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Automatic Updates: Be Safe by Being Secure

We are all well aware of how  popular the Microsoft Windows operating system has become. Not only is this  operating system popular for the business world, the vast majority of home computers run this operating system in various forms.

This popularity can make you a prime target for hackers and other criminals looking for a way to take advantage of a security risk in the operating system. Microsoft is keenly aware of this issue and takes steps almost instantly to make security patches and updates available for you, or your IT professional, to download and install.

Depending on how you have the automatic updates setting configured, these updates may or may not download and install themselves automatically, or you may have to initiate the process yourself manually.

While this feature is nice, most IT pros would rather pick a time to download and install these updates in a controlled situation, where the loading process can be monitored for any problems or issues that may arise.

The automatic updates utility can be accessed through the control panel. Once you open up automatic updates, you have the option there to select automatic updates, but even if you have automatic updates turned on, it is always a good idea to visit Microsoft’s update website occasionally and have the update center scan your computer to check and make sure you have all the latest updates available.

Microsoft also has a very thorough program called “Microsoft Baseline Security Analyzer 2.1.” This tool written for IT professionals provides a streamlined method of finding common security misconfigurations.

This tool allows our technicians to quickly scan your server or workstations and identify any missing security patches and provides a quick link to the supporting white paper that will explain to the technician exactly what security issue is being addressed with the particular security patch. Once enough of these security patch releases become available, Microsoft bundles them all together into what is called a service pack. This allows IT pros to download this patch to portable media and deploy it very quickly in a network environment.

I cannot stress the importance of keeping up with these service packs and security patches. A case in point, I went to a client’s office and checked every one of their workstations to see how “up to date” they were.

One of the stations required a service pack installation that has been available for months now. In addition, it
required 59 additional updates to bring it up to date.

You can imagine the risk that this system was to the client’s network. We now have this client’s network under our Managed Services Plan. This plan is offered for a nominal monthly fee and encompasses their server and all  stations.

Now these stations are monitored around the clock by our network operations center, and updates are downloaded and installed after hours, as soon as the updates are available.

So make sure to keep your computer and your information safe by being secure and contact Technology Experts to get your network protected by our Managed Services Plan. It’s the best way to make sure your network is safe and  secure.

What Is Windows Update?

Windows Update is a service  provided by Microsoft that provides updates for the Microsoft Windows operating system and its installed components, including Internet Explorer.

An optional feature disables access to Windows Update and enables access to Microsoft  update, an expanded version of the service which provides updates not just for the operating system & Internet Explorer, but also for other Microsoft Windows software, such as Microsoft Office, Windows Live applications, and Microsoft Expression.

Security updates are delivered on the second Tuesday of each month, called “Patch Tuesday,”
but security updates can be delivered whenever a software update is required to prevent an exploit targeting Windows users.

Windows Update can be configured to install updates automatically, ensuring that a computer is always up-to-date and not vulnerable to computer worms and other malware.

Windows Vista, Windows Server 2008 and the most recent Windows 7 provide a Control Panel to configure update settings and check for updates.

For previous versions of Microsoft Windows, updates can be downloaded from the Windows Update website, using Internet Explorer.

Gone In Sixty Seconds: Protecting Your Laptop & Data

September was a whirlwind travel month for me, having been in both Charlotte, North Carolina and Chicago in the last three weeks of the month.The training is great, but as anyone who has traveled lately knows, the airports can become a real challenge.

I was waiting in the Charlotte airport for my return flight to Detroit, and watched an awful story unfold.

A passenger, who was obviously a business owner or executive was searching frantically for his laptop case. After about 20 minutes, airport police showed up and it turns out his laptop had been stolen.

Business owners as well as your average everyday computer users are turning to laptops more and more each and every day, due to their mobility and the ability to keep them in touch with the office no matter where they are.

A huge importance that many seem to forget is keeping their data safe, and doing regular backups. I would guess that every three in five users are not performing any type of backups. They run the huge risk of losing all their valuable data, programs, and even their entire computer as the gentleman in the airport did.

