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Archive for September, 2011

We, naturally, do not like to think about scenarios that involve loss. How often do we go to the medical doctor before we become ill, versus right after we get sick? The same is true of insurance coverage. It has been said that insurance policies are the toughest sale, since most individuals prefer to not cope with loss, in advance of the real loss. However, whenever something goes wrong everyone is fortunate they’ve a plan that may be relied on. This plan of action, however, ought to be set in place before the loss takes place. The same can be said about online backup, which is the operation of copying records online and storing it remotely in an additional location. This is often known as online data storage, or cloud storage.

There are dozens, or even hundreds, of online backup and cloud storage providers that would love to pitch their products and services to your business. To ensure you’re making a sound conclusion regarding the best fit for your business, there are several questions one should ask the possibility candidates. Besides the traditional “Tell me about your services” to understand what they offer, we recommend this checklist below as a guidepost regarding critical questions to ask.

Questions You Should Ask a Cloud Storage Provider

Where is your data center located?

It is preferable the data center is situated a fair distance away from your facility to counteract a natural disaster. Many natural disasters (for example hurricanes, tornadoes, earthquakes, and floods) don’t impact a region above 100 miles. We advise locating a service that’s at least that distance from the business.

How secure is your service as well as your storage space facility?

Ask about encryption, firewalls, power supply, generators, raised flooring, and compliance certificates. Who will get access to my data? What is your own business’s data backup policy?

Are you able to supply customer testimonials and could I speak with a few of them?

The provider should be able to send numerous recommendations that may vouch for their service.

How are fees determined?

Essentially, the total amount of data being backed up, the number of equipment that the backup is coming from, and the quantity of versions of the data being saved will figure into the cost of the service. Nevertheless how are you affected should you exceed capacity? Precisely what additional charges will happen if my requirements change?

Would you provide a free trial offer time period?

A lot of online back up companies supply a 15 to 30 day trial time period. This is ideal to judge the level of service and carry out an evaluation to see just how long it might take to copy and particularly to recoup your computer data before an emergency scenario occurs.

What happens to my data in the event you close shop?

This can be a difficult, but sensible question. How quickly are you going to get my files back, and in exactly what form?

We recommend first receiving a few data storage quotes from various providers for your needs. Remember to use the question checklist above. And good luck!

Delfin Joaquin Paris III

Receive real-time, no obligation cloud storage quotes and data storage quotes for your backup needs!

We store nearly all of our important and essential information these days on our computer hard drives. Most of that data is incredibly essential and not acceptable to lose. Once lost, it might result in the destruction of your business. At the least many of your essential business and legal documents could become a headache to replace. Because most of us now routinely use digital cameras for our photography needs many of of your favorite photos could be lost forever.

Its definitely a recommended idea to back up your files on an outside hard drive if you can, or at least store duplicate versions of the data on compact discs or DVD. The challenge with this model is, where do you physically store these copies? If you simply put them in a drawer near your computer, you open yourself up to risk of natural or unnatural disasters. For example, if you business or home caught fire, both copies could be destroyed simultaneously. A remote data backup method module keeps your files safely at a safe positioning away from your home or business.

How easy is it to accomplish an offsite data storage backup? Surprisingly, it’s remarkably simple. Again, this will ensure that your important information is located far away from the possibility of unexpected disasters, fires, theft, or just plain old nasty computer crashes. If misfortune does befall your home or business, you can rest assured that your valuable data is safe, since copies of everything are located far away from your immediate troubles. Once you have access to a computer, all you need do is log into your account to get the precious files back.

For a small or home business, having files safely backed up offsite at a remote data center is easy and affordable. Small business can’t usually afford to keep an entire tech team, let alone one tech person on staff, so it can be an ideal option to know that someone, somewhere, has copies of everything on your servers.

And of course, while on the road, it’s easy to access all of your data at your convenience from a remote data center. All that is required are the access codes presented to you via your provider and total access is yours no matter what segment of the world you happen to be in – as lengthy as you have a net connection of course. That also allows you to back up your new files while you happen to be on the road too.

Earlier I mentioned backing up your data with outside hard drives. My sister, who is a photographer and travels extensively, backed up her photos on an outside hard drive and lost lots of essential photos when her three year old hard drive crashed. The company agreed to replace the drive, but the damage was already done – photos lost.

