March 2009 - Posts
Our advice: don’t bother. Keep your money.
We’ve never seen any hard evidence that there is any advantage in a so-called registry optimizer. Under some specific circumstances, they can be useful, but they can also do a lot of damage. The Windows Registry does not need to be cleaned in the same way that a disk benefits from regular defragmentation. If the registry has a problem, then that is best handled by a support professional and not an automated tool.
In terms of security software, this is what we like to see on a system:
- One (and only one) antivirus program to scan for malware in files and email.
- Windows Defender to protect against spyware, adware, browser hijack and so on.
- Windows Firewall for internet security
- Automatic Updates enabled and set to install critical/security updates daily.
- Windows Vista User Account Control enabled and users logged into Standard user accounts.
Microsoft DreamSpark enables students to download professional-level Microsoft developer and designer tools at no charge, to advance their learning and skills through technical design, technology, math, science and engineering activities. This program used to be open to College / University students only. Now it is open to high school students too.
For those of you with children at school who haven’t seen this yet, I hope that this will be useful for you. I particularly recommend Expression Studio 2 which has some excellent graphics design tools on a par with Adobe Illustrator, with the added advantage that you can directly produce XAML output to work in your WPF and Silverlight projects.
https://www.dreamspark.com/About/Overview.aspx
Accounting News Flash: Microsoft has announced a new version of its small business accounting software, Microsoft Office Accounting Express 2009 and Microsoft Office Accounting Professional 2009 for UK customers.
Office Accounting 2009 is a free upgrade to those who are already using the 2008 version. For new users, there is a free Express edition which is suitable for the majority of start-ups and micro-businesses to get up and running. More established businesses will want to upgrade to the £149 Professional Edition to gain access to additional features such as PAYE and job accounting.
According to Microsoft, the new features in the 2009 version are:
- 10 new reports(75 reports total) Includes Today's Sales by Customer, Most Profitable Customers, Open Invoices by Due Date, YTD Sales Compared to Last Year, YTD Profit Compared to Last Year and more.
- Amounts to Pay Today gadget View accounting information conveniently on your desktop with the Amounts to Pay Today gadget. The Amounts to Pay Today gadget only works with Windows Vista® [TPL: also works in Windows 7]
- Enhanced Find an Accountant online directory Helps prospective clients easily find local accounting professionals who are familiar with Office Accounting using improved postal search code.
Visit www.msofficeaccounting.co.uk for more information on Office Accounting.
TiGra Networks has been involved with Office Accounting since before its initial release in the UK, when we helped Microsoft test the product. We use Office Accounting for our own accounts and based on our experience, we can help companies migrate from their old accounting system, help you get set up with Office Accounting 2009, including customising your invoices and other forms with your company branding for that professional touch that sets you apart from other companies, and help you troubleshoot any problems if they arise. We highly recommend Office Accounting to our existing and potential customers.
One of the most difficult things in business is knowing what products and services to offer. As an IT and Communications specialist focusing on small business, I'm interested in what technology or business problems you have that need solving.
- Is there something in your everyday job that makes you think "there must be an easier way to do this!"?
- Is there a regulatory compliance issue you are having trouble meeting?
- Is there something that constantly gets in your way and kills your productivity?
- Is there something you know your business could do better but you’re not sure how?
The answer to these types of questions are what I really need to hear from my customers and potential customers. I give you my personal guarantee that you will not be contacted by a sales person unless you ask to be, but I’m really interested in your answers, even if you already use another IT company. I'm genuinely interested in adapting my services to meet real world problems that people have. So let me know – what is your major pain point?
You can send a Private Message here on the blog, email me direct, or phone me on 0845 8620518 (Click to Call) or drop your comments on this message.
Kudos to the BBC this week for (in my opinion) the best episode ever of Click, the BBC’s technology magazine programme. In this special edition of the programme, Spencer Kelly presents the results of a six month investigation into hacking and cyber crime. The programme demonstrates, for the first time on TV, how easy it is to purchase a 20,000 strong BotNet then use it to send spam and take down web sites using a DDoS (Distributed Denial of Service Attack).
