Cloud Computing Archives - NuTech Services LLC

Apr, 2022

The Cloud Makes Critical IT More Affordable

Cloud technology has changed the way we do business, and it has provided countless opportunities for companies to achieve their wildest dreams. Granted, different businesses will use the cloud in different ways, but one fact remains the same: it makes financial sense to implement the cloud, no matter what type of business you are. Let’s go over some of the benefits.

Money Isn’t All the Same

When it comes to breaking down your business’ finances, there is more than one way to categorize them. Here is how you might typically look at investments for your company:

Capital expenditures: A capital expenditure is one that is typically quite high, and it is usually a one-time investment that can be used for many years to come. That said, it’s not really planned or budgeted for (although it should be).
Fixed-expense expenditures: These are predictable expenses for something which expires in the short term. For example, you might pay for advertisements or Software as a Service. The price will be independent of your sales, and the intent is usually to result in a sale down the line.
Costs of goods sold (COGS) expenditures: These expenses are directed proportionally to the revenue your business generates; the higher your COGS, the more money you are bringing in. This assumes that the ratios between COGS and revenue are low.

How These Expenses Relate to the Cloud

If we assume that you need a new data center, you might look at options for building one on-premises. While doing so might incur large sums of capital expenditures, it’s a one-time expense for its construction and maintenance, along with the costs associated with its upkeep. On the other hand, if you were to outsource management of a cloud solution to a managed service provider, it would be a fixed-expense model, as you are paying for a monthly fee that can be terminated or adjusted at any time as you see fit. Basically, you have to look at it in terms of what your organization wants and needs, particularly if you think flexibility and scalability will play into your cloud solution in the future.

NuTech Services can help your organization make these tough calls regarding the cloud. To learn more about what we can do for your business, reach out to us at 810.230.9455.

Oct, 2021

Hosting Your Applications in the Cloud Can Have Major Benefits

You may already be familiar with the concept of hosting your business’ technology on your own in-house network, like a server unit, but some businesses struggle to manage hardware like this effectively. In all honesty, you can get largely the same benefits of an in-house server through a hosted solution. Nowadays, the cloud makes utilizing cloud services easier than ever.

Traditional Hosting

Small businesses often have trouble with more traditional methods of application hosting, mostly because many do not have the space to dedicate to traditional hosting. They also may run into issues related to more limited budgets or device procurement; even if they do get the right technology in place, maintaining it properly can be the last straw.

Managed service providers give small businesses access to professionals they may not be able to hire outright, meaning that they can also host your business’ hardware and applications effectively. NuTech Services is one such provider; with our cloud services, your small business can get the technology you need without having to spend large chunks of capital. Whether you want us to host your email service, your line-of-business applications, or even your VoIP system, we’ve got you covered. You might be surprised by how much a cloud hosting service can improve your operations and workflows!

Cloud Hosting

Cloud hosting is something that can only really be discussed after complaining a bit about the limitations of traditional hosting. It used to be the case that you could only host your applications on your own infrastructure, but now you can host applications and infrastructures right in the cloud using virtual hardware. This type of anytime-anywhere access is a particularly good investment for businesses.

You might be surprised to learn that most services your business implements can be deployed or accessed through the cloud, as long as you are working with a cloud provider to handle the responsibilities of managing and maintaining the infrastructure. Outsourcing these responsibilities can lead to your organization investing more of its time and energy into other endeavors, including some that can yield a greater profitability.

NuTech Services can be your business’ go-to resource for anything cloud-related. To learn more about what we can do for your business, reach out to us at 810.230.9455.

May, 2020

How to Move to the Cloud in a Hurry

The cloud has long demonstrated its many benefits to a business’ operations, but perhaps never so much as it has now. With so many people remaining in their homes, the only way that any business (essential or not) can get anything done is to adjust to remote operations—something the cloud is especially useful in. If ever there was a time to take advantage of the cloud’s capabilities, it would be now.

After all, by leveraging the cloud, a company can take advantage of up-to-date and reliable solutions and resources with no added maintenance needs, and the cloud’s flexibility is extremely well-known. Whether your employees are working in the office or from home, the cloud allows them to access and collaborate upon the same documents with the same resources.