It is crucial to have a backup solution in place, especially for business owners who keep most of their work information on their laptop computer.

With today’s technology options, you can find a backup solution that will work for you, and there seems to be a price range for everybody.

Backups can be performed in several ways, from a manual backup to a CD or DVD, some form of removable media like a flash drive, or SD card, and there are even the higher end solutions like BDR and off site backups.

Typically a backup solution would come with a piece of software to control your backups. Things such as what you’re backing up, how often your backing up, and where you want the backups to go.

The beauty of using software is it almost completely automates the process, and becomes something you don’t have to worry about any longer, knowing that if your computer is stolen, or your hard drive suddenly crashes out, you have a good copy of your data, and you can be back up and running in no time at all.

My favorite solution is the offsite backup, which can be offered thanks to the Internet. With an offsite backup system, data that is on your laptop, workstation, or server(s) can be sent out across the Internet (typically encrypted) to an offsite location.

So for example, you could be working at your company, and having all your daily additions to a highly secure data center out in the cloud. This would protect your information from a disaster such as a building burning down, or a fatal hardware crash.

If that sounds like overkill for your situation, an easier solution can be used, such as backing up once a week to a flash drive.

All Windows based systems have a utility built in called Backup and Restore. This utility will allow users to backup just their  personal data, such as pictures, documents, emails, etc. or even take it a step further and back up the entire computer’s  configuration, including the data.

Windows Complete PC Backup and Restore is most useful for disaster recovery when your PC malfunctions.

This feature helps you create complete PC backups, and then in the event of a serious system issue or data loss, Windows Complete PC Backup and Restore can restore your entire PC environment, including the operating system, installed programs, user settings, and data files.

If you do not have currently have a backup solution implemented, please contact our technical support team. We can work with you to set up backups to a flash drive or CD.

We also have a great offsite solution for $39.99 per month that will keep all of your data safe in the event of a failure. It works transparently in the background, encrypting and forwarding your data to our data center, where’s it is stored and updated as needed.

The best thing about this type of solution is that it doesn’t require you to do anything – the backups occur automatically, and we’re notified if there is ever a problem where your backup didn’t complete properly.

LoJack For Laptops

The technology behind Computrace LoJack for Laptops by Absolute Software is the Computrace Agent, a small software client that is embedded into the BIOS firmware of most computers at the factory. Or Tech Experts can install this agent for you.

The Agent in your computer maintains daily contact with the Absolute Monitoring Center. If you report your computer stolen, Agent contact will increase to every 15 minutes.

Increased contact allows Computrace to obtain specific details like the physical location of your computer, any activity that has occurred post-theft, and other important data that will aid Computrace in working with local law enforcement to catch the thief and return your property to you.

Regardless of recovery status, you can remotely delete data to remove some or all of the information stored on your computer so that it doesn’t fall into the wrong hands.

This could include files and applications containing personal photos, internet bookmarks, browser cookies, financial information, and stored passwords.Everything an identity thief would need to steal your identity.

On the web: www.absolute.com

Great Reasons To Consider A Windows 7 Upgrade

Are you one of the computer users who didn’t want to risk the Vista upgrade? While we didn’t really experience any problems with clients who upgraded to Vista, many companies have decided to skip Vista and move right to Windows 7.

Windows 7 is available now to business users under the Microsoft licensing program, and will be in general availability at the end of the month.Microsoft says it will run as well as Windows XP, and have the enhanced look and feel of Windows Vista.

Here are a few of my favorite features in Windows 7 that might make you want to look into upgrading to Microsoft’s newest operating system.

User Account Control
Many users found the enhanced user account control (UAC) function in Windows Vista difficult to work with. If you are not sure what UAC is, it is the dialogue box that will pop up when you run an unknown application. It asks, “Are you sure you want to open this?” Microsoft has greatly improved the options for fine tuning this security feature, so that you don’t have to turn it completely off.