The ease with which it is possible to do this is simply jaw-dropping. This has really brought home what a serious business cybercrime is becoming. I use the work ‘business’ deliberately. These are no longer hackers and vandals. Cyber crime means big money. The software is professionally produced by expert programmers, with high quality graphical user interfaces that anyone can use, and the botnets are cheap at just a few tens of dollars per 1,000 zombies.
At the end of the programme, Spencer announced that the BBC will be self-destructing their botnet, but not before changing each infected computer’s desktop wallpaper to a message from the BBC, informing them that “You’ve Been Clicked”.
The BBC must surely be risking prosecution as a result of this experiment, but I applaud them loudly for this information is clearly in the public interest. Anyone who doubts that cybercrime is a real problem should watch this special edition of Click. Get it now through BBC iPlayer, or from the BBC web site here: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/click_online/7932816.stm
As a parting shot, the programme gives some solid advice on preventing an infection. If you’re a business, you’ve simply got to understand that we are living in a new age. The Internet is becoming criminalised just like every other walk of life. To ignore this is to court disaster.
Talk to us about a security review! TiGra Networks offers this as a free service, so if you are in South Wales look us up at www.tigranetworks.co.uk.
Highly recommended viewing, for computer users and IT professionals alike.
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In my last article I described ways to encrypt and protect confidential data. Now I’d like to mention something that for most people is an inconvenient truth. That hard drive in your computer, at some time or other, is going to fail. No question about it. Hard drives are delicate, intensely mechanical devices, sensitive to shock, electromagnetic fields and are subject to wear and tear. Sooner or later, it will fail. When it will fail depends on the type of drive, where it is installed and how it is treated. Most consumer devices are warranted for one year, with server-class devices typically having a 3 or 5 year warranty. These warranty periods might provide a clue as to the manufacturer’s expected lifetime of the device. Laptop drives, however, are particularly susceptible to failure due to mechanical shock because they are often moved or jolted while operating (unlike most desktop and server drives, which remain stationary for their entire lives).
If you are a home user, it probably doesn't matter too much if you lose all your files, though it will certainly be a painful experience. For a business however, it is absolutely essential that you plan for a hard drive failure – and this applies especially to the many small businesses who run solely on laptops. According to a University of Texas study, 94% of companies suffering a catastrophic data loss will not survive – 43% don't re-open and 51% close within two years. According to HP, of the 13 million small businesses in Europe only around 50% back up regularly. Based on that, we can infer that around 7 million business in Europe are planning to fail.
Will your business fail when the time comes, or will your disaster recovery plan ensure is it just a minor inconvenience?
Hopefully, I’ve scared you into action. So what are the options? A backup strategy must take into account a number of factors, including budget, the types of devices to be protected, the importance of the data and the volume of date to be protected, the amount of acceptable down-time while data is restored and other factors. It is impossible to make off-the-cuff recommendations without discussing these factors in detail, but I’ll present the options and some of their pros and cons.
Backup to removable media (USB flash drive, external USB hard drive, DVD-RW, etc).
Pros: cheap
Cons: Needs self-discipline; high risk (reliance on single piece of media); cannot usually be automated.
Suitability: Home users and one-man businesses, but only if they have the self-discipline to make regular backups. - Online backup provider
Pros: no equipment outlay; automatic; backup stored off-site
Cons: Expensive in the long run; Usually charged per gigabyte per month which applies pressure to reduce what gets backed up; High bandwidth usage; slow backup and restore times.
Suitability: Small businesses with a small amount of data to back up; Probably not suitable for full-system backup; Useful where the business can tolerate extended down-time while the affected system is recovered. 
TiGra Networks Micro-business Backup Appliance
Pros: Low cost; Automatic; protects up to 10 computers; extremely fast backup and restore times. Very efficient use of backup media using single-instance compression technology.
Cons: Some initial equipment costs; media rotation somewhat difficult. Also provides file & print sharing and remote access to files and computers.
Suitability: Micro-business with up to 10 users or computers. - Small Business Server (with built-in disk based backup).
Pros: Software included in SBS; fast backup and restore times; automatic; easy media rotation and off-site storage.
Cons: Backup media must be changed daily (normally this is assigned to someone as a job responsibility).
Suitability: Excellent solution for most small businesses with up to 50 or so computers.