Here, we’ll go over the steps you need to take to adopt these capabilities in a hurry, with the help of an MSP like NuTech Services.

Planning and Identifying Priorities

Unfortunately, the cloud implementation process typically isn’t known for its speed, as there are many considerations that must go into its planning. If certain processes aren’t followed, steps are missed, and the entire thing can be delayed. Therefore, it is best to have a resource by your side to assist you through the process.

This means that it only becomes more crucial that your implementation is well-thought-out and planned, starting with identifying and prioritizing what is to be moved. Take the time to consider this and make these calls with the help of your technology resource.

Our advice: start with your most important transitions (naturally) and that which will be simplest to migrate, and then focus on the remaining workloads afterwards. Working in phases like this make it more important to lean on a trusted resource for assistance, as it will make it more complicated to do.

There also needs to be a dedicated effort into training a staff to prepare them for the capabilities that cloud solutions deliver and the complications that may arise.

NuTech Services can help deliver all of this, and so much more. Talk to us about it by calling 810.230.9455.

Apr, 2020

Make Sure Your Use of the Cloud is Secure

The cloud is an undeniably useful technology to implement in your business’ processes, and is a very popular option as a foreseeable result. This does not mean, however, that the cloud isn’t subject to some risks. Let’s go over a few risks the cloud presents, and how you can mitigate them by selecting the right provider.

Potential Issues with Cloud Services

It is important to remember that, if you want to avoid managing an entire private cloud infrastructure in-house, you will more than likely be signing up for a public cloud service. With this setup, you are entrusting your business’ data to an external cloud provider who will manage and protect it on your behalf. This is a great option that many businesses use to great success, but there are a few downsides that you need to take into consideration.

Loss of Service

As rare as it is, even big names like Amazon, Google, and Microsoft can experience issues with their services. With uptime that is generally closer to 100 percent than it is to 99 percent, your chance of not being able to access your data due to an issue on their end is remarkably small, but it is there.

Even if you were to experience downtime due to downtime on your cloud provider’s end, it is pretty likely that simply alerting your clients of the situation and explaining the issue would resolve the vast majority of concerns they would have with you and your services.

Data Loss and Breaches

Hackers and cybercriminals are well aware of the amount of data that cloud providers have under their care, and you can bet that they try their darndest to get at it. Fortunately, most cloud providers maintain stringent data security policies, and have the budgets to invest significantly into these protections.

Compliance Issues

This issue is a little complicated, but is especially important to keep in mind. There are numerous laws and regulatory compliances out there to aid in keeping data safe and secure, that all businesses are expected to abide by for their own good. While these can be challenging to keep track of (never mind fulfill), there are resources out there that are equipped to assist you in doing so.

One such resource is a managed service provider like NuTech Services. Our team of IT professionals can take over the responsibility of managing your use of the cloud, assisting you in preparing for (and of course avoiding and mitigating) any of the above situations. Give us a call at 810.230.9455 to find out how else we can help you make the most of your business IT.

Nov, 2019

Software Patching in the Cloud

A lot of computing is done today using cloud computing – basically, making use of the computing power, space, and applications that a provider has on their infrastructure as if they were your own. Doing so can provide a very specific benefit to your security, but, have you ever wondered how the cloud itself is protected?

With so much computing now done in cloud environments, it is important to address how this approach can benefit security, but still need to be secured.

How Patches Benefit from the Cloud

It isn’t a secret that any kind of software, from applications to entire operating systems, can have holes in it. These security flaws and issues could easily leave a business vulnerable to attack if they aren’t resolved. This is why software developers will issue patches, which are just corrections to these mistakes, for users to install. By applying the patch, the user is protecting themselves from threats that would otherwise exploit that vulnerability – but just on the system where the patch is installed.

Now, consider how many computers some companies use, and all of the different software titles that would be found on each.

Can you imagine going to each one and applying an update, each time a patch was released? Furthermore, you have to consider that more and more devices are mobile nowadays. This means that there is no guarantee that every device is present when someone goes on their patch application marathon. Factors like these frequently lead to incomplete patch deployments, and as a result, holes in organizational security.

