Verification Mode

One of the worst positions for a network administrator is being in charge of data restoration when the backups are corrupted. A good backup application has a checksum process that verifies the backups are copied without errors. A checksum is an error-checking process that checks the bits of a file before and after a transfer. If the bits match after the transfer, the backup software assumes the file is not corrupted.

Backup Scheduling

Unless you want to press a button to start the backup process, you need a backup software application that gives you the option of scheduling. A scheduler is set to back up files during business downtime. You can schedule backups on vital drives that can’t be used during normal business hours. Scheduling backups is a convenience for the business and the network administrator.

Security

Having a backup in one location on the network increases the risk of stolen data. A good backup software secures the backups to protect personal and corporate information. Security is implemented on the backup directories as well as the software itself. No one but the administrator should be able to access the software. For an added benefit, you can choose a backup software that encrypts some data.

These three features will improve the convenience and effectiveness of any disaster recovery plan. Backup integrity is an integral part of a business that needs quick recovery after hardware failure on a server. When choosing the right backup application, ensure you purchase a package that supports the features necessary for the business network architecture.

Provided by Jim Horton - North Star Strategic IT
Your Denver source for IT computer support, network consulting and planning, voice over IP (VoIP) solutions, and so much more. Cisco Partner - VoIP and Unified Communications Microsoft Partner - Small Business Server Specialists Schedule time with one of our highly qualified network technology specialists

Three Must-have Features for Backup Software

This process usually involves selecting a mass mailing service with a high rate of successful email deliveries, and lower ‘bounce rate.’ This service then sends a designated amount of emails promoting your product or service to random email account holders, and some of the recipients may become potential customers to your company.

However, this might be too much of a risk to take since, inspite of their claims, these services may not actually possess an extensive number of valid email addresses, hence the deliverability problem, which means that even if your mass mailing service provider sends the predetermined number of emails, the chances that they will reach potential customers or generate interest are extremely low.

Instead, you might want to follow an alternative internet marketing solution that allows you direct contact with your clientele as well as potential customers through a few simple steps that you yourself can carry out without having to go through an intermediary service.

Start by selecting a target group, or a particular set of customers who have a specific need for the product or service that you offer, and make sure your marketing techniques appeal to them.

You can lay the foundation for a symbiotic relationship between you and your customers by winning their interest and trust in your business through sales and adequate after sale service. Once you have an established set of customers, you can begin the wider publicity process.

Email deliverability, however, continues to be a hindrance even if you decide to handle the marketing process yourself, since you may be faced with innumerable spam blocking software in attempting to interact with existing clients as well as new ones. To get around this problem, consider setting up a private mailing network, which provides you with a way of blocking out spam while simultaneously having the opportunity to interact directly with your customers through the internet.

Make use of your mailing list of your customer base, as well as the database of your registered online customers and provide your valued customers with personalized email accounts within your existing domain. You can also design the mailing accounts to bear your business domain name so that your business becomes an obvious part of their online identity. This account can then be used by your customers for all purposes. Employ specialized help to carry out the function of linking up your network to whichever email server you customer uses. This simplifies matters a lot for your customers since they can now receive their personal emails directly from their default email service.

This will also allow you to have the added advantage of having exclusive and uninterrupted access to these email accounts, and the option of contacting your customers anytime you need.

Adopt these straightforward steps to help eliminate the uncertainty regarding email deliverability that comes with employing mass mailing services.

Provided by Jim Horton - North Star Strategic IT
Your Denver source for IT computer support, network consulting and planning, voice over IP (VoIP) solutions, and so much more. Cisco Partner - VoIP and Unified Communications Microsoft Partner - Small Business Server Specialists Schedule time with one of our highly qualified network technology specialists

Take Control of the Email Deliverability Problem

Click Clacking Noises

The hard drive consists of platters and a readable arm and head that move back and forth, reading the information as you request it. Inside the hard drive’s cover, it looks like a mini record player. However, the difference is that the head of a hard drive does not actually touch the platters in a working hard drive. Mechanical errors from moving parts inside the motor eventually start to fail, and the hard drive makes noises as the head moves. This is an important sign to backup your software.  Mechanical errors on hard drives cannot be fixed.  Some companies promise to repair the motors and heads, but without the thousands of dollars for a clean room, the data is likely to be corrupted.

