As you can imagine, businesses large and small alike are making their network security a top priority. It might not seem like a lot of cash, but Gartner estimates that about five percent of of a business?s annual IT budget is dedicated toward security. Of course, not all businesses need to spend the same amount on IT, since their needs vary by industry; yet, it can?t be emphasized enough that security is an imperative part of your IT infrastructure. There are a lot of threats out there that can potentially ruin your business, but how can you justify investing in a solution to prevent something that isn?t guaranteed to happen at some point or another? The answer is to take preventative measures. By protecting against potential threats, you can avoid expensive repercussions. This is what White Mountain IT Services?s managed IT solutions are all about. We prevent issues from turning into bigger problems. How do you go about deciding how much your business needs to spend on IT? You can start with an IT security assessment from White Mountain IT Services. A Network Security AuditIt?s not always easy to determine how much your business should spend on your IT security. With a comprehensive network security audit from White Mountain IT Services, we?ll take a look at the inner workings of your network and find weak points that need to be patched up. You?ll gain access to our trained IT professionals who know technology inside and out, and we can consult you on how to move forward. White Mountain IT Services?s Unified Threat Management (UTM) SolutionMore often than not, small and medium-sized businesses find that an enterprise-level solution designed for larger businesses is beyond their price range; but with White Mountain IT Services?s managed IT services, we strive to give small and medium-sized businesses the security solution they deserve at an affordable price. We call this security solution our Unified Threat Management (UTM) device. It combines a firewall, antivirus, spam-blocking, and web-filtering solution to take comprehensive security measures against any kind of threat. Backup and Disaster Recovery (BDR)Furthermore, White Mountain IT Services provides a solution that can help businesses like you recover their data rapidly following a data breach, natural disaster, or hardware failure. We call it our Backup and Disaster Recovery (BDR) solution. This device takes multiple snapshots of your data throughout the day, then sends it off-site to await recovery when it?s needed most. The BDR device can also act as a server in the event of a disaster, which means minimal expenses from downtime will accrue. If you?re ready to take advantage of proactive IT solutions that will save your business money, give White Mountain IT Services a call at (603) 889-0800.

Technology is expensive. We know that. That?s why it?s important to identify problems with your hardware, and either correct them or replace the machine before it causes expensive downtime. Here are three signs to look for to detect an incoming hard drive failure. Your System?s Speed Is SufferingYour computer?s speed can be an identifying factor if you think that there?s some sketchy business going on behind those panels. A PC shouldn?t be lagging, especially when at the workplace. These machines should be optimized for productivity, and when the system keeps freezing, you know there?s something wrong with it. In this case, it?s often a hardware-related issue, and should be addressed immediately. Frequent Computer CrashingYou know that the dreaded blue error screen can?t possibly mean anything good, but did you know that this ?blue screen of death,? can signify that your hardware is failing? One way of telling whether it?s the hard drive or not is if you can access files stored on the device. If the computer crashes when you try to open these files, it?s likely that the hard drive is experiencing difficulties. Strange, Unprecedented SoundsNaturally, that clinking sound that your PC is making probably doesn?t hint to normal functionality. In general, the more sound your computer is making, the more likely that your hard drive has just about bit the bullet. If it sounds like there are parts grinding inside your computer, chances are that something is wrong. Listen for abnormalities and contact a trusted technology professional, like those at White Mountain IT Services, to help you assess the damage before it gets worse. The SolutionIf you?re always on the lookout for problems, they can distract you from what your job really is, running your business. You shouldn?t have to put important meetings or tasks on hold out of fear that your technology will stop operating properly. This is where managed IT services from White Mountain IT Services come in. We take proactive measures to ensure that your technology continues to operate even in the darkest of times. If you?re worried about your technology biting the dust when you least expect it, we can monitor it for discrepancies which might cause complications, like downtime, security vulnerabilities, and even problems with core functions. We can implement vital patches and upgrades to your systems to ensure maximum security. Just give White Mountain IT Services a call at (603) 889-0800 to learn more.

Take a moment and think back to when Windows XP expired just last year. Remember how some business waited until the absolute last minute to upgrade? Some business owners made the executive decision to pay gratuitous amounts of revenue for extended support. Other users, like the average consumer, ignored the warning, and some still continue to use an unsupported operating system, running the risk of being hacked. Regardless, waiting until the last minute to upgrade your operating system isn?t the best way to approach an expiring software. Unlike the Windows XP end-of-support, businesses who run Windows Server 2003 generally have a plan to upgrade. In fact, according to a survey from Avandade, 80 percent of business owners have a go-to plan for upgrading away from Windows Server 2003. This shows that businesses and consumers tend to respond to end-of-support dates much differently. However, if you haven?t so much as thought about upgrading your server?s operating system, you should strongly consider doing so. You have until July 14th to find a replacement for Windows Server 2003. Microsoft will provide support up until the end-of-support date, but after that, you?re on your own. If you don?t upgrade before then, your operating systems will be without vital patches and upgrades that are necessary to achieve maximum security. Hackers are probably already watching and waiting to see if any unwary business owners are going to forsake updating their operating systems. For large corporations with well-funded in-house IT departments, upgrading right away generally isn?t a cause for concern. However, a medium-sized business might have trouble finding the time to dedicate to upgrading and replacing hardware. Ian Stephan, HP?s vice president and general manager for servers in EMEA, described this risk to V3.co.uk: For most small companies, it’s a relatively simple transition. They are probably buying one or two servers every three or four years and the next server they buy will have an up-to-date operating system version. The customer that worries me is the one that has 30 or more servers, probably of mixed ages, and they may have heard something about the end of life deadline, but they may not be doing anything about it. Companies that are rapidly growing will probably see the most trouble when it comes time to upgrade their server. A medium-sized company probably won?t have an IT staff that?s flexible enough to drop everything and take care of general maintenance. With their technology professionals stretched too thin, important tasks can?t be tackled with the certainty that they?ll be completed properly. Stephan explains that these companies also probably run multiple servers with varying applications and operating systems, making upgrading more complicated. Additionally, the SMB doesn?t have the freedom to upgrade hardware every few years. Introducing new machinery into your IT infrastructure takes time, and a lot of SMBs simply don?t have it in their budget to handle a task like this regularly. Thanks to White Mountain IT Services?s managed IT services, handling these issues becomes much easier. We can integrate regular maintenance into your IT routine, and we can apply the latest patches and security updates to your systems whenever they are released. This makes it much easier to achieve maximum security and efficiency without the hefty price tag. Of course, it?s not always as simple as it seems. Even a simple server […]