Windows Shake
Windows 7 has a great new feature that helps you keep your desktop organized when you have several programs open at the same time. When you have multiple windows open you are able to click and shake the window you want to keep open and then all the other windows will minimize making it easier to sort through them. Then, if you want them back up you can just shake it again and all the windows come back up again. This, I would say, is one of the best features of Windows 7.

Very Quick Startup
Microsoft has finally solved the slow startup issues many users experienced in Windows XP and Windows Vista. It can be time consuming to just sit and wait for the computer to startup. Sometimes we have clients tell us their computer takes so long to startup that they simply leave it on all the time. Now with Windows 7, Microsoft has made the startup time about twice as fast as a comparable system running Windows Vista or Windows XP.

Auto Window Sizing
If you like the windows shake feature you might also like this windows feature. By moving your window to the top of the desktop the window will automatically maximize. Now if you move the window to the left or the right of the desktop then the window will be maximized, but only on fifty percent of the screen.

Customizing the System Tray
There have always been a lot of options for customizing the Windows system tray in Windows XP and Windows Vista. Windows 7 includes a feature for fine tuning the yellow popup balloon you always see by the clock on the system tray.

In Windows 7 you have the ability to customize which applications are allowed to notify you using the yellow popup bubble by the clock. In Windows XP and Windows Vista the only thing you could do to remove those notifications was to find a Windows registry hack to turn them off.

These are just a few of the many new features that make an upgrade to Windows 7 compelling. If you’ve just purchased a new computer, more than likely you’re entitled to a free copy of Windows 7 (you may have to pay shipping for the actual CD).

We have several systems running Windows 7 in our office, and have found very few compatibility issues. If you’d like to see it in action, feel free to stop by or call our office.

Dual Monitors Helps Insurance Agency Boost Productivity

When Robert Leski and Timothy Wittman, owners of the Leski Insurance Agency, decided to upgrade their computer systems last year, they were looking for ways to improve staff productivity and enhance their customer service functions.

After evaluating their workflow, Tech Experts recommended they employ a dual monitor solution as part of the agency’s technology upgrade.

Leski Agency uses an ACT! contact management system to keep track of all of their client’s policies and information.

When customer service representatives (CSRs) are quoting new business, or changes to customer’s existing policies, they will frequently need to refer to the information in ACT! in order to complete the quoting or change forms.

Before the dual monitor solution, the CSRs would have to toggle back and forth between screens. Now, ACT! remains active on one screen while the quote or policy change form is active on the other screen.

“We needed a way to streamline our customer service practices,” commented Tim, one of the agency’s co-owners. “Tech Experts showed us a dual monitor system that lets our employees look up information faster.”

The dual monitor solution was part of a larger technology refresh project the agency undertook last year. As part of the upgrade, Leski invested in a new, faster IBM eServer to store their customer data, documents and accounting information.

The agency also upgraded the staff computers to new Lenovo compact workstation computers. The compact workstation computers are about the size of a box of cereal.

“We really like working with Tech Experts,” Tim continued. “Technology changes every day, and it has become increasingly harder or small business owners to manage their computer systems. With the Tech Experts team taking care of our technology, I can focus on what our agency does best – taking great care of our clients.”

Leski Insurance Agency was founded in 1980 by Robert Leski, a now retired Monroe County Community College professor. The agency writes general lines property and casualty insurance, and specializes in the insurance needs of educators through the MEEMIC insurance company.

Running Out Of Room: Server Storage Upgrades

We have all experienced this: The longer you own a computer, the smaller the hard drive seems be. This can be a problem not only for the home user, but a huge problem for business clients and their servers.

Just a few years ago, 100 gigabytes of hard drive space was more than anyone thought they would ever need. Today, laptop computers come with more than 500gb of storage, and terabyte laptop drives aren’t far away.

