No one is perfect. Mistakes are made. Some are big; some are small; most importantly, many can be easily averted. Technology in particular is a place where easily avoidable mistakes happen every day, so here are a few things you should look at within your organization.

Skipping (or not doing) Backups

Backups are about the most important thing you can do to protect your business. Stuff happens. No matter whatever else you do to protect your data, stuff happens. Cyber theft, ransomware, fire, flood, weather, employee error. Stuff happens. As a managed IT support provider, we consider it so important that we have written a whole white paper on the subject, and we STRONGLY suggest you read it. We also have more information on our website. Then call us so we can provide a complimentary IT network security assessment

Skipping Updates

Big mistake! It’s a war out there with hackers and software developers hard at work fighting with each other. The hackers are trying to break into your network (and everyone else’s) by seeking out vulnerabilities and weaknesses in the programs, while the software people work like beavers patching and fixing so they can protect their customers, including you. If you aren’t taking advantage of the hard work they do by installing their updates, you really have no one to blame but yourself when things go haywire. Again, the IT pros at a qualified managed IT support company will monitor, manage and maintain your IT network, including 24 x 7 installation of patches and updates.

Understanding What You Are Agreeing To

We all do it. We see this mountain of text that we are supposed to read before we hit “OK” or “Next”, or “Continue.” Admittedly, most of the time there is nothing noxious in there, especially when dealing with large reputable companies…most of the time. However, by not reading what is in front of you, you could be agreeing to terms and conditions you may not like, or may potentially put your company, or at least your computer, at risk. You may inadvertently be giving permission to download bloatware and/or other software you really don’t want on your device. Some downloadable software will have a blanket “I Agree” box at the bottom, but will give you the option within the document to opt-out of these downloads. If you skip to the bottom, you miss this opportunity. Our thinking: it’s always better to have your IT pro do the installs, anyway.

Surge Protection & Uninterruptable Power Supply (UPS)

Electricity is great, can’t live without it, but it is also inconsistent. It goes out. It surges. And surges can cause a lot of damage. Many surges are caused when lightning hits power lines. The lines may not be damaged, but the increased electrical flow can fry computer components in a split second. The easiest way to avoid this is by simply using surge protectors. What’s that? You have them throughout your company? Wanna bet! You probably did at some point, but as time goes by, you added new equipment, or someone needed a protector and the only place they found one was at someone else’s work station. It’s not uncommon to do a survey of a growing company and find 10% of equipment unprotected.

If you want to take it a step further, use an uninterruptable power supply (UPS). In addition to protecting your equipment, they will supply a brief amount of battery power so you can save your work. Note, however, that most UPSs are not intended for long-term use, but they will give you enough time to finish and save what you are doing.

Not Working With an Experienced, Qualified IT Support Provider…

…like DynaSis. We have been providing managed IT service in Atlanta for small to mid-sized businesses for more than a quarter century, so if you would like to speak with us, give us a call at 678-373-0716.

5 Ways Managed IT Support Benefits Your Business

Here at DynaSis, we have been providing managed IT support for small to mid-sized businesses in the Atlanta Metro area since 1992, so we may be a bit prejudiced about the value of such a service, but this bias comes from seeing first hand the benefits that our clients have realized. Here is what we have found:

Effective Management of IT Costs

When you manage your own IT network, you have to be prepared for unexpected costs at any time. This can include needing expertise that your in-house person or small team doesn’t possess, equipment failure, employee turnover, etc. When you are working with a qualified managed IT service provider, however, they will have people readily available with the training necessary to handle virtually any problem that may arise, and at fixed monthly costs. Since they take on the responsibility of keeping your infrastructure up and running, it behooves them to make sure everything is in tip-top shape at al time. Truly a win-win situation.

Training

Technology today is moving at lightning speed and the only way anyone can keep up-to-date is through ongoing training. This costs you money and means your IT person (people) will be out of the office at seminars and even out-of-town classes. If they are not, you run the risk of them not being prepared. When you engage the right managed IT support company in Atlanta, they make sure that their people are up-to-date and they can do it better because that training benefits many clients. This way you know that you have the availability of experienced specialists.!