However, by utilizing the cloud as you manage your organization’s patches, the device no longer has to be present in order to receive the patch. Instead, the cloud can be used to push it out to all of your devices, so once they connect to the Internet, the patch will be implemented. This means you can keep your employees using the solutions you want them to use, assisting both your productive operations and your security.

How the Cloud Benefits from Patches

However, it is important to take note that all the cloud is, is a computer located somewhere else (often owned by someone else). As a result, it can also be vulnerable to flaws and issues of their own – which is why you need to be sure that your cloud provider is properly maintaining the cloud solution with its own patches. This is especially the case if you are using an internal cloud solution.

NuTech Services can help you keep up on your updates, whether they involve the cloud or not. Reach out to us at 810.230.9455 to learn more about our services.

Jun, 2019

Cloud Services Can Help You Build a Better Business

Cloud computing is a major part of most businesses today. In the past, businesses had to pay in-house technicians to research, design, and purchase the infrastructure needed to run an onsite server. This was expensive, especially if a business wasn’t able to get the solution they needed the first time around. Cloud computing has changed things to the point where the costs associated with implementing these solutions has decreased considerably, all while solving the problem and improving operations. We’ll help you take a look at cloud computing as a way to change up and improve the way your business functions.

Uses for the Cloud

No matter what your business needs, there is likely a cloud solution for it. Hosted VoIP and email are great communication tools. Infrastructure and Platform as a Service solutions empower organizations to leverage more flexible computing power. Software as a Service and hosted storage are available for all of your organization’s needs.

In the end, you can get just as much done with cloud infrastructure as you can with onsite hardware.

The cloud allows for functionality and redundancy, no matter what the industry is or the kind of workforce it contains. These services can be utilized as needed and deployed quickly.

The Drawbacks

Cloud computing isn’t perfect. Businesses can create a private cloud system that can create large costs for their bottom line while also maintaining the control, management, and accessibility… but again, a lot of thought needs to be invested into this kind of solution. Environments that are hosted outside of a service provider can be difficult to control, since your organization doesn’t have control over the hardware it’s hosted on.

A major drawback of cloud computing can actually be the cost. Since the IT infrastructure used to run the solutions is managed by the service provider, the price is adjusted accordingly. If your business needs a certain number of cloud licenses, you could see the cost of your solution rise. Plus, if you don’t cancel accounts when employees leave, you could be paying more for services that aren’t being utilized.

Furthermore, imagine if your organization has teams assembled that need to use three or four cloud-based applications to complete a project. Think about all of the money that’s spent just providing access to the appropriate software solutions. If it’s not properly managed, your return on investment could be put in jeopardy.

NuTech Services can help you keep track of your cloud-based resources, whether you’re just hitting the cloud environment, or you have an established presence in the cloud. To learn more about how we can help you manage cloud applications, reach out to us at 810.230.9455.

Feb, 2019

Private Cloud Challenges

The private cloud computing market is growing rapidly, and for good reason. Data security and privacy concerns have spurred many businesses to consider moving their data from public cloud offerings to private cloud platforms. One problem the average business would see with this trend is that putting together a comprehensive private cloud system has its own challenges, some of which we will confront today.

Costs
A lot of business owners don’t realize that creating cloud platforms has been completely possible for a long time. It wasn’t until public cloud offerings like SaaS or IaaS were made available that the business world really turned an eye toward these virtualized computing constructs. The reason was, of course cost. As cost goes down, options get more viable. One problem that businesses that have jumped into public cloud computing with both feet have found is that they haven’t properly accounted for the risk inherent in hosting their business’ data and infrastructure with someone else. These risks can significantly reduce (or in some cases decimate) the ROI of a cloud computing initiative.

One of the major risks, loss of data security, has driven many organizations toward a more private cloud strategy. Building a private cloud can be complicated as it involves calculating both fixed and recurring costs over a pertinent time frame. Since with a private cloud platform, an organization will be responsible for the hardware systems, management, and control, variables such as usage (forecasted/actual), system and data redundancy, and the general specifications of the machines used to run the virtualized infrastructure have to be taken into account.