As applications like Microsoft’s PowerPoint become more powerful, the size of the files being saved grow larger and larger. If you are creating these files on your PC and saving the files locally to your hard drive you can quickly run out of space.

The ease and affordability of “thumb” or “flash” drives allows most users to save these files to removalable media and keep the local drive free to perform the other tasks required. Servers on the other hand are a different story.

Most servers are used for file storage. The data created by all the users on the network is stored on the server. This allows multiple users access to spreadsheets, Word documents or PowerPoint presentations.

They can open the file, make their changes, and save the file back to a common storage space on the server. Most, if not all, of these files are important and more than likely will be used over and over again.

I have found that most of my clients can not move these files to a removable storage device, as they need access to the file almost on a daily basis.

That means the file needs to be on the server and accessible to all users, all the time. Each of these files requires space on the hard drive. If you’re using shadow copies to keep older files in case something becomes corrupt (or someone deletes something accidentally in the application), before you know it, your server is running out of room.

Most of the servers I deal with have separate areas of the hard drive called “partitions” that have the operating system (“OS” )separate from the data storage area. This allows technicians to come in, once the data area or OS partitions start to get full and install a new drive.

We have the ability at Tech Experts to take a server that may have originally had a 100GB hard drive and install a drive with a capacity that will allow you to store information for months to come.

Notice how I said “months to come.” It never fails to amaze me how fast server storage can fill up with data. I have written in previous articles how important it is to back this data up, but it is just as important to make sure you have enough room on your server for both file storage as well as the OS.

Microsoft releases updates to all operating systems continually to keep your systems secure and operating at the best possible speed. Having the room required to install these updates is vital to the health of your network and the productivity of your business.

When it becomes necessary to upgrade your server’s storage with more capacity, we can perform this task with minimal amount of downtime and with an eye toward the future to insure your investment in the server will be well worth it.

How Does Offsite Backup Work?

As your storage needs increase, you’re faced with the challenge of managing and optimizing data protection processes. You may find that your data no longer fits on just one tape. On top of all of that, employees often forget to put in a new backup tape each day. That’s when having a fully automated and backup solution is essential for your business.

This is where offsite backup comes in. Secure and reliable data protection is vital to your disaster recovery plan.

Whether you’re backing up 5 GB or 500GB of data, offsite backup solutions allow you to maintain a current offsite backup at a secure remote facility.

A special software agent is loaded on your server, which compresses and encrypts your data before sending it via the Internet to the offsite backup storage facility.

Data is backed up while your servers are up and running. This reduces costs associated with server or application downtime.

In addition, application special software agents allow for real-time backup of Exchange, SQL, and other databases.

Your data is secure from the moment it’s transferred to the storage vault, and it remains encrypted until it’s restored on the client computer. Only those with a vault password can access the backup data.

Social Networking Boosts Your Business!

You can’t turn on the television, read a newspaper, or even browse online without hearing about the business benefi ts of “social networking.” What is social networking, and how can it help build your business?

Loosely defined, social networking is nothing more than a group of people who share a common interest getting together online. It gives you the opportunity to create a virtual meeting place where your clients, prospects, vendors and even employees can talk about things going on in your company, ask questions, promote products or sales, and announce special events.

Social networking eliminates time zone differences, a huge factor for many. People from all over the state, country, and even  world can connect and communicate easily in real time, opening many doors that geographical boundaries once closed. In a nutshell: Social networking helps you stay in touch!

There are a myriad of social networking sites on the Internet, and each is geared toward a slightly different demographic or type of user. More than likely, you’ll want to participate in a couple different sites to stay in touch with the most number of people.

The most used sites for business networking include Facebook, LinkedIn.com, and Twitter. Don’t discount the value of participating in online forums and writing your own blog.

Facebook
Facebook (www.facebook.com) has become one of the most popular online relationship building sites. It’s a central point for a lot of different things, like posting status updates (what are you up to right now?), photo albums, and even videos. You can also keep up with what everyone else that you’re “friends” with on the site is doing – and in this case, friends can mean true friends, or business acquaintances.