There are many other options which apply to larger businesses but those are outside the scope of this article. Note that all of the above options are disk-based solutions. TiGra Networks no longer recommends tape-based backup in the small business space. Different IT experts have different opinions on this, but in our experience disk based backup is just as reliable as tape (perhaps more so), more cost effective, faster and more convenient to use than tape and is therefore our preferred option.
We do not recommend online backup services for most business situations, although they can be useful for home users. They are the least cost effective option in the long run and typically result in only a subset of systems being backed up because of the per-gigabyte charges. They rely on fast internet connections and require that company confidential data is sent to a third party for storage. Full system backup is generally not practical because of the high cost and it takes too long to backup or restore an entire system. Assuming absolutely perfect conditions and an average 8Mbps/512Kbps DSL connection, a fairly modest 50Gb of data would take over 14 hours to restore and more than 227 hours to back up.
Backing up to removable media is a good solution for single users who have the necessary self-discipline. It is the cheapest option but is prone to human forgetfulness. We recommend two or more backup devices that are used in rotation. The backup devices should be at least as big as the drive to be backed up.
Our Micro-business Backup Appliance was developed to cater specifically for start-up and micro-businesses with up to 10 users or computers that are not yet ready to purchase a full-blown Small Business Server. The relatively small initial outlay gives outstanding protection that is adequate for most micro-businesses. It’s fast and efficient. The first backup takes 20 to 40 minutes for a typical PC, thereafter backups complete in around 5 minutes or less. A complete backup history is kept and because it uses a highly efficient storage technique, this can usually be retained for many months before backup sets need to be recycled. Individual files and folders can be recovered in minutes from any point in the backup history and an entire system can be quickly recovered in about half an hour. In addition, the appliance provides a central file store and enables users to connect over the internet and access their files, even log in to their office computer using remote control. TiGra Networks is able to use this remote access feature to offer a managed support service, allowing us to monitor the server, network and computers for problems and to provide help and support, without the expense of a callout. The appliance contains multiple redundant hard drives and all data stored on the appliance is spread across the drives so that it is immune to any single drive failure. The one disadvantage of this option is that it is somewhat awkward to provide any off-site storage. It is possible by plugging in an external USB hard drive and creating a backup of the appliance. The external drive can then be removed and carried off-site. This is a manual process that cannot be completely automated, though it is a straightforward operation. The appliance supports an absolute maximum of 10 users, but we think the risks start to become too significant beyond about 5 or 6 users. A 10 user company should already have graduated to a full-blown server.
The best option (we define “best” as the best overall combination of cost, reliability, usability and data protection for a small business with 5 to 50 users) is to use the built-in backup of a Small Business Server. We generally recommend a minimum of three external hard drives or solid state drives (attached via USB or a removable drive bay) to be used in rotation, with each drive capable of holding at least one full system backup. The drives are swapped regularly (usually daily) with one of the drives being rotated offsite weekly. At any given point in time, this results in one drive online, one on standby and one off site. This makes data loss extremely unlikely, since 5 or more drives would need to fail simultaneously for total data loss (2 drives in the server’s RAID array, plus all three backup drives). For added protection, more external drives can be added fairly inexpensively. Some IT experts are still in a love affair with tape backups, arguing that disks are more prone to damage from rough treatment. Our experience is otherwise. Hard drives are cheaper (per gigabyte), last longer (several years for a hard drive vs. 1 year for a tape) and are orders of magnitude faster than tape-based systems.
We all remember 2008 partly for the data protection fiascos that plagued the government and other organisations. Lost tax records here, missing social security information there, a top secret dossier left on a train. The sad thing is that ever since the encrypting file system was introduced in Windows 2000, it has been ridiculously easy to encrypt sensitive files. Easy when you know how, that is – like most things in IT.
Windows Vista introduced a better solution, known as BitLocker Drive Encryption. Bitlocker works with a special chip in your computer, known as a Trusted Platform Module, that stores your master encryption keys, performs integrity checks at boot-up and detects any attempts to tamper with the security. BitLocker uses the TPM to encrypt every piece of data on the hard drive. If your laptop (or server) falls into the wrong hands, or if the hard drive is moved to a different system, that data is completely useless and cannot be decrypted*. BitLocker is totally transparent to the user and to applications – just set it and forget it. The benefits of this technology are self-evident, particularly to laptop users and those who deal with sensitive confidential information that simply cannot be allowed into the wrong hands. Once BitLocker is enabled, you can relax in the knowledge that if your computer is lost or stolen, your data cannot be accessed.