So, while it’s true that public cloud costs are also difficult to determine, when settling in on a private cloud solution, you need to dot your i’s and cross your t’s at every turn to ensure that you are properly forecasting what the private cloud will cost your company in both migration and operation.

Integration
Chances are your business already uses several public cloud applications, and some of those applications function better, and more cost-effectively, if left there. You see, if you utilize public cloud resources to host non-critical infrastructure or applications, you will likely want to consider setting up a hybrid cloud system, where your private cloud and your public cloud resources are integrated.

This hybrid cloud platform will absolutely have its difficulties, but once it is up and running, your business’ computing will be accessible through one single access portal. If you so choose to reinforce this strategy with secure access control systems you can do that, but know that it requires a lot of effort to include security provisions and configurations to allow workloads to be run anywhere.

Time
One big problem many businesses have when deciding to move a portion of their IT out of the public cloud and into their own private cloud is just the time it will take to get this finished. These virtualized computing environments are more robust than ever and can facilitate a lot of organizational flexibility, but operational issues and hardware management of on-premise hardware is time consuming and costly.

Not only does your IT admin (and team) need time to configure and migrate all relevant data, they will be on the hook for all the maintenance and management of the virtual machines and the underlying hardware, making it problematic for small IT teams.

At NuTech Services, we know how important collaborative work environments are, we also know how crucial data security is. As a result, we are in a great position to help you. Our technicians can work with you to find the right balance between public and private cloud resources, while having the technical expertise to help manage and maintain any computing environment or infrastructure. If you would like more information about hosted solutions, whether they be on the web or in your server room, our technicians can help. Call us today at 810.230.9455.

Nov, 2018

What Cloud Applications Are You Using?

Does your business use any cloud-based applications to go about its daily duties? Chances are that with today’s increasingly online business environment, it’s not out of the question for many organizations to have not just parts of their infrastructure in the cloud, but entirely online infrastructures at that. If you’re still considering the cloud as a tool for your business, we’ll provide a primer of sorts to help you make an informed decision.

Applications
Applications, or “apps,” are pieces of software that can be used for specific purposes in the workplace–but you probably already knew that. If used properly, they can streamline specific processes within your organization. Some apps don’t use connectivity, but there are countless others that utilize it to connect all kinds of workers from the professional spectrum together. These kinds of connected apps are generally found in the cloud, and their wide range of use is one of the defining things about them.

The Cloud
You can think of the cloud like a big data center that gives you access to all sorts of software, processing, and storage options through your Internet connection. Computing resources tend to be made available to users through an “as a service” model, in which users secure access to it by paying a monthly fee rather than purchasing a license outright. Apps deployed through the cloud are slightly more expensive as a result, but the flexibility offered by being able to cancel at any time or add new users makes it a valuable opportunity to save money in the long run. Basically, it creates a situation where you transfer your capital costs of purchasing licenses to an operational cost.

Public, Private, Hybrid
There are several different ways that a cloud solution can be constructed. For example, most of the Software as a Service (SaaS) apps are offered as a public cloud solution, which means that the application and any processing or storage associated with it is on shared hardware. It’s made available through the browser or dedicated app, and for this purpose, its costs are generally lower than more private solutions.

In comparison, a private cloud that’s hosted in-house on a network or server unit is much more secure and customizable, as you’re controlling all of the maintenance and management of the system. For this specific reason, however, we recommend private cloud systems only for businesses that have the assets to take care of them; this includes those who outsource IT maintenance or those who have an in-house IT department who can provide the necessary management and oversight of the system.

For the best of both worlds, a hybrid approach can work. After all, some data is more sensitive than other data is, so anytime-anywhere access to it might not be in your business’ best interests. By combining the cost-effective public cloud model with the security of the private cloud, you can maintain adequate accessibility and data security.