When you log into Facebook, you’ll see all of your friend’s latest updates about what they’re up to – and when they log in, they’ll see yours, mixed in with other friends they have. Some people post every small detail of what’s going on in their lives, and others post infrequently or only when they have something truly important to say. Neither approach is right or wrong – what you decide to post is more of a personal preference.

LinkedIn.com
LinkedIn (www.linkedin.com) is probably the largest online business networking site. You can post your resume, join special interest groups, search for people you want to meet, and request introductions from your friends to other people you want to meet. That may be the most interesting thing about LinkedIn – think of it as an online “six degrees of separation.” Your LinkedIn network extends from your friends, out to friends they know, out several levels.

Twitter
Twitter (www.twitter.com) is a very popular new online meeting place. Twitter is what’s known as a “microblogging” site, because posts or updates you make are limited to 140 characters at a time. These entries are known as “tweets.”

Ping (www.ping.fm) lets you tie it all together. Ping is a service that will take your update and post it to all of your social networking accounts at one time.

Forums and blogs
Online forums are a great way to meet people who are interested in similar topics, and there are literally thousands of active forums online. It’s easy to participate, and you’ll fi nd a lot of forums are incredibly active. To boost your online exposure, which boosts your company’s profi le, look for forums that focus on topics your clients care about. Then, post answers to other people’s questions. You’ll quickly demonstrate your expertise.

It is easy to say that everyone (and every company) should have a blog, but the reality is, in order to be successful, you’ll need to blog regularly. You have to enjoy writing and be willing to commit to posting on a very regular schedule, or risk losing readers.

By becoming part of a social networking site, you’re not only opening your business to all World Wide Web users, you’re actually making your business more accessible to the public to be available to purchase your products and services. Connecting with other businesses also gives us the ability to share common ideas and practices in groups who share common ideas and business goals.

Choosing The Right Antivirus Software

Protecting your computer from spyware, viruses, pop ups and malware is one of the most important things you can do as a computer owner. Not being protected can lead to stolen information or just plain harm to the computer.

Some infections can sit in the background and wait until the right time to deploy. By having a good antivirus program you can protect your computer at all times. Here are some tips to help you choose the right antivirus software for your system.

Costs
When looking for the right antivirus software do not forget to compare pricing. Most antivirus software is fairly priced. Some well known antivirus software can be very pricy due to the well known name that the company has. One of the more affordable antivirus programs that I know is low priced, but has great quality. It’s called Etrust, and it’s made by Computer Associates (CA).

Automatic Updates
You can pay all the money in the world for a good antivirus program, but if the antivirus signatures do not update automatically then it is not worth it. Almost every computer user does not even pay attention if the antivirus is on or not – most just assume it is taking care of business. By having an antivirus that automatically updates it can help keep the antivirus software up to date and protect you from the newest threats.

Frequency of Signature Updates
An important part of the software is how often the software actually updates. They say that a new virus is created every four minutes. So good antivirus software sends out multiple updates every day to make sure the virus signatures are up to date on the most recent threats.

Active Scanning
Active scanning is another feature that is very good to have. Some antivirus programs only protect the computer fi les as they’re being used or access, and not all the fi les on the system. You want protection that is active all of the time, and scans files and programs as you access them.

By having it scan it will look through all fi les on the computer to make sure there are no sleeping threats on the system. Many infections will just keep coming back so having the computer scan every day helps protect from those types of infections.

Performance
When looking at antivirus software, you have to ask yourself: “Will it slow down my computer?”

If the software takes a lot of space and resources, you may fi nd it will slow down your system when it’s working. If you sit down and think of these topics before you rush into buying new antivirus software, I am sure you will get great software for your money.

Also there are many websites that will compare antivirus programs if you are worried about the safety of your computer.

If you have any questions or concerns about the best antivirus for you, please feel free to give us a call here at Tech Experts at (734) 457-5000.