All Work and No Play Makes Jack a Dull Boy

We all know that it is imperative to have some fun at work.  Water cooler conversations, impromptu basketball games (that’s our office fun), reading web comics, surfing eBay, and so on are all ways that different people take little breaks at work.  When it’s under control, it can lead to increased productivity.  But when is enough too much?  Have any fantasy footballers in your organization?  How much time do they spend online, researching for their league as opposed to working?  You might be unpleasantly surprised.  According to one study:

Fantasy football will cost U.S. employers $9.2 billion in lost work time this season, a private research group said.
Business researchers Challenger, Gray & Christmas said Monday the 17-week National Football League schedule will subtract 1.19 hours of productivity per week from about 17 million Americans who participate.

1.19 hours of lost productivity per employee is probably not a statistic to get too concerned about.  If that’s the only thing they waste time on, then chances are, it is a much needed break from work.  But, what happens if it is more than 1.19 hours.  And what if it is something less harmless than fantasy football?

Content Filtering

In this scenario, the term “content filtering” refers to locking down websites that people within your network can access.  It’s always a good idea to block sites which promote things unacceptable in the workplace, such as gambling, nudity, and violence.  In addition to lost productivity, employees viewing these types of sites can lead to legal hassles that you would probably rather not deal with.  Some organizations have a “we trust our employees” mentality.  I am certainly not suggesting that there is anything wrong with that.  One question I would pose to those organizations – is there any security around your confidential files?  Why?  If you trust your employees….

Good or bad, there’s a lot to worry about in any business environment.  Leveraging the power of content filtering can help you prevent inappropriate websites from becoming a problem.  It can also help otherwise acceptable websites from becoming a problem, too!

What’s Coming Soon?

Today’s post was a short one.  (I know at least some of you are thankful, right?)  I’m going to meet a colleague to discuss some SharePoint topics.  Woo-hoo!  Yes, I do still get excited talking about SharePoint.  I’m building out a new SharePoint deck, focusing on business value, for an upcoming SharePoint seminar I am delivering on May 19th at the Microsoft office here in Bloomington.  (It’s for Mavidea, not Microsoft.)  As I am working on this, plan to see some information about how SharePoint can help you in your organization!

 

Technorati Tags: Content filtering,security,Internet

Yesterday…

Ever notice that a lot of my blog post titles are song titles, lyrics, movie quotes, etc.?  I’m not sure why, as it gives you no idea of what the topic of the post is really about, but I enjoy doing it.  Let’s face it:  I can be weird.  :)

Last week, when we left our heroes, we were in the middle of a disaster.  The thrilling conclusion to that adventure, where we find out if the heroes survived and caught the bad guys did not air as expected.  By now, I should know better than to state a specific day or time in my posts – it never works out for me.  Instead, I should just say, “In my next post….”  Ah well.  I won’t change, so don’t expect me to. 

Business Continuity

Disaster recovery is, as I mentioned, a larger concern than simply, “Is my data protected?”  A real business continuity plan needs to cover, “How would my business recover from a severe data loss?”  A couple different scenarios leap to mind, so I would like to discuss each.

Server meltdown

For whatever reason, your server is lost.  This could happen for any number of reasons, but for the sake of this discussion, let’s assume it is ONLY the server which has crashed, and the rest of your location is fine.  In this case, your business may (or may not) be interrupted while waiting for the server to come back online.  Your business continuity plan hopefully outlines this scenario with an expected Recovery Time Objective (RTO), which is nothing more than an estimated time to be back up and running.  If you have an extra server in-house, this can be a quick turnaround.  Simply restoring your data onto the extra server means you are back up and running in the time it takes for that restore to happen.  If you, like most people, aren’t sitting on an extra server, then this is the first consideration – what hardware will my data get restored to?  How will I get that server back up and running?  The obvious answer to this question is to order a new piece of hardware and restore the data to it.  But what does the RTO look like on this plan?  It will be however long it takes to get a replacement server, get it delivered, and get the data restored to it.  Chances are, this is a longer RTO than you really want.

Our Serenity package includes an on-site device which will act as a virtual server (using your backed-up data) in the event that your server goes down.  This means that while you are waiting for your replacement server hardware to be delivered, you are still up and running, leveraging the on-site Serenity device.  In this case, your RTO is minimal, since the device is already in place and ready to go in the event of a server meltdown.