Up-To-Date Technology

Along with keeping training current, your IT support provider will be better able to make sure your technology, including all-important security protections, are the most current and most effective available. They are also in constant touch with the best IT vendors in the business and together with your staff, can implement the projects that can help move your business forward. (See our White Paper on A Digital Business in a Digital World.)

Concentrate on Your Business

Your time is valuable and as important as IT is these days, and as time-consuming as IT considerations can be, you will find it is a great relief to be able to take this concern “off your plate.” The right IT company can effective function as your CIO and/or CTO. Until your company has reached the point where it makes sense to staff these expensive positions, the team at your support provider will very effectively fill the bill.

Support: 24 x 7 x 365

Effective IT Support has to function around the clock. Your employees are in the office, working from home, on the road, and need support when they need support. Cyber intrusions also take place around the clock and equipment fails around the clock. Can your company really rely on people who, as well-meaning as they may be, are in the office from 9 to 6, then hard to reach? Or taking a sick day? Or on vacation? While we may have saved this for last n this list, it is by no means the least important. The right, qualified IT service provider will monitor, manage and maintain your IT infrastructure 24 / 7 / 365 because in today’s environment this is all-important.

So if you have ever considered working with a managed IT support company, or would just like to start thinking about it, give us a call. No pressure. No obligation. Just an open and frank discussion. 678-373-0716.

Cloud Migration Strategies for Small to Mid-Sized Businesses

While we recognize the relevancy of keeping data storage on premises for many small to mid-sized businesses, we also recognize that for many other companies, moving data to the cloud is often the next logical step in computing. This migration can lead to cost savings through workload reductions as well as capital equipment costs. Add to this unlimited scalability and the ability of your employees to access data from anywhere, at home, on the road, even on vacation, along with increased network protection, and the logic starts to add up.

But making the move isn’t necessarily the easiest thing in the world. Cloud migration has great benefits for many companies, and is something we believe you should at least consider, but in order to make the implementation flow smoothly, you need to plan this out. Here are our thoughts on making this happen:

Cloud Infrastructure

In broad terms, there are three types of cloud infrastructure that can be examined.

Public: These include well-known companies such as Microsoft Azure, Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Google Cloud Compute. All three have tremendous scalability but also provide their clients with less control…you have to follow their rules. If you have to deal with strict government regulations, this could become problematic.

Private: While private clouds will give you more control, which can also give you better performance and even a higher level of security, your in-house IT team and/or your managed IT service provider will have to remain involved. Many companies have determined that this is the option that works best for them because of the control and security issues.

Hybrid: Hybrid systems, where some data and functionality reside in the cloud and some within your own facility, are also a common choice. A qualified managed IT support company can help you make this determination.

The DynaSis Business Cloud can be implemented as a public, private or a hybrid solution. Contact us for an analysis.

Data Backup & Disaster Recovery

Nothing in the IT world is more critical than effective, professional data back-up and recovery preparedness. Stuff happens. Brilliant cyber criminals are at work 24 x 7 figuring out how to steal, destroy, and/or lockdown your data files. Equipment crashes. Fires happen. Floods happen. Tornadoes and hurricanes happen. Employee theft and destruction happen. Your customers may be sympathetic to your problems when these things occur, but they fully and rightly expect you to be back up and running just as soon as possible. You need to review and understand the service level agreements (SLAs) provided by your service providers. You and your managed IT support provider, or your in-house IT team, need to set proper recovery point objectives (RPOs) and recovery time objectives (RTOs), and understand how these will be met.

Data Governance & Security

Cloud migration is a disruptive process. Please don’t think that you can totally eliminate the disruption. You can’t. But you can manage it. You are also going to have to accept that giving up some level of control of your data is not necessarily a bad thing. If you are a large company with a large in-house IT team, you probably have a number of individuals on whom you can rely for network security. A small to mid-sized company, however, even with its own small in-house IT team, cannot afford the level of support and security that the right IT support company, along with the right level of cloud storage and data backup, can provide. If you carefully research and choose the right partners, you will soon take comfort in the services they provide.