Constant Freezing

If your computer never seems to process anything without freezing, it’s a sign of bad sectors on the hard drive.  This happens because the cached information from the operating system may be on a bad location on the hard drive.  As parts of the hard drive start to fail, the operating system may warn you and redistribute data across the platters. Unfortunately, if the sectors that go bad happen to be the boot record, your computer won’t be able to start up next time you restart the machine.

Errors During Boot Sessions

Several checks are done by the hardware and the software of your computer when you boot up the machine.  If hard drive errors are found, operating systems like Windows will prompt you to run programs to find bad sectors and fix errors. While this may mask the overall problem for a while, it only serves as a warning that it’s time to backup your data before the hard drive completely fails.  Allow the operating system to redistribute data and save important information as soon as it completes.

Intermittent File Corruption

Hard drives that begin to fail can’t properly save and display data. If you open files that are randomly corrupt, it can be a sign of bad sectors on the hard drive.  Information about data is spread over the drive, so if a sector fails, the data for a file may corrupt.  Occasionally, this information is recoverable.

If any of these warning signs happen on your computer, the first step is to save the data on another hard drive, a network drive, or even a USB drive.  There are also portable hard drives available at your local computer store. It’s important not to procrastinate when warning signs begin.  Save your data as quickly as possible.

Provided by Jim Horton - North Star Strategic IT
Your Denver source for IT computer support, network consulting and planning, voice over IP (VoIP) solutions, and so much more. Cisco Partner - VoIP and Unified Communications Microsoft Partner - Small Business Server Specialists Schedule time with one of our highly qualified network technology specialists

The Imminent Death of a Hard Drive

The Benefits of Unified Communications for Business

The benefits of unified communications for business are well worth the time and have a minimal expense to incorporate these changes into the company’s existing telecommunications system. Streamlining existing services, reducing hardware, and integrating the network system can easily lead to a single unified communications framework. In turn, this new framework will provide instantaneous benefits that will promote the growth and success of the company.

Unified Communications Lead to Increased Productivity

Businesses that take the initiative to modify their infrastructure to consolidate current communications systems will benefit immediately from a decrease in the downtime that can be so damaging to the overall productivity of the company. This will also enhance employee morale as well as individual employee productivity.

Unified Communications Lead to a Decrease in Problems

Transforming everyday operations regarding communications will lead to fewer intermittent errors as well as recurring problems. With a simplified telecommunications infrastructure, the potential for problems is greatly reduced. Fewer types of hardware are required, which also decreases the potential for incompatibility.

Unified Communications Lead to Reduced Cost

Modifying the existing telecommunications infrastructure to combine both telephone and Internet systems provides the best of both worlds. It also offers a reduction in the cost not only to set up a company’s system of telecommunication but also to run the system on a daily basis. Data systems and telecommunications systems contain many redundant infrastructures along with parallel ones. This is mainly because they are two comparable structures with the same basic purpose as their goal- communication.

Implementing Unified Communications

Effectively managing all aspects of communication within your business is not an activity that is going to happen overnight or without planning. It takes careful planning that includes a comprehensive blending of the computing aspect of a company along with the telecommunication aspect. This blending strategy creates a management system that encompasses multimedia, messaging, cross media, and phone calls. Through unified communications, differences are broken down and reduced while similarities are joined together to promote the growth of a business with a finely tuned system of operations.

Enhanced Benefits of Unified Communications for Businesses

One of the immediate benefits of incorporating unified communications for businesses is the transformation from steady, reliable communication methods to a system of quick, efficient, and consistently reliable communications. This change from outdated telecommunication methods to up-to-date ones will lead to greater profitability for the company.

Additionally, the work space is simplified and streamlined since two separate communication systems are transformed into a single entity. Switching voice applications from the phone system to IP capability allows employees to utilize the equipment that they have been using for data communications. This strategy simplifies the workplace by successfully combining mobile operations, e-mail, instant messaging services, and phone service into an integrated network that utilizes a single cohesive structure. Employees can generate greater quantity with fewer tools.

The domino effect takes over and greater productivity in one area quickly blossoms into greater productivity throughout the business. This newly incorporated unified communication system within the corporation provides lower overhead costs and greater profits along with refined communications. Administrative workloads are reduced accordingly as well, freeing up essential personnel who can now enhance productivity and growth in additional areas.

