Top 3 Features a Managed Service Provider Should Provide to Your Business

top 3 features a managed service provider should provide to your business

A managed service provider manages all or part of your IT infrastructure. It is becoming quite popular among businesses in all types of industries to outsource technology management to a managed service provider.

Managed services can provide your business with access to enterprise-level technology, expert IT knowledge and support at a huge cost savings. Did you know that outsourcing converts fixed IT costs into variable costs and allows you budget effectively? In other words, only pay for what you use when you need it.

With the variety of managed service providers to choose from, it is difficult to decide who will be the best fit for your business. The biggest question being what will you get for your money?

There are a few key elements every managed service provider should offer. Keep the following in mind to help ensure your business receives the best of what managed IT services has to offer.

24/7 Monitoring

You can expect all managed server providers to offer some form of network monitoring. However, your service provider should monitor more than your servers and workstations. They should also monitor networked devices like firewalls, routers, and other important infrastructure.

Data Backup and Recovery Plan

When disaster strikes, your business could suffer significant data loss. Without a proper data backup and recovery plan, it is difficult and sometimes impossible to recover from major data loss. Your managed services provider should offer a solution that is best suited to your business.

They should backup your data on a regular basis and test your recovery plan often in order to make any necessary adjustments.

On-site Support

Although many managed service providers can handle most IT support issues remotely, there are some instances when an on-site IT technician can offer the best support. Having a managed service provider that is local is ideal for providing on-site support.

A technician can provide training on new software or troubleshoot issues on workstations. Your managed services provider should have enough staff to ensure you have on-site support when you need it.

When it comes to protecting your network, you want the best features at an affordable price. Our managed service provider agreement includes IT support and management for businesses of all sizes. 

Contact us today to schedule a free consultation.

Why Network Audits Should Be a Regular Part of Your Network Support

why network audits should be a regular part of your network support

According to this recent article, network auditing is the collective measures done to analyze, study and gather data about a network with the purpose of ascertaining its health in accordance with the network/organization requirements.

In order to maintain the safety and security of your network, it is important to have regular network audits included as part of your network support plan.

What is Network Auditing?

Network auditing allows IT technicians to study and analyze all of the information on your network. They can test the effectiveness of your network and identify any potential security issues that could damage your system. Once these details are found, any necessary changes are immediately made and your network is continuously monitored.

What Does Network Auditing Involve?

The network auditing process involves a network administrator mapping all computers on the network, including all of the software on each computer. The administrator inventories the software and checks for any delays or malfunctions.

After auditing of all computers and software, the network administrator can then move on to auditing all other network devices. These devices can include items such as routers, mobile devices, fax machines, and any other devices connected to the network.

The network auditing process is usually completed after auditing the network devices. All data is then analyzed by an administrator.

How a Network Audit Keeps Your Network Safe

A network audit can alert a network administrator to any changes on the network. For example, if a staff member installs unauthorized software that could cause harm to the network, the change is immediately reported.

Network audits also help with personal devices your staff may use in the workplace. Often times, staff do not take proper security measures with their own devices. The lack of security on personal devices could negatively impact your network.

Network auditing is an important part of network support. It is natural for changes to occur as new users and devices are constantly added to the network. Regular network auditing helps to ensure any potential security threats are quickly resolved before they can escalate into major problems.

Contact us today to schedule a free consultation. Our team of qualified computer and network engineers develop preventative, proactive, and reactive solutions for any IT environment.

Simplify Your Small Business With Managed IT Support

simplify your small business with managed it support

According to a recent article, in today’s fast-paced business environments, MSPs play an important role in helping companies leverage new technologies without straining their budgets or losing focus on their core business.

Keeping your network secure requires more than anti-virus software and strong passwords. There are dozens of cyber security threats that threaten your business on any given day. These threats can lead to major downtime which means a loss in productivity and revenue. Outsourcing your Florida IT support can help simplify your business and keep your operation running smoothly.

One of the biggest benefits to outsourcing IT support is that your business is no longer burdened with managing your IT network infrastructure. You place this responsibility in the hands of highly skilled technicians who monitor and manage your network 24 hours a day. You are left to running your business and IT support will take care of all IT administrative tasks.

How IT Support Can Simplify Your Business

Lowered Costs

Managed IT services can significantly reduce costs because there is no need to pay for salaries, benefits, training, continued education, and other expenses. Your business benefits from the latest in technology and expert support without breaking the budget.

Enterprise Level Support

Many small to mid-sized businesses do not have the financial means to operate an in-house IT department. With managed IT services, your business can receive the same support, if not better, from IT experts with various skills and experience.

Improved Network Performance

A slow network that cannot keep up with the demand of your business makes working a frustrating process. System crashes and hours of downtime leads to an unproductive work environment and a major loss in revenue. Managed IT services place their focus on your network’s overall performance and security. They help ensure your network is working efficiently which minimizes downtime and supports the growth of your business.