Cost

Many companies delay looking into cloud solutions, or managed IT services, because they believe these will increase their expenses. Here at DynaSis, we almost always find that our clients’ costs are less than they were previously spending, plus they have all the benefits started above, along with having a tremendous operational burden lifted.

………………

At DynaSis we have been providing managed IT support to Atlanta’s business community for more than 25 years. If you would like us to provide you with a complementary IT Network and Security Assessment, please give us a call at 678-373-0716 or visit us at www.DynaSis.com.

Everyone has things in life that they would rather ignore…letters from the IRS, toothaches, creepy crawly sounds in the attic…but the reality is that these things rarely get better by ignoring them. Your company’s IT problems fall into the same category. Like the rest, if you don’t fix them, they will probably get worse.

Here is a partial list of problems you might have encountered recently and then we will talk about why they need to be addressed promptly:

• Has your network gone down, taking your email, phone system and internet connections along for the ride?
• Do your printers and other devices give you trouble for no apparent reason?
• Do desktops and laptops freeze when you access (or try to access) specific programs? Does the same happen with servers?
• Are you getting slow performance from your desktops and/or mobile devices?
• Do you find that files that are corrupted and cannot be opened are also unrecoverable from your backups?
• Do your workstations “blink” off and on after a power surge or failure?
• Are the same viruses and spam reoccurring over and over?

Does this sound familiar? But this is the short list. There is no question we could double or triple it. The point is that these are little signs of trouble that business owners and managers tend to put aside. Your people start and restart computers, open and close applications, or develop other little workarounds, all because they don’t want to confront the underlying issues. And they applaud themselves, as do you, for solving the problem. But they really haven’t.

This is a band-aid approach and it can work…until it doesn’t. It could be that these issues don’t seem big enough to worry about, or it could be that management just doesn’t want to spend money on finding a solution, so the warning signs go ignored. But wasting time and annoying your employees aren't the real issues. Taking these seemingly innocuous actions can be very dangerous because they ignore the fact that there can be serious problems that are triggering these minor symptoms, and you can end up with equipment failure, data loss, expensive repairs or be forced to replace expensive equipment that could have been saved.

We said earlier that these early warning technology problems are similar to IRS letters, creatures in the attic, and toothaches. How? Take care of them when they first show themselves, and you will be avoiding real headaches down the road. If your company hasn’t had a professional IT support and security assessment lately, at DynaSis it’s complimentary and you will learn a whole lot about your IT infrastructure and how fixing small problems can prevent bigger ones down the road. Give us a call at 678-373-0716 or visit our website www.DynaSis.com.

Developing Your Company’s BYOD (Bring Your Own Device to Work) Policy

There was a time not that long ago, when every human being around you wasn’t carrying a cell phone, when a child of 12 didn’t assume that he/she was entitled to the latest and greatest device, or when, if given a cell phone (or a beeper) by an employer, employees understood that they had to follow certain rules. Of course, as personal cell phone use grew, it meant that, more and more, people were carrying around multiple devices, and given the size of many smartphones these days, that would be rather burdensome.

Today most employers realize that allowing employees to use their own phones and other devices for business is a benefit for both sides, but it can also be problematic. If the employer chooses to pay for a portion of the monthly cellphone bill, does this make the device a “company” asset? Does the company have any control over it at all? Some companies have taken that approach and demand the right to use the GPS application in a privately owned phone to track employees’ whereabouts, especially if these people spend time on the road.

Perhaps more importantly, personal privacy as well as corporate security issues can arise when these devices are synched to the employer’s network. Larger firms often have BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) to work policies, but smaller companies, as often as not, will leave it to chance. Surveys of this size business prove the point: 88% of employees are doing at least some business on their own devices, indicating the potential for disastrous consequences, yet only 17% of these companies have a BYOD policies to deal with the situation. Another 29% have plans to implement BYOD security protocols in the future, but experience tells us that, ultimately, many of these plans will never be executed.