As an SMB, you may feel like the major corporations have the advantage because of their sheer size and buying power. While this definitely is an advantage, there is one thing that an SMB has on the big boys; the ability to make a quick decision and act on it. A major corporation has so many departments, branches, employees, managers, and red tape that it can take a painfully-long amount of time to decide on something and move forward. For example, a fast food chain restaurant will spend years developing and testing a new menu item before it?s released, whereas the owner of a single restaurant can effectively compete by offering new and exciting menu items on a daily basis. As the owner of an SMB, if you?re not doing everything you can to leverage this quick-decision-making advantage, then you’re rendering your company?s most powerful competitive resource inept. One common way for a business owner to cut themselves down at the knees like this is to neglect the performance of their main communications hub, i.e., their network. InformationWeek explains: One advantage of being an SMB is the ability to react more quickly than larger competitors. But if your company network is frequently down, sluggish, or unsecured, that competitive advantage is eroded. Time spent troubleshooting problems with your network equates to time not spent communicating ideas and moving company initiatives forward. The same can be said for a computer network that?s underperforming due to poor maintenance, as well as computers that are constantly being slammed with hacking attacks due to poor network security. InformationWeek goes on to describe how a properly working network can make the competitive difference: A secure, reliable, self-defending network based on intelligent routers and switches provides your business with maximum agility by providing reliable, secure access to business intelligence. What?s more, a secure, reliable network infrastructure provides the necessary foundation for a number of efficiency-enhancing technologies and solutions, such as IP communications. This is where managed IT services from White Mountain IT Services can help your business be more competitive. By outsourcing the management and maintenance of your company?s network, we make sure that your company?s computers are operating at optimal efficiency. This will free up your staff from having to deal with IT problems, which will make your business more agile at adapting to the needs of your customers, providing your business with the competitive edge. To discover how the competitiveness of your network can be improved upon, call us today at (603) 889-0800 for a free IT consultation.

Take a moment and think back to when Windows XP expired just last year. Remember how some business waited until the absolute last minute to upgrade? Some business owners made the executive decision to pay gratuitous amounts of revenue for extended support. Other users, like the average consumer, ignored the warning, and some still continue to use an unsupported operating system, running the risk of being hacked. Regardless, waiting until the last minute to upgrade your operating system isn?t the best way to approach an expiring software. Unlike the Windows XP end-of-support, businesses who run Windows Server 2003 generally have a plan to upgrade. In fact, according to a survey from Avandade, 80 percent of business owners have a go-to plan for upgrading away from Windows Server 2003. This shows that businesses and consumers tend to respond to end-of-support dates much differently. However, if you haven?t so much as thought about upgrading your server?s operating system, you should strongly consider doing so. You have until July 14th to find a replacement for Windows Server 2003. Microsoft will provide support up until the end-of-support date, but after that, you?re on your own. If you don?t upgrade before then, your operating systems will be without vital patches and upgrades that are necessary to achieve maximum security. Hackers are probably already watching and waiting to see if any unwary business owners are going to forsake updating their operating systems. For large corporations with well-funded in-house IT departments, upgrading right away generally isn?t a cause for concern. However, a medium-sized business might have trouble finding the time to dedicate to upgrading and replacing hardware. Ian Stephan, HP?s vice president and general manager for servers in EMEA, described this risk to V3.co.uk: For most small companies, it’s a relatively simple transition. They are probably buying one or two servers every three or four years and the next server they buy will have an up-to-date operating system version. The customer that worries me is the one that has 30 or more servers, probably of mixed ages, and they may have heard something about the end of life deadline, but they may not be doing anything about it. Companies that are rapidly growing will probably see the most trouble when it comes time to upgrade their server. A medium-sized company probably won?t have an IT staff that?s flexible enough to drop everything and take care of general maintenance. With their technology professionals stretched too thin, important tasks can?t be tackled with the certainty that they?ll be completed properly. Stephan explains that these companies also probably run multiple servers with varying applications and operating systems, making upgrading more complicated. Additionally, the SMB doesn?t have the freedom to upgrade hardware every few years. Introducing new machinery into your IT infrastructure takes time, and a lot of SMBs simply don?t have it in their budget to handle a task like this regularly. Thanks to White Mountain IT Services?s managed IT services, handling these issues becomes much easier. We can integrate regular maintenance into your IT routine, and we can apply the latest patches and security updates to your systems whenever they are released. This makes it much easier to achieve maximum security and efficiency without the hefty price tag. Of course, it?s not always as simple as it seems. Even a simple server […]