At the end of the day, hiring an offsite data storage provider is probably the safest route to travel!

Delfin Paris
http://www.datastoragequote.com

Everybody understands that they should backup, but getting the right way can be confusing. As remote backup comes up as a viable option for personal and business users, more and more people now bank upon online backup for security of data. There are lots of providers that help in getting you remote backup and you can read reviews to overcome any confusion you have about it. Before getting remote backup, it is always advised to research and review remote online data backup providers. Read about best backup services and update yourself with newer techniques of securing the data.

There are plenty of studies that demonstrate website users and webmasters sometimes take a very few precautions or in other hand, the precautions they take are not sufficient in case of unpredictable disasters. This affects and eliminates all secured files, folders and important data. Just suppose…even though there are many who don’t use remote backup at all, there are a few who secure everything on the same HDD (hard drive) knowing that there are chances of getting HDD crash and the work that has come from the work of years may be lost. Others conscious people, with greater precaution, secure their data in a second HDD. Nevertheless, it would not be useful if that is a general computer malfunctioning damaging both the HDDs.

We just cannot ignore natural calamities. Just imagine… what will happen if there is some serious accident in the data center where the company has all its information backed up, entirely out of control, whether natural or something else or, in the case of theft? In such event, it will be impossible to get the data lost. All the clients’ files and office work lost is difficult to reverse and this may end up in a huge financial loss for the company. In addition, to make all data one more time is imaginary as it may involve searching for accounts that may carry the content of yesteryears.

It also may happen that the natural disaster strikes the city where backup data center is located? The success of any company lies in maintaining the data and working upon it for betterment. It is for this reason that remote backup should be mandatory for all the companies and personal computer users to save and secure the data to prevent future loss due to any reason. Remote backing up is the safest and preferred way to keep the data and more and more companies now prefer to go for it for a better future.

Check out Online backup And Also Remote backup

The fastest IEEE standard for Ethernet, 10 Gigabit Ethernet (10GbE), was established in 2005 in specification 802.3x. Just as the name implies, networks operating under standard 802.3x are capable of transmitting data at 10 gigabits per second. To put this into perspective 10 Gigabit Ethernet (10GbE) is 100 times faster than Fast Ethernet that transmits data 100 megabits per second.

The business world has watched as 10 Gigabit Ethernet (10GbE) has evolved from a new, bleeding-edge technology without a lot of compliant hardware into a mature, proven technology ready to be deployed in many businesses seeking faster data transmission speeds.

Firms are beginning to realize that the time may have arrived to take advantage of the technology, especially when considering the resource demands of newly adapted networking technologies such as server virtualization and data warehousing. Ever increasing storage demands, bandwidth-hogging video, and exponentially increasing transaction processing can form bottlenecks in networks operating under older Ethernet standards and further contribute to the need to upgrade to 10 Gigabit Ethernet (10GbE).

Companies operating with 1 Gigabit Ethernet (1GbE) are finding that as their company has grown so has their network. These firms are discovering that the backbone cables that provide the highest transfer rates at 1 gigabit per second 1(Gbps) are becoming bogged down with the demands of their advanced networking system. Also, demand for Gigabit Ethernet has grown at the desktop level where increasingly there are needs for shared video and demanding business applications deployed by the server. Efficient servers operating with virtualization technology that previously required the use of several, independent machines also demand faster data transmission rates.

Businesses are upgrading to 10 Gigabit Ethernet (10GbE) to relieve these pressures involved with their growing networks. Deploying the latest Ethernet technology not only makes sense from a technical viewpoint, but also from a financial one as managers begin to realize that network bottlenecks are causing inefficiencies and, therefore, are costing the firm money.

Furthermore, deploying 10 Gigabit Ethernet (10GbE) directs businesses towards becoming more “green” as power demands are reduced. A survey conducted in the fall of 2007 of nearly 400 business and IT professionals has confirmed this rising interest in 10 Gigabit Ethernet (10GbE).