BitLocker requires Windows Vista Ultimate or Enterprise editions or Windows Server 2008 and works best with a Trusted Platform Module. It can protect laptops, desktop PCs and servers. The hard drive needs to be correctly set up by your IT department or technology advisor prior to use, TiGra Networks offers this service either as part of our managed support plans or on an ad-hoc basis.
BitLocker can still be used without a Trusted Platform Module. It can be configured to use a PIN or a USB key to unlock the computer. The security is not as high, as a PIN can be inadvertently revealed or a USB key can be stolen along with its laptop. The PIN or USB key must be used each time the computer is powered on. This is not as convenient and places more responsibility on the user, so a TPM should be the preferred option.
* A note on encryption. There is no such thing as perfect encryption. All encrypted data can be decrypted, given enough time and enough computing power, using brute force techniques. However, with careful choice of keys and algorithms, a brute-force attack is likely to take a very, very long time, much longer than a human lifetime. So for all practical purposes, the encryption can be considered unbreakable.
These days, more and more software companies are releasing “beta test” versions of their software to the general public. People are downloading and installing these betas as if they were released versions. In the right circumstances this can be justified, but I am seeing an increasing number of users – especially in small and micro-businesses, installing beta software without really understanding the implications.
Internet Explorer 8 is a prime example and Microsoft is one of the worst offenders. Internet Explorer 8 is being actively pushed to end users on the Microsoft home page, no less, as if it were a released product. But it is not released and I already have customers who are having issues with it. At TiGra Networks, we participate in many beta test programmes so that we can quickly support our customers when the product is released. In doing this, we anticipate and plan for the disruption that pre-release software can cause, for example we might run new and old versions in parallel, ensure we have regular data backups and we expect to burn a certain amount of time providing feedback and working with the vendor to fix any problems. That’s acceptable to us, it’s part of our job, but for most businesses that would not be acceptable.
What is a beta, anyway? The definition varies from company to company, but Wikipedia has a useful working definition:
'Beta' is a nickname for software which has passed the alpha testing stage of development and has been released to users for software testing before its official release. Beta testing allows the software to undergo usability testing with users who provide feedback, so that any malfunctions these users find in the software can be reported to the developers and fixed. Beta software can be unstable and could cause crashes or data loss.
The last sentence (emphasis mine) is critical. Given that in most cases, there is no official support for beta releases, this could cause serious problems for computer users. In networks that we manage for our customers, we lock down the computers so that no software can be installed without approval. This keeps us in the loop and helps us keep control of the hundreds of toolbars, add-ins and pre-release software, many of which are harmful to business productivity. By locking computers down, we are not preventing the users from running any software, we will happily install whatever the user requests, but it gives us the opportunity for discussion and to point out the pros and cons of what the user wants to install.
In closing, assuming you have complete discretion over which software you install and run, please consider beta versions somewhat harmful. Before installing a beta, carefully consider your justifications and consider whether you are prepared to deal with lost time, crashes and potential data loss. Plan to mitigate any risk. Even better, hire TiGra Networks as your technology advisor and discuss the installation of any new software with us prior to installing it.
The introduction of Microsoft’s Small Business Server 2008 operating system is a signal to consider upgrading your server. Signs that you may need to upgrade:
- Your old server is getting slow or running out of hard drive space.
- Your old server was a ‘budget’ model without redundant hard drives, this is becoming an unacceptable business risk.
- The amount of storage you have is too big for you to back up properly.
- Many of your computers are now running Windows Vista
- Your data is sensitive and must be protected if the server is stolen.
- Your users complain that their mailboxes are too small.
- You need better document management, file sharing and collaboration systems.
- Your business has grown and the old server just can’t cope.
Windows Small Business Server 2008 requires a 64-bit server, so you may well need to upgrade the hardware as well as the software. For users in this situation, we suggest purchasing a new server with the premium edition of SBS, which includes a license for a second server. The old server – assuming it is in good condition – can be re-purposed as an application server, hosting databases, web sites or line-of-business applications, or it can be used as a firewall appliance or VoIP server.