The Need for Unified Communication Infrastructure

Businesses must remain flexible enough to keep up with technological advances, especially in the area of communications. In fact, mandated regulatory compliance often calls for critical changes within a company’s communication needs. A streamlined and unified infrastructure will facilitate these changes.

Since the IT infrastructure is often the center of a company’s day-to-day operations, it is critical to find new and better strategies to improve it. Unifying the equipment needed to provide employees with its communication services on a daily basis will promote the forward growth of the business. These services include but are not limited to e-mail, faxes, Internet access, voice mail, desktop phone services, Interactive Voice Response, video conferencing, VoIP telephone service, instant messaging, and audio conferencing.

Companies that fail to look to the future will lag behind those that do. Implementing unified communications is an essential aspect for business operations today. The initial cost to switch over from two separate systems to a single, cohesive scheme is a small price to pay to reap the benefits that this transformation can create.

Provided by Jim Horton - North Star Strategic IT
Your Denver source for IT computer support, network consulting and planning, voice over IP (VoIP) solutions, and so much more. Cisco Partner - VoIP and Unified Communications Microsoft Partner - Small Business Server Specialists Schedule time with one of our highly qualified network technology specialists

The Benefits of Unified Communications for Business

It has a public release date of October 22, 2009.

The System Requirements

The hardware and software requirements of Windows 7 are almost similar to its predecessor. Here are they:

• 1 GHz or faster processor in x86 (32 bit) or x64 (64 bit) category
• RAM of 1 GB for 32 bit and 2 GB for 64 bit systems
• 16 GB HDD space for 32 bit and 20 GB for 64 bit systems
• DirectX graphics processor (also available from Microsoft), with WDDM 1.0 (Windows Display Driver Model) or higher

Most of the software working fine with Vista will be compatible with Windows 7 too.

What’s New?

Windows 7 will give better performance than Vista on a PC meeting the system requirements. This is because of the improvements on the kernel of the operating system (kernel is the core of the OS). Besides this, there are improvements in the way the OS starts. Windows 7 will give better performance on multi-core processors (low level coexistence of multiple processor cores) as well.

It comes with the latest release of Internet Explorer, IE8, which has improved features like instant search, web-based accelerators, web slices, etc. Also included is the latest version of Windows Media Player, version 12.

Visual improvements include better taskbar management and improved window thumbnail previews. Your desktop management is now easier. You can easily make the open windows transparent to quickly see the desktop.

Another important feature of Windows 7 is the new XP Mode. With this feature, within Windows 7, you can enable a Windows XP virtual machine enhanced with the XP Service Pack 3. The XP Mode helps the OS have better compatibility with software working with XP and other lower versions of Windows.

Additional features to look forward to are:

Action Center – Centralized management for a one-stop shopping location where you can go to deal with security issues, troubleshooting, and recovery.

Bitlocker to Go – BitLocker To Go extends BitLocker data protection to USB storage devices, enabling them to be restricted with a passphrase.

Windows Flip – scroll through a visual list of your open files and programs.

DirectAccess – IT administrators can manage mobile computers by updating Group Policy settings and distributing software updates any time the mobile computer has Internet connectivity, even if the user is not logged on.

Credential Manager – manage Windows credentials for various computers that you sign onto, certificate-based credentials, and other generic credentials (for e-mail accounts, Web accounts, etc.).

HomeGroup – makes connecting the computers in your home a painless process.

Media Streaming – clever, if somewhat limited at the moment, function to let you stream your music, movies, and other media over the internet.

Testing Windows 7

If you wish to run Windows 7 and get to know it better before purchasing, then you can download it and test. Microsoft has enabled download of the Windows 7 Release Candidate (RC), and it will be available until July 2009 from the Windows 7 website at Microsoft.com.

This is a Release Candidate, which is a normally bugs-free edition of the software, but it may not be entirely bugs-free. So, before installing the OS (which should ideally be on a test PC), you should back-up all the important data.

You should keep the Windows Update turned on, so that the OS is kept up to date.

The Release Candidate is valid until June 1, 2010. From March 1, 2010, the PC will start shutting down every two hours. So, before March 1, all testers should purchase and install the full version of the OS.

Popular online tech journal, Gizmodo informs that this RC of Windows 7 is very safe and robust as compared to most beta releases.