Site lost

Let’s look at a more comprehensive disaster scenario.  Be it flood, tornado, hurricane, fire, lightning, etc., your site is lost.  Your server is destroyed, but so are your workstations, office space, etc.  In this scenario, we would assume that your on-site Serenity device would also be destroyed, meaning it could not act as a virtual server.  Thus, your business is, at this point, completely offline.  What solution does your current business continuity plan provide for such a scenario?  Hopefully, you are taking backed-up data off-site on a regular basis, whether it is a physical movement of data or an automatic cloud (Internet) backup.  In either scenario, you will still need somewhere to restore that data to (meaning you will need server hardware again).  In this scenario, your workstations were also lost, meaning you will need to replace them as well.  But this situation is trickier, as your physical space may be a loss as well.  Where will you be conducting business while waiting for your office space to be restored?  Once again, our Serenity business continuity package has the answer!  The product does regular cloud-based (Internet) backup, which means all of your data is being stored off-site in secure datacenters.  If your site is lost, we can virtualize your server and 5 workstations (or more) in the cloud.  In laymen’s terms, this means that you could run to you local PC retailer and grab PCs right off the shelf.  You could then take these anywhere with an Internet connection (your home, a coffee shop, etc.) and use the Internet to remotely login to your virtualized workstations, which would have access to all of your data and applications courtesy of the virtualized server.  I realize this may seem complicated, but it really isn’t.  Let me break it down a bit further.

When we setup the Serenity package, we determine which machines will be virtualized in a disaster.  This includes servers and the workstations of the important people in the organization.  (In this case, important refers to “mission critical.”  I, for instance, would not be considered as mission critical as our technicians, who needs their PCs and associated tools, databases, etc. in order to keep our clients up and running.  Likewise, our CEO, Erik, would not be considered as important as our Service Manager, Jamie.)  This plan is put into place and we store all of this information in the event of disaster.  If it happens, we go into action, utilizing the plan we already have in place to create a virtual network on the Internet.  This virtual network is secure, and features your own workstations and servers, which you will log into via any Internet connection.  It’s important to realize how this will work.  You will use whatever PCs you have (or purchase) and login through a secure connection to your virtualized workstations, which will look and feel just as they did when you were sitting at them in your office.  That means that you don’t have to bother with re-setting up your new workstations during this critical time.  All you need is a web browser.  Picking up off-the-shelf units from a store like Best Buy or Fry’s will allow you to reconnect to your data and have your business back up and running.  The bottom line is that this is a fast, secure, and most of all, complete business continuity plan. 

RTO

Earlier, I mentioned RTO, or Recovery Time Objective.  Ideally, you want to know the RTO of any business continuity solution you put in place, since this is what determines how long after declaring a disaster you will be back up and running.  (Downtime is lost profit, but it can mean a lot more than that.  Depending on your business, it could mean that you are not able to help your customers/clients/patients with the services they really need at that time.)  The RTO on the Serenity package is 48 hours, meaning from the time the disaster strikes until the time your network is virtualized and available in the cloud is, at most, 48 hours.  If you are in a business where 48 hours is too long, you can reduce the RTO even further.  This requires some special testing (which comes at an additional cost), but is absolutely available.  Not a risk taker?  Like to know that your solution is working?  One of the features of this product is that we can work together to actually perform a simulated disaster in order to test/demonstrate the virtualization processes.  Once it is demonstrated that everything is working as expected (and will in the event of a disaster), then even the most paranoid of business people can rest easy knowing their business continuity plan, as it relates to IT, is sound. 

What Do I Need to Do?

Take a look at your current disaster recovery/business continuity plan.  If you have one in place, think of the things I’ve mentioned above and ensure you’re covered.  If so, great!  If not, or if you don’t have a plan in place, why not drop me an e-mail and I will be happy to assist you in figuring out what sort of plan you could put in place.