We believe this is important enough to share with you some guidelines for establishing your company’s own policy. Smartphones can be hacked and they can provide cyber crime entry into your IT infrastructure. We encourage you to do it now, not after your first cyber security attack or data loss. These are our suggestions:

1: First of all, your company’s BYOD policies should be in writing. In smaller companies, it is not unusual for policies like this to be verbal and never be committed to “paper”. In today’s work-world, with telecommuting and the use of home office equipment becoming commonplace, clearing defining employee responsibilities and employer rights is critical.

2: Allowed Devices: Clearly define what devices you will allow employees to use for work.

3: Data Deletion: You must be able to delete any and all company data on a remote basis without the owner’s permission. With the right mobile device management application, this is not at all difficult to accomplish, and you can do so while leaving the device’s owner’s contacts, personal photos, music, etc., untouched.

4: Employee privacy: People who use their devices for work must understand that while you have no desire to intrude on their personal lives, your access to these devices might also give you access to their images, email, texts and other information residing in these devices. As an employer, you have an obligation to protect the privacy of your employees, as well as protecting your company.

5: Tracking: As we stated above, some organizations use the GPS tracking applications within their employees’ smartphones to track their daily progress. When this fits into your business plans, this must be fully understood by the employee and, again, you have a duty to protect privacy.

We strongly encourage you to start the process of creating your own company BYOD to Work policy. If you need some assistance, please give us a call.

DynaSis has been providing managed IT service in Atlanta to the small to mid-sized business community for more than 25 years. Whether your company is looking for total managed IT support, ranging from 24 x 7 x 365 helpdesk, to the monitoring, managing and maintaining of IT networks, or designing and installation of IT infrastructure, or if you are looking for one or more specific services to assist your in-house IT team, we are here to help. Give us a call today at 678-373-0716, or visit us at www.DynaSis.com.

Making Technology Work for Your Company

Technology has become pervasive. So much so that we like to say that today every company is a technology company. Every one uses technology. And innovations come so fast and furiously that it seems like it’s a full-time job keeping up. Just how much can the average business executive know about network security, cloud computing, servers, ransomware, processors, routers or firewalls? There is so much information out there, so much to know, that anyone trying to learn it all would spend years catching up. That’s why companies like ours exist, but there are still some things you can and should do on your own to be more efficient, to make sure your network is secure, and eliminate the tech logjam that way too many companies deal with. Here are easy steps:

1: Employee training. This is an important protection that is much too easy to overlook. “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it,” is an attitude that may work in plumbing or highway repair, but not in technology. Did you know that the majority of infrastructure problems occur when employees click on something in an email? Or that productivity is lost when employees are embarrassed to ask questions about how to get the most out of the applications they are using, like Word or Excel? As a business owner or executive, you need to make sure enough time is taken to train your people on their technology. Everyone who applies for a job these days claims expertise in Office, or Office 365, but most only know the fundamentals and can be wasting time for years to come.

2: Keep your equipment up-to-date. I know. You really don’t want to spend money on new equipment when the old stuff seems to be working fine. But once equipment manufacturers stop supporting older models of hardware and software, you open yourself up to a wide variety of security problems and failures. Outdated security is a prime target of cyber-criminals as they know that the manufacturers are no longer providing security updates.

The amount of time wasted on waiting for slow machines is also astonishing. If you lose 10 minutes a day, which may not seem like much, that comes to 43+ hours a year, or a full week of work lost, not to mention the frustration level of your employees.

3: Securing your network. No-brainer here. But many small businesses assume that because they are small, they are safe. Nothing could be further from the truth. Cyber criminals prefer going after small businesses because they know these businesses are less likely to have the protections in place that keep them out! Various recent studies have shown that as much as 43% of cyber attacks these days are against small businesses. If you aren’t sure how to secure your network, you need to be working with a qualified managed IT support company.

4: Security patches. This is one that many businesses do not keep up with. Patches are generated by software manufacturers when a flaw or weakness is discovered. These flaws and weaknesses are what are explored by cyber-criminals to attack a company’s infrastructure to either steal data or install ransomware. The trick is to get these patches installed BEFORE your network is attacked. This is another area for which meeting with an experienced managed IT support company may make sense.