The survey confirmed that IT personnel are currently evaluating the new technology and are testing different ways that the standard can be used with servers, switches and network interface cards (NICs). At the same time, firms are conducting price feasibility research on rolling out the faster transmission rates. Enterprises are finding from their internal research that network infrastructure and company economics call for the move to 10 Gigabit Ethernet (10GbE).

During the time period since the standard was established, 10GbE technology has drastically improved and costs involved in deploying it have dropped to levels where the cost is justified in companies needing the upgrade.

Factor in the savings that increased network efficiency can generate, and the upgrade becomes a no-brainer. While 10 Gigabit Ethernet (10GbE) deployment is being considered, business customers are seeking the same solutions that have always been desired from their network: a deployment optimized for a particular network that enables a more efficient infrastructure and administration at an affordable price.

Upgrading to the latest standard is not a daunting task for IT managers.10 Gigabit Ethernet (10GbE) still utilizes familiar Ethernet connections and media to achieve these higher speeds. Organizations are able to build upon their existing network infrastructure to introduce the faster transmission rates. Current IT staff already possess a wealth of knowledge about Ethernet, having spent years operating with Ethernet hardware and protocols since the 10Base-T (10 Mbps) technology was first used in the 1990s.

Fiber cabling, already present in many 1 Gigabit Ethernet (1GbE) networks is also used in transmitting at this faster rate. Commonly used Network Interface Cards (NIC cards) already present in PCs are capable of gigabit transfer rates but are held back by network administrators concerned about the bottlenecks that would occur should they open up desktop users to their highest possible speeds.

Because of the widespread acceptance of Ethernet technology, there is also no need for software upgrades to take advantage of the higher transmission capability of 10GbE. Servers will run the same applications that ran before the upgrade without a hitch. Applications are developed with Ethernet protocols in mind; 10 Gigabit Ethernet (10GbE) follows the same standards.

Another area where business owners are always looking to reduce costs is in power consumption. Power needs for servers are considerable, especially when the cooling requirements for these sensitive machines are factored in. When deployed correctly, 10 Gigabit Ethernet (10GbE) will reduce power consumption and lessen utility bills by reducing the footprint of the servers in the business.

Running at higher transmission speeds over the same types of cables lessens the power demands of the servers. Also, processing demands that also generate higher power consumption are not wasted routing bottlenecked data to lines running under capacity in networks running at or close to maximum bandwidth at the lower transmission rate.

Reducing the power demands on servers also can increase the life of your hardware equipment. Servers don’t have to work as hard when more bandwidth is available so the machines can keep cool and run more efficiently.

Servers running at lower temperatures obviously have lower cooling demands, oftentimes proportionately the highest power-demanding requirement of a server. Further savings can be realized in staffing requirements of the 10 Gigabit Ethernet (10GbE) network deployment.

Running at the higher transmission rate can present obvious consolidation options and the familiarity of Ethernet reduces the need to find specially trained IT personnel. Peripheral compatibility is not an issue and there is no need to reconfigure existing appliances shared on the network to function on the 10GbE network. IT staff will no longer be stretched to the limits administering a network running at capacity.

Also, once the new network technology is in place, high-demand processing environments like data-mining and blade server’s benefit from the faster throughput. A 10 Gigabit Ethernet (10GbE) network is inherently optimized to take advantage of new virtualization techniques that make increased demands of data transmission. Virtualized servers take on the tasks of multiple servers, consolidating those multiple machines into a single server, further eliminating hardware and administrative costs for the business decision-maker.

Furthermore, newer networking protocols that are only possible on the higher bandwidth of 10GbE can be taken advantage of. This includes the high-speed storage protocol iWarp first developed in a joint project by Intel and Carnegie Mellon University in 1988, and iSCSI that links storage clusters together utilizing lower power requirements with the higher transmission rates. Deploying protocols such as these across a 10 Gigabit Ethernet (10GbE) network can result in a dramatic improvement in network efficiency.

Ideally, 10 Gigabit Ethernet (10GbE) should at least be considered where it is needed most. Usually, data centers and file servers have the greatest need for upgrading to 10 Gigabit Ethernet (10GbE). Higher-speed transmission lines become particularly important for the file server should video transmission or multimedia streaming be integrated into your business. Video transmission requires the highest amount of bandwidth of any type of media and today’s applications and desktop users are demanding more and more multimedia in their day-to-day operations.