Technorati Tags: business contuinity,disaster recovery,backup,cloud,virtualization,Mavidea,IT Management

The Exits are Here and Here…

When you sit down on a plane, meet and greet your seatmates, adjust your seatbelt, and get ready for takeoff, what happens?  The flight attendant tells you what to do in the event of a disaster.  The plan is thorough, covers the bases, and is fairly easy to understand (it’s even got pictures).  What if a disaster happened to your business?  Do you have a plan in place to deal with that eventuality?  I realize it isn’t fun to think about.  Planning for something which may never happen could seem like a waste of your time.  But, when it hits the fan, what are you going to do?

Back It Up (You’ve Got to Move It, Move It)

It used to be that IT folks (read: geeks) would suggest you backup your data.  It didn’t take long to realize that simply having a backup isn’t enough.  That backup needs to be somewhere other than your current location.  If, for instance, your building burns down or floods, how useful is that backed up data going to be if it was in the same room as the server?  Thus, backing up data and moving it to a remote location became the norm.  Larger companies have an easier time with this, as they can mirror that data at a different branch, datacenter, etc.  But what if you only have one location?  Unfortunately, it usually means a manual process.  Back up the data to some sort of external device (preferably a hard drive – don’t get me started talking about the failure rate of tapes), then move that external device to a different location (like your home) on a regular basis.  Sound familiar?  Hopefully, this is something you are doing now.  I certainly don’t want to be a fear-monger, but if you’re not doing this now, stop and think what would happen if your data was lost – how long would your business survive?  Could you continue to function without that data?  In most cases, the answer is, “no.” 

Assuming that you are protecting yourself to at least this degree, ask yourself the next question -- “how is this process happening?”  Is it something that you’ve entrusted to an employee?  Maybe this is something you do yourself.  Whatever the case, when was the last time you checked on the process to ensure it is actually happening the way you think?  And, as long as we’re talking about it, when was the last time you tested one of your backups?  Are you certain that you are backing up what you think you are backing up?  Are the backups functional and capable of restoring your business to the point it was before the disaster?

This is a Disaster!

I know when I talk about “disasters” and “catastrophes,” people often think about natural disasters like floods, hurricanes, tornadoes, fires, etc.  These disasters could also be less destructive on a regional level (one of our clients recently had their building hit by lightning, destroying their IT infrastructure).  But what people don’t often think about is the disasters lurking right within their office – an employee who unintentionally (or even intentionally) destroys data.  All of these have the same end result – lost data.  Clearly, backing up data is a priority, but it is not a disaster recovery plan – it’s only one piece of a complex puzzle.

What Now?

The scenario:  Your data is secure.  It’s backed up.  You’ve tested the backups and have multiple copies at off-site locations.  (These steps already put you well ahead of most of the businesses I talk to on a daily basis!)  Out of nowhere, disaster strikes.  Your server is lost (for whatever reason).  This isn’t a big deal to you at all, since you know your data is safe.  What’s step one in your disaster recovery plan?  Restore your data?  To what?  Your server was destroyed, so unless you have another one sitting around, your disaster recovery plan has a flaw in it.  It’s certainly not an insurmountable flaw – you can order another server, get your data restored to it, and be back up and running.  But what did that downtime cost you?

Think about your own disaster recovery plan and where its weak points might be.  I’ll be back tomorrow to offer some solutions to the common problems with disaster recovery plans that we see every day. 

 

Technorati Tags: Mavidea,backup,disaster,recovery,data,secure

Math is Fun!

I realize I don’t work for Microsoft anymore, but this was too neat to pass up sharing it.  (I would imagine you can expect future Microsoft posts, too.  Old habits and so on…)

One of my FaceBook friends just posted this as her status:

Can you solve this?  .30=(x-34.58)/x

I started to work it out (figuring she had a need for the answer), when I had a thought.  I pasted the equation into my Live search box and wah-lah – the answer appeared instantly!

.30=( x-34.58)/ x : x=49.4

I don’t know how often you need to solve for X in your daily lives, but it is nice to know Microsoft is there to help (or at least check your work if you insist on doing things the long way).

 

Technorati Tags: Live,Microsoft,search,math

Get a Haircut and Get a Real Job….