5: Passwords. If you read our blogs and white papers, you know that this is something we preach about regularly. There is good reason. It’s way too easy to use a simple password over and over but the downside could be catastrophic. Here are two schools of thought on passwords:

A: Use a combination of upper case, lower case, number and characters…but they should not relate back to you. For example, fTr$#u& would be considered strong. mYbDayApr14 is not. Criminals use algorithms that can process thousands of variations of your birthday in seconds.

B: New thinking says that it is better to use a string of words that have no relation to each other, but that you can easily remember, for example, housebaseballrabbit or bathtubcrownextreme. The number of possibilities for 26 x 26 x 26 for 20 letters, is 766 nonillion possibilities (30 zeros), and that becomes unmanageable for the cybercriminal, yet is easy for you to remember.

6: Backup your data. Nothing is more important. In fact, we recently wrote a whole White Paper on Data Backup & Disaster Recovery, so rather than repeat ourselves, we strongly suggest you take a few minutes to read it.

Those are six important steps you can take to make sure your technology is working for you, not against you. Here’s one more: speak with a managed IT service provider that can offer you the services you need to make sure your network is safe and secure and your employees are functioning at peak performance. At DynaSis, we have been providing managed IT service in Atlanta to small and mid-sized companies of all types for more than 25 years. We will provide you with an extensive complimentary infrastructure and security assessment, and a review of the services we believe will be both cost effective and enable you to take full advantage of the technology that can power your business forward. Call us today at 678-373-0716, or visit us at www.DynaSis.com

We have the opportunity to speak an almost daily basis about why people are concerned about out-sourcing some or all of their IT support to a managed services provider (MSP). Sometimes it is as simple as concern over giving up control (truly not an issue), while other times they have clear, but misguided, notions about some aspect of managed support, and we are going to address some of those here:

Concern #1: Outsourcing is more expensive. While this was never really true, with the use of cloud computing it is even less so. Not that you need to be in the cloud for out-sourcing to be cost effective, but being in the cloud shifts a good part of your expense from capital to operational, which can help your bottom line. Additionally, competent managed it support companies have learned how to package their services so that clients can either choose full support, or select certain services.

Concern #2: Outsourcing will make us less secure. This is something we hear fairly often, and on a couple of fronts. First about the cloud: How can data that is stored in someone else’s facility be more secure than when stored in our own? It’s simple. The facilities that your data will be stored in have levels of security that no small to mid-sized business can match. Not even close. We’re not just talking about cyber-security, which has more to do with your IT support provider (we’re great at that, too) than with the storage facility, but your office cannot compete with a Tier 3 or 4 data facility that is weather proof, theft proof, fire proof, earthquake proof, has fail-over capabilities to remote cities, multiple internet channels, long-term generator capacity, etc.

If you do choose to keep your records in-house, still a viable option, your MSP will be better equipped to make sure that your equipment is functioning properly and the latest and greatest protections are in place. This includes cyber-security.

Concern #3: Service levels will suffer. After all, who will take better care of you than your own in-house people? Your managed IT service provider will. Is your team actually monitoring, managing and maintaining your IT infrastructure 24 / 7 / 365? Not likely. But the right MSP will do just that. Their goal is to find minor issues and fix them before they become major problems, and most of this type of work is done overnight and on weekends, so your workflow is not disturbed. They will also have a helpdesk team to deal with immediate situations, such as lost passwords, disconnected printers, etc. As an MSP, we are constantly running the most up-to-date diagnostics on our clients infrastructures and work-stations. And, very importantly, the right MSP will also have a team of experienced IT pros that have the diverse cumulative knowledge base needed to handle virtually any situation that may arise.

Concern #4: Outsourcing only works for large companies. Actually, the reverse is true. While outsourcing remains a great option for enterprise level companies, this is particularly true of the SMB, as there is no way that a small company can cost-effectively provide itself with the same level of service and security that it can get from a good managed IT service.  Companies like ours are tuned in daily to the major hardware and software manufacturers, as well as cyber-security experts. A small team, try as they might, simply does not have the resources to provide this on the same level.