A lot of multimedia transmission also occurs when employees access the Internet. Once it is determined that employees truly need faster data transmission speeds, IT managers will need to seriously consider 10 Gigabit Ethernet (10GbE).

Another area that would benefit right off from 10 Gigabit Ethernet (10GbE) deployment are server farms where numerous transactions are carried out simultaneously. An inherent issue with some server farms is the ability to transfer multiple transactions simultaneously when one server is busy. The faster transmission rates could eliminate the need for some of the machines present in the server farm as well as the staffing requirements to manage them.

Deploying this newer technology sooner rather than later keeps a technologically-savvy company at the cutting edge and able to operate more efficiently than many of their business competitors who have not yet made this decision. The 10 Gigabit Ethernet (10GbE) protocol could easily prove to be a real competitive advantage to your business. While some IT Managers are fickle about upgrading to 10 Gigabit Ethernet (10GbE), more and more are choosing to move forward with it.

Below are useful tips in determining how to integrate 10 Gigabit Ethernet (10GbE) in your existing network architecture:

1. Conduct a thorough analysis of your existing network architecture.

2. Identify what existing hardware to be reconfigured for the upgrade and what hardware may need replaced.

3. Identify “in phases” what changes need to be made in regards to server hardware, server virtualization, network storage, cabling and in your data centers to optimize the reduced power demands of the 10GbE and minimize “server sprawl.”

4. Correlate the proposed changes to align with current and future business growth requirements of your business.

5. Act on this collected information and communicate it to your management team. The key aspect of the 10GbE deployment is the performance advantages realized when the same network is suddenly able to process significantly more data at a faster rate.

These performance advantages also result in cost savings resulting from server consolidation as more and more servers become virtualized. Furthermore, the requirements from the IT staff are reduced and power consumption needs are not what they were before with the network operating much more efficiently. Finally, with more legislation coming requiring that businesses operate with less power, many businesses are looking closely at upgrading 10 Gigabit Ethernet (10GbE).

Disclaimer/Release of Liability Statement: Regarding knowledge shared in this article, Michael G. Perry will not be held responsible for any consequential damages resulting from the application of content or recommendations.

Copyright © 2008 Coprofit, All rights reserved.

Michael G. Perry is a Las Vegas based systems integration specialist and the author of Technology Integration: How Technology and the Integration Process Can Transform Your Business, 5th Edition. He can reached at mikeperry@sisnv.net or simply visit http://sisnv.net/

It seems that the security risk to federal cyber security introduced by a new or emerging technology is inversely proportional to the convenience it offers to industry. Every few years a hot capability comes along that instantly has businesses clamoring to adopt it, while security professionals scramble to discover and address its vulnerabilities. Wireless networking fell into this category, and the rise of Cloud computing over the last few years appears to be just the leading edge in a massive migration towards virtualization and out-sourced data hosting.

An industry unfortunately lacking standardization and oversight, where the uninformed essentially gamble one of their most valuable assets on a table marked with confusing, and sometimes risky, bets. The “valuable asset” in this analogy is, of course, proprietary data. Businesses, and even governments, frequently fail to comprehend the true value their data and intellectual property represent to their organization-much less the value that information might have to others: “Value” cannot always be measured in monetary terms, and oftentimes the value of an object comes not in its positive potential, but in the negative consequences it might produce in the hands of a competitor, criminal, or wary public.

The attraction to the Cloud is undeniable. Cost savings are frequently realized through the outsourcing of infrastructure, software, technical support, and security controls-assuming those services are effective and reliable. In fact, a service provider may be able to offer a computing capability far beyond what many companies might otherwise be able to afford: An outsourced solution is easily scalable, providing a partial or total solution with ready-made growth capability, and it may also offer increased accessibility to data if that is desirable. With respect to security, for a small or mid-sized company with marginal security to begin with, even a service provider with only modest security features may offer an improvement over the existing system.