Outsourcing your IT support is one of the easiest and ways to simplify your business. Managed IT services removes the hassle and worry of managing an ever-changing network.

We are a managed services provider offering proactive IT maintenance and support. Contact us today for a free consultation.

Common Tech Issues a Managed Service Provider Can Resolve

common tech issues a managed service provider can resolve 2
managed service provider


Businesses don’t always run smoothly. There are obstacles along the way that impact productivity and efficiency. Technology issues are huge obstacles that can create major problems that affect productivity.

According to this article, Managed Services is the practice of outsourcing day-to-day IT management and computer network technical support as a cost-effective method for improving business operations, instead of having a full-time on-staff IT personnel.

Many times, business owners are not even aware of how some technology issues can decrease efficiency and affect overall revenue. Below are some of the tech issues that often rob a company of time and money when left unresolved.

You will also have a better understanding as to why a managed service provider can help resolve these issues.

No IT Policies in Effect

Having an IT policy in place is essential for helping to prevent security breaches and other IT issues that could bring down your business for hours or even days. When policies are not put into effect, it is too easy for employee errors to cause technical issues. The best way to prevent security issues is to audit your processes and use security best practices at all times. A managed service provider can work with you to create an IT policy best suited to your business.

No Data Backup Process in Place

Unfortunately, many small businesses do not have a regular backup process in place. This is often due to lack of follow through, budget restrictions, or poor planning. Without proper backup procedures, your business is at risk of losing data and will lack the ability to recover in a timely manner, if at all. A managed service provider can create a continuity and contingency plan to keep your data secure.

Ignoring Mobile Security

Many businesses provide mobile devices to employees or allow employees to use their own devices. Security issues occur when these devices are not included as part of your IT systems. These devices should have the same level of protection as your desktop computers, servers, and network. Most managed service providers offer encryption and remote wipe services for mobile devices. They can incorporate all mobile devices used for business into your IT security plan.

IT issues can cause tons or problems that can have a huge negative impact on your company’s productivity. Security breaches, data loss, and massive downtime can affect revenue. A reputable managed service provider can help your company keep IT related issues from becoming major problems.

Contact us today to find out how we can assist you. Use our knowledge and resources to your advantage and find out how you can make full use of our managed services.

Types of Cloud Computing

types of cloud computing
types of cloud computing

As society transitions into the age of technology, cloud computing is gaining traction as one of the number one ways to do business on the internet. While there are several benefits such as disaster recovery, document control, and security, it’s important to know the different types of cloud computing to see which one will work best for your business.

According to this article, in order to truly understand how the Cloud can be of value to an organization, it is first important to understand what the Cloud really is and its different components.

The Internet, along with its various processes, is filled with technical terms and instructions that are hard to understand.

We’ve broken down the types of cloud computing for you to decide what you would like to try

First, let’s establish a definition for cloud computing: what is it? It’s basically computing based on the internet. Files are shared, stored, and edited over the internet for various people to access.

There are 4 main clouds that are classified based on location, that are further classified as you will soon see. These four are public, private, hybrid, and community clouds. Let’s take a look at these a little closer to understand what they are all about.

Public

In the public cloud, the host of the cloud has primary control over it. This cloud is shared between organizations, and the customer has no control over it.

Private

This private cloud is dedicated to a particular organization or host and isn’t shared amongst other organizations as opposed to the Public cloud. While private clouds are more expensive, they offer more security in comparison to Public clouds. There are two types of Private clouds:

  • On-premise: This is also known as an “internal cloud”. It provides protection, but is limited in size and scalability. On-premise private clouds are best used for processes that require complete control and configurability of the infrastructure and security.
  • Externally hosted: These types of Private clouds are used exclusively by one organizations. One difference between this Private cloud and a Public cloud is that it is hosted by a third-party that specializes in cloud infrastructure. They are cheaper than on-premise private clouds.

Hybrid

As you can probably guess, this type of cloud is a cross between Public and Private clouds. Critical applications that require maximum security will be hosted on Private clouds while less security concerned applications will be on the Public cloud. This can also be called “Cloud Bursting”. For companies that handle a large computing requirement, this can ensure things run smoothly. The organization will use their own computing infrastructure for normal usage and the cloud will handle higher loading requirements.

Community

This type of cloud includes computing infrastructure that is shared between organizations of the same community. To clarify this point,  think of all the government organizations in the state of Florida. They may share a computing infrastructure on the cloud to manage data related to citizens residing in Florida.

Consider the size of your business, the traffic is acquires, and the biggest problems you would like to avoid when handling company information. Do you need maximum security? Do you share an infrastructure with multiple organizations? Incorporating the cloud into your business with maximize efficiency, as well as profits.

For more information about the cloud, or how to incorporate the cloud, contact us today.