Do you need help developing a workable yet proactive vision for the future? DynaSis offers all these assessments (and more), and we’d be glad to help. To learn more, fill out our inquiry form or give us a call at (770) 569-4600.

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By the DynaSis Team

The media gives a lot of coverage to cyberattacks and their perpetrators, but the reality for many businesses is that the blame for security breaches lies inside the office. Criminals in faraway countries may design and launch the attacks, but if a company is stoutly defended, an attack should not succeed.

Furthermore, although “stout” defenses require up-to-date technologies such as firewall devices and anti-malware solutions, technology isn’t your only line of defense. Numerous studies indicate that cyberattacks are often successful because company employees let the attackers in.

In fact, a 2014 study conducted by IBM found that in 2013, human error was involved at some level in more than 95 percent of security incidents. The most common “mistake” was an employee clicking on a malicious email link that compromised the corporate defenses in some way.

Other significant forms of human error cited by the IBM report included system misconfiguration, inadequate system patch management and bad password oversight. The remaining top “errors” the study cited were security breaches due to lost laptops and mobile devices.

To combat these vulnerabilities, companies should address what we consider to be the “three pillars” of corporate security―user education, properly managed IT and security systems, and mobile device management. Companies that are not yet taking these pillars seriously are playing Russian roulette, and it won’t be long before it’s their turn to become a victim. We’ll address the second two―properly managed IT and security systems and mobile device management―first.

1. Managed IT and Security Systems: Purchasing and deploying a firewall appliance or other security mechanisms isn’t a sufficient defense. As the IBM survey noted, the people behind the technology are equally important. System configuration, patch management and password oversight are all activities normally handled by IT personnel, not by users. These factors being cited in the prevalence of cyberattacks underscores the importance of organizations having competent managed services teams working for them.
2. Mobile Device Management (MDM): Human error may result in a stolen or lost tablet or mobile device, but that doesn’t mean the company has to be compromised. With a solid MDM solution in place, wiping corporate information is a painless process.
3. User Education: We urge all business owners to engage in a major education initiative with employees, if they haven’t already. Actions we recommend include:

For companies that aren’t confident they have addressed all these issues, IT assessments and network vulnerability checks are the best place to start. For more information, fill out our inquiry form or give us a call at (770) 569-4600.

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By the DynaSis Team

On August 14, Forbes published an interesting article entitled Technology Will Change Your Job: How to Prepare. It’s no secret that technology changes our work lives (and our personal lives). It increases productivity enormously, for example. It also makes it easier to stay “plugged in” to the workplace―a double-edged sword that gives us more mobility but also lets others track us down when we would prefer not to be connected.

However, this article wasn’t about that aspect of technology. Rather, it referenced a book, by attorney Richard Lieberman, entitled Your Job and How Technology Will Change It. In the book, Lieberman postulated that technology won’t simply let us work more efficiently; it will change the intrinsic nature of our jobs. He also suggested that those who do not adapt to this change will find themselves out of work.

“Bemoaning new technology is very much like those people who said passenger airplanes were terrible because they did not provide the comfort, leisure and sociability of a long train trip,” Lieberman stated. A more accurate analogy, we submit, would be to compare the value of a technically astute, well-trained administrative assistant to one who clings to an early version of WordPerfect or Word―or heaven forbid, a typewriter.

The message was, essentially, “Adapt or die,” and we believe that this message applies not only to workers but also to the businesses for whom they work. Emerging technologies from robotics to cloud computing are being adopted much faster than most people had predicted. Young people are embracing these new technologies far more rapidly than their older counterparts, and they want their employers to adopt and provide cutting-edge solutions, as well.

Conversely, many older workers and managers (the Baby Boomers) are not staying abreast of technology. However, they retain the majority of cultural and institutional knowledge that makes a company “tick,” and they often make the rules regarding who can do what, and when.

Frustrated by the pace of technological change, younger workers are bringing their more advanced, personal technology to work, much to the consternation of the older, inflexible executives and managers. In doing so, these younger workers can put businesses at risk.

So, the challenge for business owners is to adopt a more aggressive technology stance that will attract the younger stars without endangering the business. They also need to identify and retain older corporate leaders that do appreciate technology―those who can bridge the generation gap within the firm. In doing so, companies can develop a tech-forward, integrated workplace where all players can embrace secure corporate solutions to foster a collaborative, productive work environment.

The alternative is an unspoken “war” at work, where older, hide-bound executives and IT pros attempt to “control” the activities of younger workers, and the workers either become frustrated and leave or they simply find workarounds and do what they want. Neither is a satisfactory, long-term solution for anyone.

Now, here’s the good news. Companies do not have to make major IT purchases and plan exhaustive implementations every year or two in order to have an up-to-speed IT infrastructure. Solutions exist, such as DynaSis Ascend platform, that let firms pay a flat monthly fee for deployment and use of modern, secure IT solutions upgraded on a regular basis.

Such an approach keeps everyone happy. To learn more, please fill out our inquiry form or give us a call at (770) 569-4600.