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Data Protection Webinar

Free Webinar- Trends in Hyper-V Data Protection

Joseph Hand WebinarImagine push-button recovery for Hyper-V virtual machines. Click… Done. In the old world of tape backups and file-based agents, that kind of speed wasn’t possible. Join Greg Shields of Concentrated Technology and Joe Hand of Dell AppAssure and learn how to be done with Hyper-V data protection.

When: Tuesday, August 7th @ 1:30 PM EDT

    • The solutions that give you push-button recovery – and those that won’t
    • Getting to Push-Button Recovery with any Virtual Machine
    • What you need, what to look for in Hyper-V data protection

*Limited to 1,000 attendees.

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Prompt Laser Printer Repair Pays Dividends

Prompt Laser Printer Repairs Pay Dividends in Rescued Productivity

Laser Printer RepairThe common saying that “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure” is definitely true when it comes to repair issues with the types of large, professional printers that are in common use in small- and medium-sized businesses.  One example of this principal in practice would be control panel issues with the 8500 models of Xerox Phaser printers.  Owners and managers of businesses with these printers frequently put off repairing them because there are certain work-arounds that can keep the printers functioning for quite some time.  In the long run, however, these tactics will usually cost the business more money.

The problem

With this line of printers, the computerized control panel display often experiences problems.  In a majority of cases, the defect manifests itself as a blank screen.  At times the text may be displayed upside-down or may be scrambled so that it makes no sense.  Sometimes it simply appears that certain characters are missing – as if pixels have burned out.

The supposed solution

Experiences with Windows computers and other electronics have tended to teach the modern worker that a reboot can frequently work wonders.  It is, therefore, almost natural for workers to simply try turning a printer off and on again when the control panel is behaving so strangely.  In the case of these printers, the strategy even appears to work; usually the display will come up in a normal state and the machine will function normally for one to two days.

Inevitably, however, the problem will recur.  This is where many workers make a serious mistake.  Rather than calling for printer services from a qualified technician, they simply begin turning off the machine every few days in order to restore the display to a normal state.

The real solution

Businesses that are using such a workaround will usually continue it until the display goes out completely.  At that point, the repair is likely to take some time because nothing can be done until a replacement control panel can be ordered and installed.  During this time, the printer will be completely non-functional due to the lack of any control panel whatsoever.  Had the business called for repair when the panel first began exhibiting erratic behavior, the machine could have potentially remained in use in the interim.

Putting off repair problems is not a real solution.  In most cases, it is far better to seek professional assistance for a laser printer as soon as a problem is apparent.

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Free Webinar – Trends in Hyper-V Data Protection

Greg ShieldsImagine push-button recovery for Hyper-V virtual machines. Click… Done. In the old world of tape backups and file-based agents, that kind of speed wasn’t possible. Join Greg Shields of Concentrated Technology and Joe Hand of Dell AppAssure and learn how to be done with Hyper-V data protection.

    • The solutions that give you push-button recovery – and those that won’t
    • Getting to Push-Button Recovery with any Virtual Machine
    • What you need, what to look for in Hyper-V data protection

Date & Time:

August 7, 2012

1:30 PM – 2:30 PM EDT (10:30 AM – 11:30 AM PDT)

This is not an event sponsored by Great Lakes Computer Corp., but one in which we believe you will find value in attending.

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New Technology Guide Helps You Calculate Cloud IT TCO

cloud computingYou know you’re moving to Cloud computing to save costs and enable your business to be more flexible. But do you really know how to calculate the TCO involved with moving your IT infrastructure and applications to the Cloud?

Discover how to plan for—and minimize—the costs of your strategic investments in Cloud computing with this informative technology guide from the IT business research analysts at Saugatuck Technology.

This detailed report offers a prescription for calculating the true costs of a Cloud service over time by examining:

    • Cloud technologies, infrastructure services, platforms, and hubs
    • Cloud business solutions
    • Cloud business services and operations

You’ll be best positioned to make the right decisions on Cloud IT solutions if you make your business case from a position of strength.

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Cloud IT Solutions Moving into the Mainstream

Cloud ComputingThe Movement into the Cloud

Not so very long ago, running applications or using storage in the cloud was still a highly experimental activity.  This may have caused some small- and medium-sized businesses to back away from the technology, preferring to wait for the time when it had been thoroughly tested and could be considered proven.  That day has now largely arrived; cloud computing is becoming a mainstream solution that businesses adopt in order to increase productivity while simultaneously lowering their IT support and infrastructure costs.

Cloud computing as a trade secret

Despite the mainstream status of cloud computing these days, however, there is relatively little reporting on the great success that many businesses are having with the cloud IT solutions they have implemented.  The reason for the relative silence is not terribly hard to understand; businesses that have successfully moved operations into the cloud generally regard their new IT paradigm much in the manner of proprietary information.  It gives them a competitive advantage that they are just as happy to keep to themselves.  By some estimates, for every successful cloud computing story that is released in the press, there are at least a hundred more “unsung tales” of the cloud helping a business to achieve a leaner, more profitable profile.

Cloud computing security remains a significant concern for businesses that have not yet adopted the technology.  When it comes to cloud security, the first thing that SMB owners and managers need to consider is the issue of private versus public cloud.  These two great realms of off-site computing present very different profiles in terms of cloud security.

Public versus private: cloud security issues

With a public cloud, individual companies have almost no input at all into security considerations.  They subscribe to a service and access it as needed to process workflow, but have no access to the interior workings of the service itself.  A private cloud, however, is different.  In a private cloud paradigm, the CIO can maintain excellent control over the programs loaded onto the cloud.  This is because the private cloud is run for the exclusive use of a single company; that company can, therefore, greatly direct how the cloud services will operate.  In a public cloud serving hundreds or thousands of separate companies, no single company can run the show.

For more information about cloud computing security or other issues related to this now-mainstream technology, talk to a cloud IT solutions specialist today.

If you are interested in learning more about Cloud IT please download our Whitepaper: 7 Myths about Data Backup & Disaster Recovery in the Cloud, by clicking below:

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