Posts filed under '3rd Party Software'
As the quantity and importance of data that organizations generate grows, the process of backing it up becomes increasingly difficult. Magnetic tape, long considered the de facto backup solution, no longer satisfies the demanding service levels required for many backup and recovery environments. Shrinking backup windows, increased demands for immediate data recovery, and inherent reliability problems associated with tape are driving interest in new backup solutions.
On December 6, 2006, the editors of Ziff Davis Media, Network Appliance, Symantec and top Forrester analyst, Stephanie Belaouras will review, research and examine issues facing customers globally and offer recommendations for deploying backup and recovery solutions. Attend this live, interactive Virtual Tradeshow for a comprehensive look at key concerns shared by your peers and the backup and recovery and the solutions they are deploying.
While not specifically SBS oriented, the principles of course are the same no matter what system you’re using so there should be something of value for all of us.
Register today and explore:
- Key challenges facing customers globally around backup and recovery.
- How other companies are integrating disk- based technologies within traditional tape backup environments in the data center and remote offices.
- What disk-to-disk technologies are being adopted and why.
- The best evaluation criteria for comparing backup and recovery solutions for your specific environment.
- User stories on successfully deploying the latest generation of disk to disk backup solutions.
November 27th, 2006
There is of course, no true one size fits all when it comes to a business server infrastructure. Besides the typical constraints such as budgets, existing equipment, etc. you also have to contend with items such as legacy applications in the backoffice, multi-office scenarios, and much more. However we are constantly being asked questions regarding ‘what’s the best…” when it comes to equipment, software, and management tools for deploying Microsoft’s Small Business Server. To that end we have gathered up our favorites and evaluated discussions on the forums and newsgroups on these various topics to come up with our Ultimate SBS Configuration List. This list of hardware and software components is known to work well together since we have deployed it in dozens and dozens of our own client installations and is validated through the hundreds of other deployments by others.
- Server: Dell PowerEdge 2800.
We really like this product for its solid lineup of internal components, but mainly because it is by far the most flexible server we have ever come across. With multi-processor options of varying speeds and huge expandability you can configure this server for a small baseline business for less than $1500 all the way up to a mid-size firm fully decked out for over $10k. From a reliability perspective the thing just runs. The only server that has ever come close to having as solid a performance record as these have so far was the fantastic PowerEdge 2650. It’s a true monster in size but you can buy this in a minimal configuration today for your nascent business without worrying about having to replace it in a couple of years as it can expand right along with your organization. If purchasing SBS as a preinstalled OEM package with your server you should know that Dell is doing a much better job these days of insuring that there is adequate space on the system disk. Most vendors in the past (including Dell) tended to shortchange the system drive when it came to the partition size and really make it a pain to manage.
- Backup Software: Veritas Backup Exec For SBS. Sure you could use the built in backup tool with Small Business Server if you want…..but I sure wouldn’t. This robust suite features backup, restore, disaster recovery, single
drive library support, Exchange Server, SQL Server, and SharePoint
Services protection and recovery. A select family of powerful agents
and options deliver robust storage management tools to meet diverse
application needs for growing and upgrading storage management
capabilities. Now includes continuous disk-based data protection
helping eliminate backup windows, improve reliability, and deliver the
first web-based file retrieval functionality. In addition, the Desktop and Laptop Option (DLO) has turned out to be one of the best benefits of this package when it comes to backing up your individual company computers. Note that it now comes in two flavors, one for Standard Edition and one for Premium. The only real difference is that the one for Premium edition comes with the SQL Server backup option, so please order accordingly. - E-mail Tools/Management: GFI MailEssentials.