Cloud Services
Just like there are many different types of clouds, there are many different cloud services, all for both businesses and individual users. There are generally three major categories that these cloud services are split into:

Software as a Service: Software delivery is the name of the game here, including communications (like telephone and email), productivity (Office 365), and even security.
Platform as a Service: Development is the main reason to go this route. This lets users create applications, collaborate on projects, and test new software without purchasing or paying for hardware.
Infrastructure as a Service: Virtualized environments that can be used for processing, storage, software, and so much more, are what a user gets from Infrastructure as a Service.

To learn more about how the cloud can help your business, reach out to NuTech Services at 810.230.9455.

Jul, 2018

5 Useful Cloud Apps for Small Businesses

The cloud is a great tool that lets businesses take advantage of goods and services in never before seen ways. How does your organization use the cloud? Developers are trying to leverage the cloud to best assist businesses just like yours with their day-to-day functions, all the while improving flexibility and access to important information. Here are five cloud-based applications that your organization can benefit from.

QuickBooks Online
Quickbooks is one of the major accounting and payroll services out there, and Intuit has developed the platform for use in the cloud environment. QuickBooks Online can help your business build out invoices, track sales and expenses, manage accounts, download bank transactions, and schedule your invoices. QuickBooks Online is also compatible with many different devices, and it works well with over 300 other cloud-based applications. This provides your business with a dynamic and affordable solution.

Evernote
Evernote, a note-taking application, is now accessible through the cloud. Following this migration, users have discovered that Evernote is more functional and quick than ever before. Evernote can even save, and archive information found online so that it can be accessed at any time. Evernote has also added encryption to keep stored information safe.

DocuSign
You sign countless documents year after year. If you could get rid of all the meetings and time spent traveling to locations just to sign specific documents, how would you use this extra time? DocuSign makes this dream a reality by providing an application designed for this express purpose. You can remotely sign documents for a myriad of purposes, cutting down the time spent in between getting to a meeting location and signing the actual document.

Slack
Slack is a great communications system that can integrate with other project management and productivity cloud apps. Slack includes many features designed specifically to help your projects finish as quickly as possible, all while including various features, like message boards and instant messaging, so that all users can be kept in the loop on progress.

Asana
Asana is a cloud-based project management software that can be used for collaboration between projects, allowing you to set parameters and milestones that can be worked toward. This gives your team a way to visually gauge how much progress they are making on a project, as well as provides them ways to meet their deadlines, share files, be more productive, and create opportunities for success.

What are some cloud apps that you use to get more work done throughout the day? Let us know in the comments.

Apr, 2018

Four Questions to Have About Cloud Services

Can you think of a more revolutionary technology in today’s modern age than cloud computing? Companies are now able to implement solutions that are both flexible and scalable enough to suit the needs of both small and large organizations. To this end, the same cloud won’t work for every type of organization. Here are four questions that you’ll need to ask in order to get the best service from your specific cloud provider.

What Are Your Business’ Responsibilities?
You will have to work with your cloud provider to determine who is responsible for what functions and tasks. For example, your cloud provider might be responsible for security, but other types of responsibilities might fall under the umbrella of your organization. Knowing what specific details your company is responsible for is the first step toward achieving success with your cloud solution. Whenever you implement a new cloud service, the best way to start off on the right foot is by clearly outlining any and all responsibilities between the two of you.

What Kind of Cloud Security Do You Need?
There are several different kinds of cloud-based services that your organization can leverage. Cloud services range from intensive and sprawling solutions such as Infrastructure as a Service, all the way to simple productivity suites through Software as a Service. Depending on the extent to which you use the cloud, your security will need to adapt and change.

Does the Cloud Provider Offer Training?
While it’s beneficial that your managers and supervisors know how to use your business’ cloud solution, you’ll need all employees to be on board with your efforts to get the most out of it. Of course, training all of your employees is costly and time-consuming, so if you can avoid doing it yourself, all the better. Cloud providers will often provide their own specialized training procedures both during and after the implementation process, so try to take advantage of it if you can.

How Much Visibility Do You Get?
Visibility is important for a business. In this case, it’s defined as insight into how your organization’s data is being stored, managed, and secured within your cloud environment. Cloud visibility varies between providers and services, though. A small business using the public cloud may have limited cloud visibility, but a large organization with a dedicated private cloud service may have much greater visibility as a whole.