You might remember those words as a line from (and the title of) a George Thorogood and the Destroyers anthem.  I decided to take that advice to heart.  (I always get haircuts – but it was definitely time to stop sitting around on my can and find a real job; one can only participate in a limited number of “karaoke night” performances before it’s time to stop playing Rock Star and do some meaningful work.)  I knew I couldn’t work just anywhere – it’d have to be a place I knew I could make a difference (I still have the Blue Monster, after all).  And I have found such a place – some friends of mine (some old and some newer) got together and formed a company a couple years ago called Mavidea Technology Group, LLC.  They are a company specializing in IT Management and web services.  What, exactly, does IT Management mean?  I’m glad you asked.  Let me tell you all about it.

What is IT management?

Some of us are born geeks (and some of us have geekdom thrust upon us).  But many of us are not geeks and have no desire to be.  One of the things I saw quite often working for Microsoft were business owners who were IT people out of necessity – they simply didn’t have anyone else to handle the IT requirements of their business.  If they did outsource their IT, it was usually a break-fix scenario.  Something broke, they called their “IT guy” and got it fixed.  But computers are like cars – they run better (and breakdown less often) when they are properly maintained throughout their lives.  This is where IT Management comes in.  We have a dedicated team of technicians as well as some “whiz-bang” software which allows us to take care of networks remotely.  Back to the car analogy – imagine a service that not only tells you why your check engine light is on, but can also warn you when the light is about to come on and even fix the problem remotely so that it never does!  Sounds like a service worth having, doesn’t it?

What Constitutes IT Management?

There is a lot more involved with IT Management than simply watching for problems.  Those of you who deal with IT on a regular basis understand this.  It’s not just about fixing (or even preventing) problems, but also includes understanding what technological solutions are available to resolve issues you’re having (such as being able to work remotely, prevent unauthorized data access, and survive a data-losing disaster).  We work with our clients to provide all of these services, essentially becoming their IT department (or augmenting existing staff), from technicians all the way up to a “virtual Chief Technology Officer (CTO),” who provides strategic direction and vision customized to your infrastructure, industry, business needs and budget. 

Who is IT Management For?

IT management is a good fit for businesses of any size in any industry.  If your business relies on computers, IT Management is a good fit.  It takes the burden of worrying about technology off your plate and allows you to focus on your business.  It’s a great fit for any business who has a part-time IT person… that one person in the office who knows something about how PCs work and is now the de-facto IT department.  It’s a good fit for companies who are thinking about hiring an IT person – rather than hire one person, why not hire an entire team (probably for a much lower cost)?  It’s even a good fit for companies with an IT department.  In this scenario, we can augment the services being provided by the IT department.  Why have your highly paid technical team focused on the day-to-day drudgery of combing through event logs when you can have us do the “grunt work” an let them focus on strategic projects which can enhance the business’ overall productivity?

Mavidea is part of a national association of IT Management firms, which means we can support businesses all over the world.  (We currently have clients in several states as well as other countries!)  The fact that our headquarters is located in Bloomington, IL means that we can offer Bloomington pricing to businesses in markets where these services are much more expensive, which is a nice bonus.

How Do You Like it, Dan?

I love it.  The company is fantastic.  There is, however, a learning curve here.  I’ve been delivering presentations to larger audiences for the past few years, and talking one on one with clients is a bit of a new experience.  I’m finding it very rewarding so far, though, as I still get to help business owners be more efficient, productive, and profitable through the use of technology. 

I’m trying to decide how I will move forward with this blog in the future.  I don’t want to abandon it (because I love it), but I don’t want to turn it into a salesy-type blog, either.  (Actually, our CEO, Erik, has banned the word “sales” in our office, so this is probably the last time you will see it here, too.  We’re not salespeople, nor are we “account executives.”  We are advisers.  Our job is to try to find ways to help businesses be more stable, secure, efficient, productive, profitable, etc.  That’s interesting, too, but less of a difference between this position and my last – I wasn’t responsible for directly selling anything at Microsoft, either. 

I’m guessing that I will spend at least a few posts talking more about some of the things we do and the services we provide.  After that, who knows?  It will be a new adventure, so stay tuned.  :)  In the meantime, if I just convinced you to learn more about IT Management, feel free to post a comment or drop me an e-mail.  I’m happy to advise.  :)

 

Technorati Tags: Mavidea,IT Management,managed services,technology,small business