It seems odd to me that one of the tools that we now consider indispensable with any SBS installation is for functionality that you typically don’t think of when putting together your initial procurement list. But without question this is the one product that we simply insist on. Its main function is that of an anti-spam product for MS Exchange, but in addition it also adds functionality such as disclaimers for your e-mail messages, simple email list management, a more advanced POP-To-Exchange tool, etc. We could easily write an entire article on why doing anti-spam at the server level is so much better, and so much more important, than doing it at the email client level but this is one of those items that we just say “Trust Us”. Buy it. We have never had anyone complain about that decision. Besides, it’s cheaper than buying anti-spam software for each computer in your company anyway. - AntiVirus (Server/Clients): Sophos Anti-Virus SBE . This is by far the most contentious, most difficult question to answer…and probably the most asked. The truth of the matter is that we like the Sophos solution mainly because the procurement, deployment, and management can be done across both servers, desktops, and laptops all within a single product and a minimum of fuss. In addition we are not fans of “all inclusive” products that rollup
firewall, spam, anti-virus, etc all into a single product within a corporate environment. That narrows the field pretty massively with just those two requirements. So, in our Ultimate Configuration this product makes the most sense. But we also like Kaspersky, and NOD32 products with their lightweight footprints and high detection rates. Management and deployment however will take up a lot more of your time to get everything configured correctly. Regardless of which product you use in this category, please insure that any anti-virus product running on the SBS server has all of the exclusions necessary or else you could find yourself in a heap of trouble. - Backup Mechanism:
We have recently become huge fans of disaster proof hard drive systems. In fact, we are working with a manufacturer as we speak to develop one built specifically for SBS installations. In a nutshell, these are external hard drives encased in waterproof, fireproof enclosures. Typically these are USB and/or firewire and sometimes a NAS configuration, however we will be offering SCSI and eSATA options on our own units. Why is this such a big deal? In small business environments using a tape drive rotation usually means that you have a policy but it’s often forgotten, tapes gets overwritten, etc. And when you want to restore data you never seem to be able to actually put your hands on the tape you need. Don’t get us wrong, we aren’t anti-tape, we order an inexpensive internal tape drive with every server we buy. We just don’t like depending on human intervention in mission critical processes if they aren’t going to work. And as hard drive prices have decreased, and storage usage increased, the cost of tape drives and media capable of backing up all of that data is still very costly. We figured why not just use inexpensive disk-to-disk backup processes. It’s faster, it’s automated, and no tapes to remember and catalog. That’s great except for one thing….what if the building burns down, what about a flood, etc. Enter the disaster ready drive. Solves all of those issues. We’ve never looked back. We still use the inexpensive internal tape drive for periodic “archives”, but that’s it.
Future Items To Be Added (Additional)
- Remote Control
- Exchange Anti-Virus
- 3rd Party Firewall
- Router
- Wireless
- Desktop Software Config
- Laser Printer
- MultiFunction Printer
July 1st, 2006
A pretty solid list. Our lists focus predominantly on very narrow topics but this guys general list should point you to just about anything you need for accomplishing whatever it is you’re looking to do.
I want to – a page of utilities that help you do stuff you want to Web 2.0 applications
“I want to…” or “I need to” or “How do I?” These are all questions we all ask all the time. This is a small collection of resources that will help to answer those questions. It is not complete, nor will it ever be. I will be adding to this on a regular basis, so feel free to bookmark it and come back and visit. Now listing over 350 applications.
June 25th, 2006
Microsoft tonight announced a new partnership with Creative Commons, the organization dedicated to providing content producers a legal alternative to “all rights 
reserved� copyright law, to offer a new tool for easy insertion of Creative Commons licenses into works created with Microsoft Office.
June 22nd, 2006
Currently this startup only has its website in a private beta (you can sign up here ), but it’s another example of “social networking” done right in my opinion. No, no, I’m not talking about another Digg.com or Del.icio.us, this is a different type of social networking. In this case it is basically an intelligent barter service. You list something that you want to trade, and immediately you see people who also have things for trade that are interested in the type of item that you listed.
The power of computing and intelligent filters obviously make it possible to match you up with what you are looking for and vice versa, but the thing that I’m impressed with so far is the professionalism of the interface. Unfortunately for SwapTree, the thing that makes or breaks sites like this is volume. And volume is sort of like charisma….you either have it, or you don’t. Let’s all hope that they get the volume, because it could truly be a useful service (well, for at least 6 months until it’s copied and they are bought out).
What I’d like to see added is collaborative filtering technology so that you could easily find other people who like the same types of things that you do (similar to the LikeMinds technology I worked on in a Levi’s web project several years ago)….and then keep track of anything they place for offer on the site. One can dream…
TechCrunch provides an insightful review of the service, use the link below to the article.
TechCrunch » Blog Archive » Swaptree Update, First Screen Shots
Matt Ridings
MSR Consulting
June 22nd, 2006
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