Do you know what you need in a cloud solution? NuTech Services can help. To learn more, reach out to us at 810.230.9455.

Feb, 2018

Tip of the Week: Which Storage is Better for Your Needs?

Keeping your company’s data safe is extremely important no matter where it is stored. Making the decision to store data in the cloud or in an in-house server is just one consideration you need to make. Today, we will compare these two options to help you select the one is right for your business.

Cloud Storage
There are many advantages to using the cloud for backup and storage. Firstly, the platform is cost-effective because not only are you likely paying for only the space and services that you need, you also don’t have the extra utility and maintenance costs that onsite hardware tends to come with.

Another benefit is the scalability that you can get in the cloud. You can always get just the amount of space and computing services that you need, which is not something that you can expect in the case of an in-house computing platform. By being able to increase and decrease space as needed, all you’ll need to do is notify your service provider, and they will increase or decrease your storage space accordingly.

With cloud-based storage, you also typically improve on your accessibility. Any data stored in a cloud-based storage facility can be accessed through most Internet-connected devices that run an Internet browser (or through an app). Just log into your account and gain access to all the information you need when you need it.

Depending on your business needs, some of the few disadvantages cloud storage brings may not even impact your decision. The big one is speed. If you have a lot of data to store, and your Internet connection is less than stellar, backing up or transferring data to the cloud provider could take a while.

Local Storage
Speed is the one main advantage of storing your data locally, but there are some others. Businesses that rely on in-house computing infrastructures have more options than those that use cloud-hosted solutions–especially since you can just unhook the drive and the data is protected.

By having complete control over the management and design of your in-house computing infrastructure, you can create some pretty useful setups that will save your business money. Not only can you set up multiple virtual machines on one server, you can have full-scale redundancy to protect all of the information on your systems.

Some downsides include the upfront expense of purchasing all the major hardware and software systems needed. Scalability is more difficult, and most damning, if your data is saved, backed up, and protected in one place, if that one place gets hit with any issues, your data could be inaccessible, or worse yet, destroyed altogether.

While you have to make decisions for your business, depending on NuTech Services to help you make the right ones is advisable. Call us today at 810.230.9455 and one of our professional IT experts will help you design and implement a storage plan to meet your business’ needs.

Dec, 2017

Amazon Has Taken Over the Cloud

Amazon Web Services, or AWS, has long been a provider of quality web-based applications and services for businesses of all shapes and sizes. Nowadays, AWS is providing more services than ever before for the business world with more offerings regarding video creation, augmented reality, and virtual reality. With these new cloud-based services, Amazon is hoping to take advantage of a new market for emerging technologies.

Amazon’s Elemental Media Services introduced five new solutions that allow users to implement workflows to produce high-quality video content. The idea is to give users of AWS the capability to build custom video infrastructures to deliver content to viewers. Users can even build out custom video applications that only use technology resources paid for. This comes at a time when it’s much more efficient and cost-effective to hire outward for managing and maintaining a video delivery system, which allows for more flexibility.

Until recently, companies were spending most of their time and resources ensuring that the infrastructure they build works in an efficient way. In other words, they were more focused on the operations aspect of managing an infrastructure rather than the quality of the content produced. Amazon Web Services users can now outsource the management and maintenance of their video content infrastructure so they can focus on creating content that outshines the competition.

Some of the notable features of AWS’s new service include:

AWS Elemental MediaConvert: Formatting and compressing videos for distribution to devices
AWS Elemental MediaLive: Encoding for live broadcasts on televisions or connected devices
AWS Elemental MediaStore: Delivery of video from high-quality storage
AWS Elemental MediaPackage: Prepare and protect live video streams
AWS Elemental MediaTailor: Insert targeted advertising into media without compromising on quality

All of the above services will be compatible with other Amazon Web Services applications, so it’s worth considering for the deployment of a video infrastructure, even for small businesses who are on a budget.