When deciding whether or not to outsource it is important for an organization to fully understand and quantify their risk in utilizing the Cloud, starting with a comprehensive assessment of the true value of the data and intellectual property being entrusted to a potential service provider. In an outsourced solution, an organization is relinquishing direct control of their data, and possibly business processes as well, to an entity for which the element of trust may be unknown or at least undeveloped. Significant effort should be expended in understanding the details of the service being provided and defining the level of trust obligated by the contractual relationship. Be wary of Service Level Agreements (SLA) containing contractual elements granting the provider wide latitude and limited liability for the storage or confidentiality of data: For instance, some SLAs include provisions for sharing data with third parties or rights for marketing.

Key information to collect and consider when comparing service providers will include:

• Governance, Oversight, and Liability: When was the service provider’s last assessment, and have they had citations or security breaches in the past? Is the service provider compliant with applicable regulatory requirements in handling your data? Are you in compliance with applicable regulatory requirements in outsourcing your data? What is the provider’s liability and obligation in case of data loss or compromise?

• Physical and Logical Geography: Where are the data centers physically located that will be hosting your information, and how will your data be partitioned on the server(s) relative to other data stored by the provider?

• Security Controls: How is your data secured, both in transit and in storage? How, when, and where is your data replicated, and how long is it retained? How will various security measures impact advertised access and performance characteristics for the service?

• Physical and Logical Access: What security policies are in place for access to, and modification of, the data center and your data? Who will have access to your data? Possibilities include service-provider employees or administrators, third-party vendors, contractors, as well as officials from governmental, compliance, or oversight bodies.

• Balance Risk versus Trust: Evaluate the costs and consequences in the event your data were lost or compromised, and consider maintaining internal control or heightened security measures for that portion of information critical to the organization or the conduct of business. Such sensitive data might concern proprietary products or processes, intellectual property, privacy information regarding employees or customers, or company financial’s.

Although various initiatives are underway for establishing uniform standards and oversight bodies for the virtual sector, many such efforts have failed in the past and effective legal and industry standards for Cloud computing appear to be years away from realization. As tighter security and control requirements do come into play in the industry, it will be interesting to see whether outsourcing remains a cost-efficient and attractive proposition for businesses when weighed against the relative risks.

Jon M. Stout is Chief Executive Officer of Aspiration Software LLC. Aspiration Software LLC is an Information Technology/Cyber Security services provider focused on the Intelligence Community (IC). For more information about Cyber Security and Information Assurance and Employment Opportunities in the Intelligence Community go to http://aspirationsoftware.com

If it hasn’t happened yet to you, it will.  At some point it happens to everyone.  Your hard drive goes bonkers.  Or maybe a virus gets past your anti-virus software and starts corrupting the files on your hard drive.  Or maybe even a fire, a flood, lightning, or some other freak act of nature destroys your computer and all the hard work you have saved on it. While your computer may be lost, your data doesn’t have to be.  Online data backups are the easiest and most secure way of backing up your hard work.

Why should you backup your data online? There are many reasons, but here are the most important:

1. It is automatic – Online data backups occur automatically in the background when your computer is on.  There is no need to remember to do them. Your computer does all the work for you without you needing to do anything.  You’ll never lose a file again because you forgot to back it up.

2. Your files are securely stored off site – Even a fire or a flood cannot destroy your files, because if something happens where you are, your files are stored in another location.  Many online data backup services store them in multiple locations, so that if one of their data centers is down for some reason, the data is backed up again at a separate facility in a different part of the world.

3. You can access your data from anywhere in the world – Let’s say you are traveling and your laptop crashes or is lost or stolen.  For most people, that would be the end of it.  There would be no way to access their data.  But with online data backups, if you know your security key, you can access your files from any computer in the world that is connected to the internet.

4. Your data is encrypted – Many people wonder if their data is secure if they back it up online.  It is likely more secure than the data that is sitting on your hard drive right now.  The data is encrypted on your computer before being transferred to the data center where it remains encrypted until you access it and have it downloaded to a computer.  The only person who can see your files is someone who has your “key”.  That is you and anyone you give your key to. Without the key, the files cannot be read.

Online data backups are also very inexpensive.  In most cases it is less than $5.00 per month for unlimited storage.  It is well worth that to know that your valuable files are safe and secure.

Never lose your valuable data again. Online data backups are automatic, encrypted and stored in multiple safe locations, and accessible from anywhere you have access to the internet. They are also very inexpensive. To keep your files and data safe, click for the details on online data backups.