At DynaSis, we have been providing this high level of care and service to Atlanta’s small to mid-sized business community for more than 25 years. Our full team of seasoned IT professionals is here to keep your company’s IT infrastructure safely and securely functioning at peak performance. Give us a call at 678-373-0716 or visit us at www.DynaSis.com.

Level 1 Help Desk Technicians

Slow tech support when you’ve got a computer or printer issue is rather frustrating. Your employee, and maybe a co-worker or two who are trying to help, have his/her productivity come to a grinding halt. Your employee is unhappy, and so are you, because it’s costing you money. Even if your company has a small full-time IT team, someone on that team, who could be spending time on truly important things like patches, updates, backups, etc., is spending time trying to figure out how to change Joe’s password.

This is the type of problem that should be handled on a help desk level, not by your IT administrator, but this is what happens when there are no alternatives to your high-level staff. These are events that should not fall on the shoulders of over-worked and stressed out IT admins.

They say don’t present a problem unless you have a solution. Here is ours:

Supplemental Help Desk Support (like that provided by DynaSis) and here’s why:

1: Your In-House IT team, even if it is a single person, should spend their time on keeping your mission-critical systems up and running at peak performance. Time spent fixing things that can be handled over the phone (and the vast majority of problems can) are counter-productive.

2: Increased Productivity: Our DynaSis Help Desk technicians have the experience and expertise to get your people back to work as quickly as possible. We have a full team of Level 1 technicians who can also rapidly escalate problems when necessary. No waiting for the IT admin who had a long list to get to…or went home for the day…or is on vacation!

3: Cost Effective: Our flat monthly fees are based on each company’s needs, without having to hire additional full-time staff.

4: Single Pont of Contact: No wondering who to call (or try to find). Every one of your employees will have the ability to call our help desk directly, or create tickets, so they can quickly get the help they need to get right back to work. BTW, Our help desk is available with live support 24 x 7 x 365 for those employees who like to work from home at odd hours, or are traveling in other times zones. (People sometimes ask: what do your overnight people do when they are not on the phone? Answer: they are monitoring, managing and maintaining the IT infrastructures of our clients that require full support, not just help desk.)

5: Brainpower: Technology today is so complex that it is impossible for anyone to know everything. By being part of the DynaSis team, our help desk technicians have access to our entire team of highly trained and experienced IT professionals. This is a tremendous asset to you, because no matter how terrific your IT administrator may be, even if he/she commands a team of two or three, there may be any number of things that they have not come across, or have not been trained in. Although you may be using only our help desk service, because we also provide full IT support for many companies here in Atlanta, we are fully knowledgeable in an extremely wide range of IT subjects.  Our people are constantly learning about the latest in technology and are equipped to use that knowledge for your support.

If you have been thinking about managed IT service, whether you are looking for help desk only, full support including Cloud solutions, or anything in between, give us a call at 678-373-0716.

Don't think this doesn't happen...it does!

You may not know it but the US Department of Commerce has a bureau called the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST for short) that developed the password standards we have been using for quite some time. The one sure thing you can count on from technology, however, is that things never stand still. After gathering and analyzing a serious amount of data, and looking at the fluid and evolving world of cybercrime, NIST’s researchers have come up with some new thoughts about what techniques work and which do not in terms of safe passwords. As a managed IT support company, we pay close attention to their reporting and as we now know, much of what the public has been assuming were best practices in password security, may not be that way anymore. Here are the newest recommendations:

Passwords 8 characters long are now the minimum, although MUCH longer is suggested. Shorter passwords are just too easy to crack. The researchers found that length of passwords are the single most important factor is keeping them safe.

Hang up those %s, and #s and @s. Yes, most websites these days insist upon you using “special characters”, but the NIST folks discovered that they just don’t help. To the cybercriminal, that special character is just another letter to run through the cycle…and they make it much harder to remember your passwords.