Conclusion

Expectations are high with Windows 7. Vista, though had somewhat negative media appeal in the beginning, had managed to get great love from customers. Vista is now regarded by most to be one of the finest releases of Windows in terms of security and performance. Windows 7 is definitely going to upgrade these qualities of Vista.

Provided by Jim Horton - North Star Strategic IT
Your Denver source for IT computer support, network consulting and planning, voice over IP (VoIP) solutions, and so much more. Cisco Partner - VoIP and Unified Communications Microsoft Partner - Small Business Server Specialists Schedule time with one of our highly qualified network technology specialists

An Introduction to Windows 7

First thing’s first – take inventory of your technology requirements. You may be moving because you need more space – make sure you have the connections you need. Most offices will need two to four electrical outlets per desk, minimum. One for your computer, one for the monitor, and one for a desk lamp of some sort. You can figure out what you need fairly quickly – just make sure you have it at the new space. Surge suppressors can be useful allies, but they should be switched off every night if possible to limit the possibility of electrical overload or fire.

You will probably also need at least one network connection per desk, and – depending on the size of your office – a patch panel or other central area where your desk connections can be patched into an ethernet switch. Make sure the cabling is clearly marked, because some phone systems use the same RJ45 connector that high-speed ethernet does. You also should make certain that your new office is cabled for Cat5 or Cat5e – nearly all current computer systems support at least 100mbps (megabits per second) and frequently 1000mbps. If your office has older cabling rated for 10mbps, it can cause hard-to-diagnose network problems.

If you use local servers – file servers, mail servers, or other servers – you will need to make certain you have appropriate power available, and appropriate cooling. Your office may not be large enough to support a full blown “computer room”, but if your business depends on your local servers, you must provide them with cooling (even if you have to have someone install a small unit specifically for your ‘closet’), battery backup, and power. Many small businesses learn this lesson the hard way – thermal failure of server systems after a move.

You will probably also need to make certain that an internet connection is available that provides sufficient bandwidth for your business. Don’t take this for granted; if you’re moving into an office space used by a business that was primarily phone-based, you can find yourself saddled with expensive charges for retrofitting the office for high-speed internet access.

You will also want to make certain your phones are compatible with the phone system at the new office. Some smaller offices may have an analog breakout box and use analog phones with discrete wiring for each line, while other offices may have digital lines; the phones are not usually interchangeable, so make certain you know what the requirements of your new space are. Will you be using the phone company’s business services, or will you be using a local PBX?

If you use mobile phone technology as part of your business, you should verify your handset coverage in the new building. If you have a large office and your staff uses the same wireless provider, you can sometimes get in-building repeaters to make certain your coverage is flawless in and near your office. If you’re a very small office that depends on such coverage, you should choose your new space accordingly.

This discussion is far from comprehensive, as most businesses have special needs that are specific to their business. It should serve, however,  as a good start for thinking about the technology needs of an office move.

Whatever you do, don’t forget to contact North Star several weeks prior to your move to help you plan for a smooth transition. You’ll have less headaches, less downtime, and happier employees!

Provided by Jim Horton - North Star Strategic IT
Your Denver source for IT computer support, network consulting and planning, voice over IP (VoIP) solutions, and so much more. Cisco Partner - VoIP and Unified Communications Microsoft Partner - Small Business Server Specialists Schedule time with one of our highly qualified network technology specialists

Considering Your Technology When Switching Office Spaces

However, there is another type of spam filter that takes the game to an entirely new level. Email delivery becomes nearly impossible especially if you are cold calling or using mass email marketing to a larger group of people. This spam filtering is done at the internet service provider level. Internet service providers have better resources and motivation for providing excellent spam filters for their customers. Internet providers pride themselves on their ability to keep customers’ email spam free; this is important to their business because providers who cannot get the job done will lose customers to providers who can.

Internet service providers are global companies with influence to prove it. As a marketer, if you cannot prove to them you are a valid online business and give them a good reason not to block your emails, then you will see tons of your hard work go down the drain as campaign after campaign winds up trapped in a spam filter long before potential customers can see them. In a nut shell, internet providers are highly motivated to protect their customers. To do this, they have put in place a way to authenticate merchants and weed out fraudulent operators that will only misuse the trust people put in their email and ISP’s.