Other new services offered by Amazon Web Services include Sumerian, which is AWS’s augmented reality and virtual reality development platform. Users can build out environments using 3D applications for multiple platforms, including some of the most well-known VR and AR technologies like Oculus. You can also import assets to edit 3D scenes, as well as using your own created imports or the pre-installed library of objects.

How do you see these new Amazon Web Services changing the way that your business functions, if at all? Let us know in the comments, and be sure to subscribe to our blog.

Nov, 2017

2018: What to Expect from Technology

2017 saw the rise of many great technology solutions for small business, including an explosion of popularity in business intelligence, artificial intelligence applications, and machine learning. Meanwhile, other established technologies have continued their domination of the industry. What can your organization look forward to seeing on the forefront of the small business technology race in 2018?

We’ll take a look at some of the upcoming and emerging technologies that your business may want to consider for future investment.

Artificial Intelligence
Artificial intelligence in terms of business use consists of analyzing data to create better outcomes, remake the customer experience, and completely change the way that organizations conduct themselves through the use of automation. Artificially intelligent technology can help to streamline operations and the customer experience through the implementation of chat bots and other machine-learning capabilities. However, researchers have recommended that AI be limited to specific roles rather than broad concepts, as too much of a lack of focus could lead to poor performance as a whole, deterring organizations from implementation in the future.

Even if businesses aren’t implementing artificial intelligence as soon as possible, 59% of businesses are still collecting information so that they can benefit as much as possible from such an integration. By taking this proactive stance on artificial intelligence, they are ensuring that they can hit the ground running when it comes time to do so.

Intelligent Analytics
Analytics have become an increasingly important part of doing business. This is because the availability of data, and software that allows for the analysis of said data, creates an environment where better decisions can be made using this analysis. By taking a carefully crafted deep dive into the numbers behind goods or services, organizations can make greater profits and eliminate inefficiencies in never before seen ways. Think of it like “trimming the fat,” so to speak.

Of course, these intelligent analytics can also be used to find new and more lucrative business ventures. Without proper analysis, though, these statistics and analytics are just empty numbers. Business intelligence apps aim to provide perspective and create insight for operational efficiency and effectiveness. Businesses that want to reap the most benefit from their data will invest in business intelligence strategies to glean important insights.

Cloud Technology
The cloud retains its importance as one of the best ways to take full advantage of modern technology. This is because no matter what type of business applications are released in the future, the cloud will remain one of the best ways to access them. The cloud offers dynamic access to business-critical computing constructs and applications that business owners will want to utilize because they offer cost-reduction and other benefits.

How does your business plan on using the cloud and these other technologies in 2018? To learn more about your options, reach out to NuTech Services at 810.230.9455.

Aug, 2017

The Differences Between Sync, Backup, and Storage

The cloud is a great solution for your business’s file management needs, but depending on your specific situation, you’ll find that the same cloud won’t work for every single business model. We’ll walk you through some similar-sounding terms related to the cloud that might sound like they are the same thing, even when they’re not.

Cloud Sync
Cloud sync is a way to access files and documents across multiple users and devices through a cloud-based folder on the device. You know how you open a folder on your laptop or desktop? It’s just like that. You place any files that you want to share across devices into this folder and they will be uploaded to the cloud and shared between them. Just keep in mind that any mistakes you make with the file will also carry over, which can be problematic, as they are all updated in real time.

Cloud Backup
Using the cloud to back your data up is a great way to change the way you protect your business’s future. You can automatically save your data to a secondary location, updating it whenever a file has been changed beyond the original. However, unlike tape backup, cloud backup doesn’t need any of your internal staff changing over tapes or initiating the backup themselves. Your data is then stored off-site automatically. You can retrieve your data as long as you have appropriate bandwidth. In fact, regardless of your bandwidth, it will likely be faster than your traditional tape backup solution. If you need your data for any reason, it can be encrypted and stored on a hard drive to be shipped overnight to your location as well. Remember, a great cloud backup solution will allow you to revert to a previous version of your data in the event that you suffer from a data loss incident.

Cloud Storage
Cloud storage is, more or less, exactly as it’s described. You store your data in the cloud. Cloud syncing forms the backbone of cloud storage. These services are quite reliable so that you almost always have access to your data. Depending on what kind of data it is, you could host it almost exclusively in the cloud. This type of hosting is somewhat situational, though, so we recommend that you consult with us before going ahead with such an initiative.