Use multiple words. Single long words (antibacterial, hippotamus, influenza) are not as good as several unconnected words strung together (cantaloupegluenose, concreteparrotphone) work better. These are called “passphrases” instead of passwords. Super long words like FLOCCINAUCINIHILIPILIFICATION may work, but then you have to remember them…good luck.

The use of sequential or repetitive characters is still a no-no. 1234abcd, qwertyuiop…seriously? The bad guys figured out how to get past those a long time ago.

Using your username, or the name of your website, as a password is too easy to guess. Yes, it might add complexity and length, but cybercrime algorithms will see through them.

“Hints” just make it easier to figure things out. Mom’s maiden name, daughter’s birthday…it’s just too easy to steal public and non-public records and let complex programs piece things together.

This one will surprise you: your passwords do NOT need to be changed all that often UNLESS you think you clicked on a suspicious link or if your computer got infected, etc., etc. Why not change them often? Well, changing them in and of itself isn’t a problem, except that when people do, they tend to begin to take the easy way out and make them shorter, or similar, and that defeats the purpose. Example: first password: n#we$12, next time: n#we$13, etc.

Use a good password manager. If you really want to do it right, use a password manager. As a managed IT support company, we strongly recommend Kasaya’s AuthAnvil, which provides complete identity and access management solutions, including credential management along with password auditing and reporting. This will give you complete control and you can rest assured knowing that the “keys to the kingdom” are safe and secure.

As always, we are here to assist. Give us a call at 678-373-0716

if you have any questions, visit our website: www.DynaSis.com.

Iris recognition

To get a good sense of technology of the future, think back 20 years. You probably already had computers in your office. But if you needed even the smallest shred of information in the middle of the night, you had to drive back to your office or you were stymied. If that ever happened to you, at the time you were probably thinking that you were better off when everything was stored in a paper folder in your briefcase. Well, we’ve made a lot of progress since then, but with so much progress, with so many products and devices sitting on real and virtual shelves, that it’s hard to know what’s best for your company.

Among these advances are Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) that gave you access to your information from your home computer. Now that capability has expanded and we can access all our data through a phone or tablet…assuming your network is set up properly. And thanks to Microsoft, we can also use Word, Excel and PowerPoint on these small devices. But this can be a potential problem as our devices tend to morph into each other…laptops, tablets, phones, cameras…many are performing the same functions. We have to be careful that in the future, this convergence into simper devices and/or more advanced applications doesn’t come back to bite us.

Here is an example of how this can happen if companies are not prepared for this convergence:

There are companies that went straight from Windows XP to Windows 10, bypassing Windows Vista, Windows 7 and Windows 8. There is nothing wrong with making that transition providing the company provides proper and adequate training on the upgraded application. For those companies that did not, workflow came to a screeching halt. While it can be expensive for a company to always upgrade to the latest version of Windows, it is much easier on employees to move to each new version (baby steps) as it is released. (As an aside, as an IT Support provider, this is one reason we recommend Windows 365, which functions online and is always updated automatically with the latest and greatest, at no additional cost.)

Looking towards the future, we expect that the day will come when your data is in the cloud protected by encryption that can only be unlocked by your DNA or a chip that is actually embedded in you. It can already be done through iris recognition and retinal scanning.

Because of these advancements in primary technology, we will also see tremendous improvements in supportive technology. For example, early laptops came with about 30 minutes of battery power. Not much compared to the eight hours some provide today. But expect batteries that will last days, not hours.

Internet speeds have grown from your old dial-up of 56kb to up to 1 GB (not actually available yet, but coming). That’s 18,000 times faster. There are already 20 MB business internet speeds available. That’s still 3,600 times faster than dial-up. And soon you will be able to recharge your devices without having to plug them in. Wait! You can already do that with some simply by laying them on a charging pad. But you will soon it won’t be necessary to do even that. The electric power will flow through the airwaves.

As a managed IT support provider, we keep on top of all these developments, sometimes long before they are available so we can be prepared to prepare you. Over the next few months, we will be posting blogs about upcoming technology in many fields, so keep on reading!