Your first order of business will be to create a relationship with the major internet providers who hold the key to contacting your customers. You will have to prove to them you are a valid online business and not a scam artist. There are three important things you will need to show them: You have a real product; you have been in business for a decent amount of time; and that your business will continue long enough for you to offer customer service after the sale. Overall, these are reasonable requirements especially for access to potentially thousands of customers.

Once you have passed the first round of authentication, each internet provider will want to see that you conduct your email marketing with integrity. You do not have to look far to see that email marketing is one of the most abused marketing techniques in business since the snake oil salesman. The main thing the internet providers want to know is that you are not going to abuse their customers in any way, as with scams. Assure them that you have the best interest of the customer in mind should you be lucky enough to be granted access.

You can best learn the process of being approved by entering into negotiations with a major internet provider through whom you hope to send out email marketing letters. Once you have completed dealings with the first, the rest will be similar in nature. In fact, after the first time, you will likely progress more quickly since you will know the ins and outs of dealing with them, and you will be able to show each successive provider that you have been approved by the first. Soon you will have an excellent reputation that will open the doors more readily. Take your time and work through this process the potential rewards are definitely worth the time and energy you will expend.

Provided by Jim Horton - North Star Strategic IT
Your Denver source for IT computer support, network consulting and planning, voice over IP (VoIP) solutions, and so much more. Cisco Partner - VoIP and Unified Communications Microsoft Partner - Small Business Server Specialists Schedule time with one of our highly qualified network technology specialists

Gaining the Trust of ISP and Why it is Important

In a way, the war between spam artists and companies who develop anti-spam software can be likened to a game of tennis, where two opponents hit the ball back and forth from one to the other. Of course these spam artists are devoted to their calling and are continuously developing new ways to overcome spam filters. Likewise, as new mass mailing technology finds ways to beat these filters, the anti-spam developers are tasked with changing their defenses, hence a perpetual cycle of cat and mouse.

While this game of cat and mouse can prove challenging to spam artists and profitable to anti-spam software developers, it can needlessly use up plenty of valuable time for online merchants who, in essence, would rather be using this time for improving their business, upgrading their products or streamlining their services. Of course, in order to market your business you need a reliable email system and you need to be sure that your marketing emails are indeed reaching your target audience. The only way nowadays for you to do this successfully, is to be sure you have the latest available anti-spam software which is capable of separating spam from desirable email.

As an online merchant, do you have enough time on your hands in order for you to continuously monitor this situation? Probably not and neither do any other internet merchants. The problems is, though, email marketing may very well be the foundation of your business marketing strategy. If, like millions of others, you find yourself to be in this situation, then perhaps it’s time that you consider using a specialist service. Such services make it their business to stay ahead of the game and by handing your burden over to them; you’ll have the benefit of being in a position to utilize your time more effectively.

Any good businessman knows that business is about making money and not about spending money, at least not on unnecessary goods or services. After all, why pay someone to do something you could just as well do yourself? However, some of the top email service companies don’t only sort through emails and ensure efficient email delivery on your behalf. Lyris, for example, offers some extremely attractive packages which not only adds value to your email marketing, but, at the same time, puts you in control. Some of the many benefits you can expect when signing up with a company like Lyris include:

•    Expert help with developing professional emails which are designed to capture the attention of your customers.
•    HTML code development. Code is done in such a way so as to avoid spam filtering. This means your emails reach your customers rather than ending up in their spam bin. As you can well imagine, the benefit of this is absolutely huge.
•    Email list management and scheduling for the purpose of bulk mailing projects.
•    The ability to have multiple marketing campaigns.
•    Comprehensive reporting on all aspects of your email marketing such as deliverability.
•    Automatic email – simply set it up and then walk away.

It really is in your best interests to at least look into the feasibility of signing up with a service such as Lyris. They can at least guarantee that you’ll no longer have to spend time worrying over the effectiveness of your email marketing emails and, of course, as the battle plan changes between spam artist and anti-spam developers, companies like Lyris are there following each and every step.

Provided by Jim Horton - North Star Strategic IT
Your Denver source for IT computer support, network consulting and planning, voice over IP (VoIP) solutions, and so much more. Cisco Partner - VoIP and Unified Communications Microsoft Partner - Small Business Server Specialists Schedule time with one of our highly qualified network technology specialists

Email Delivery – Make it Someone Else’s Concern