Forming Your Cloud Strategy
Ultimately, you want to have no fewer than two working copies of your data readily available in the event of a disaster. All of your important files and data should be kept off of your workstations and stored on a centralized network infrastructure, which is regularly backed-up directly to the cloud for restoration at a later date. This way, you’ll be able to minimize downtime and data loss. Above all else, keep your data backups off of your business’s internal infrastructure. If you somehow lose access to your data or your infrastructure due to a hacking attack or natural disaster, you’ll be glad that you backed up to a secure off-site location.

For assistance with forming a cloud backup solution, reach out to NuTech Services at 810.230.9455.

Feb, 2017

Your Plate is Full Enough. Updating Software Shouldn’t Be on It

Making sure that your company’s software solutions are up-to-date is something that should take priority, but it’s a chore that’s difficult to perform without a little help. How can you make sure that security patches and updates are always implemented, without sacrificing all of the time and effort required to do so? Even if you don’t think you need them, we promise that they are worth your time–or that of your IT staff.

There’s no way around the importance of implementing software updates, no matter how hard you look for it. In terms of preventing threats from taking advantage of existing vulnerabilities in your software, applying patches is one of the best countermeasures that you can take. You want to make sure that you are taking a calculated approach to your updates so as to make sure there are no cut corners or mistakes being made.

Having a Maintenance Routine is Crucial
From a break-fix IT standpoint, your business will only get much-needed software updates when something goes wrong with your IT infrastructure. This is counterproductive, as you want software patches and security updates to be installed as soon as possible, following their release. Plus, it’s just bad business for a break-fix IT company to do something for you that would keep your technology from working properly. After all, their entire business model relies on your technology not working as intended, so why would they go out of their way to update your software?

Having someone be in charge of implementing software updates is the best way to make sure that this task actually happens. This also presents another important question: do you have employees who have time to do all of this? Keep in mind that software updates need to be done in a timely manner, and it’s likely that they will need to be performed after-hours, so as not to disturb daily operations.

So… How Do You Do It?
For organizations that have an in-house IT department, the responsibility of software updates will usually fall to their technicians. Considering how many things can go wrong if this doesn’t go according to plan, you want to make sure that this process is only handled by professionals. For businesses that don’t have the technical know-how, managed service providers allow for outsourced maintenance–including the remote implementation of security patches and updates. This means that you don’t have to use your company’s time and resources to implement software updates, allowing you to focus on keeping operations running.

Even businesses that do have an internal IT department can benefit from a remote monitoring and management solution. If you find that your IT staff is overworked and they don’t have time for mundane, time-consuming tasks like applying updates, NuTech Services can provide co-managed IT care to help your team. While your IT staff is busy innovating, we can take care of the tasks that nobody really wants to do, like issuing software updates to all workstations on your network.

Besides updating your workstations, other available updates for your technology can also be handled relatively easily by our team. Here are a few examples that you’ll want to keep in mind as you decide how you want to implement your software updates.

Operating systems: Remember the fiasco from a couple years ago when Microsoft stopped supporting its popular operating system, Windows XP? This is what can happen if you don’t routinely update your operating systems. You’ll no longer receive security updates and you’ll put your company’s sensitive data in jeopardy.
Legacy applications: When you rely on mission-critical software, you might be hesitant to implement patches or upgrade the software. Therefore, you need the assistance of technical experts who can help you either move away from legacy applications or install updates in a way that won’t cause downtime.
Hardware quality: Thinking beyond just software, your hardware needs regular attention as well, if you want to make sure operations aren’t hindered by unnecessary downtime. Hardware refreshes should be considered in tandem with your software updates, as there’s no reason to update the operating system on a failing piece of hardware when you can kill two birds with one stone by simply ordering a new workstation.

Does all of this sound intimidating? Reach out to NuTech Services and you’ll never have to worry about software updates again. To learn more about what we can do for your SMB, reach out to us at 810.230.9455.

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