TiGra Networks specialises in supplying, installing and supporting Windows Small Business Server. So what are the benefits of SBS 2008?
- Improved email server with support for much larger mailboxes.
- Built-in antivirus and antispam technology, protects your email and files.
- Anytime, anywhere access to your business desktop, including email, files, business applications, and more. Ideal for road-warriors and home office workers.
- BitLocker Drive Encryption protects the entire server storage rendering it useless if stolen.
- Better support for Windows Vista computers (and forthcoming Windows 7, later this year).
- Keep your computers and servers current and your network healthy and up to date with the latest updates, automatically.
- Get an at-a-glance snapshot of the security and health of all your PCs and servers. Know that you are secure and protected.
- Improved document management, file sharing and collaboration. Templates for common applications make it easier to customise for your business.
- Improved high speed disk-to-disk image based backup, no more slow tapes, faster backup and restore times.
- Work confidently with a top performing network based on Windows Server 2008 technologies.
Why TiGra Networks? Simply, we are the Small Business Server experts and we have the credentials to prove it. Our technology specialist is a qualified Microsoft Small Business Specialist and has been awarded the highly-coveted Microsoft Most Valuable Professional designation for his expertise with Small Business Server – one of only two in the UK and unique in Wales. We are therefore uniquely qualified to help you with your technology. Our managed support plan is the perfect companion for your Small Business Server computer network. We proactively monitor your server and network health and act to fix any problems often before you know you have them. In so doing, we keep your investment running at peak efficiency helping you stay productive and minimise down-time.
Every now and then, a new piece of technology comes along that changes the way you work. Many of you will have seen me scribbling notes at the various meetings and events I have attended on my Tablet PC. The built-in handwriting recognition, together with Microsoft Office OneNote, made it the ideal tool for taking notes at meetings, filling in forms, conducting site surveys and all kinds of other things that a conventional laptop was just too clumsy for. The screen clipping shown here (click the image for a full size version), taken by OneNote of OneNote, shows some research I was doing into mobile devices back in 2005. Note that the handwriting is indexed and fully searchable and that the web clipping conveniently remembers where it came from.
The Tablet PC was good, but something was missing. I later realised that it was the touch sensitive screen that was so common on PDAs. Tablet PCs used a stylus containing some kind of radio transponder to determine the pen location, the stylus tip was pressure sensitive, but the screen itself was lifeless, just a screen. Touch screens had been essential to the success of mobile devices like the HTC Blue Angel, shown above, and made a comeback with the Ultra Mobile PC (aka Project Origami) but once again we were forced to trade off form factor for features. Larger than a PDA and running a full-blown edition of Windows Vista, the Ultra Mobile PC was capable of running all the same software as your desktop PC, but in most cases lacked a keyboard. Nevertheless, the touch screen meant that the keyboard could be 
displayed on-screen and this form factor was workable in a lot of situations. For me though, the lack of screen real-estate was an issue. I liked the size of my Tablet PC, it was a bit bulky but I was prepared to live with that for the extra usability and convenience of a full size screen and a real keyboard, when I needed it.
Finally, here is a new device that I am genuinely excited about. Dell has announced the Latitude XT2 – a Tablet PC, convertible between traditional laptop and slate configuration, plus a touch screen. Not only touch, but multi-touch. If you’ve ever seen a demonstration of Microsoft Surface, you’ll understand what multi-touch can do. Surface uses very different technology but it does show off the benefits of multi-touch extremely well. At TiGra Networks, we are already beta-testing Windows 7 (the successor to Windows Vista) which has built-in support for multi-touch and this will surely be a killer combination for all the road warriors out there. I know I will be trying to find room in my budget for one of these when Windows 7 launches later this year.
If you need a mobile PC, need to take a lot of notes, need to take your PC to site visits, if you don’t like typing, then the Latitude XT2 could be your dream PC. You can (of course) purchase one from TiGra Networks, we’ll probably be able to beat Dell’s web price. If you need your mobile computer to be encrypted in case you carry sensitive data, we specialise in that.