#hosted solutions

The telephone cemented itself as a valuable tool of business long ago, but the ways that businesses use these devices have changed over the years. Thanks to advancements in technology, telephones can still be used by businesses even today, albeit with some modern adjustments to stay competitive and useful. One of these telephony solutions is Voice over Internet Protocol, or VoIP for short.

  Let’s look at why you might consider a VoIP solution for your business.

Advantages of Using a VoIP System

A VoIP system can bring with it many advantages over your traditional telephone system, including the following:

  Cost Savings

The biggest benefit you might glean from using VoIP is how much money you’ll save per month. With VoIP, the costs are simple: you set the system up and configure it, purchase any equipment you might need (you usually already have this hardware on-hand, since you can use a desktop, laptop, or smartphone to run the application), and set up accounts which you pay for on a monthly basis. Since it already uses your Internet connection, you won’t be paying for additional unnecessary utilities.

  Operational Flexibility

Landline telephones mean that you’re generally stuck in place while using them, so if your team isn’t on-location to take the call, it will be missed. You can get around this challenge through the implementation of VoIP. You can answer your phone on any mobile device as long as you have the app installed on it. This makes remote or hybrid work easier to fulfill, and your team will enjoy more communication and connectivity than ever before.

  Intercompatibility and Capability

VoIP might be an improvement over your current phone systems, but its features expand well beyond your typical phone service. In addition to all of the features you come to expect from phones, like voice calling, you get other features like instant messaging, voicemail compatibility, call forwarding, conference calling, and so much more, all in the VoIP software. You truly get more value for less with your VoIP system.

Take Advantage of VoIP Today

VoIP is the ideal telephone solution for your business, so what are you waiting for? Get started today by giving us a call at 484-546-2000.

The cloud has been a good resource for business for quite a while. Just how good? Currently, nine-out-of-ten businesses operate with some type of cloud-hosted solution. In fact, by the figures, we’re definitely looking at a cloud-hosted future. We thought it would be interesting to take a look at some of the cloud computing stats and trends to paint a picture of just how the cloud has grown up.

Cloud for Business

For the longest time there was a misconception out there that the cloud would never work for business. Many hardware manufacturers wrote it off as a niche technology suggesting it wasn’t secure or reliable enough. While it is laughable now, people listened, and for years businesses were reluctant to use cloud technology for anything but email. 

  At the same time companies were using AWS (Amazon Web Services) to make huge jumps. Now cloud technology, whether hosted on a data center in some other location or hosted onsite, is one of the most utilized and popular technologies in contemporary times. In fact, the global cloud computing market is expected to exceed $620 billion by the end of 2023. 

The Types of Cloud Computing

There is some confusion out there about how businesses utilize cloud computing, but really there are only three ways the cloud is set up. They are:

Public cloud – When a business takes advantage of a public cloud, they’re using services provided over a publicly-accessible network, usually by an external third-party vendor. Public clouds are particularly useful for start-ups or smaller business ventures, as they are often affordable and readily accessible. This also means that the responsibility of a self-hosted cloud isn’t placed on your business’ shoulders; however, there’s a notable lack of control provided by the public cloud.

  Private cloud – In direct contrast to the public cloud, the private cloud is generally hosted in-house on a private network. This allows for greater data security through the use of security-augmenting devices and applications.

  Hybrid cloud – A hybrid cloud solution is like the middle ground between both public and private clouds. An example of a hybrid cloud is one that allows your business to host confidential corporate data on-premises in a private cloud, while taking advantage of a public cloud for the rollout of mission-critical applications (i.e. Software-as-a-Service).

  These are really the only deployments there are, but with a hybrid setup, it adds in many more variables such as a control layer and how storage is used between cloud solutions. Either way, many businesses use the cloud today for their core operations. Let’s take a look at some of the most popular cloud options: 

  Line of Business – Many businesses have chosen to host their line of business software in the cloud. While they lose control over the management of the software, they do pick up some serious benefits including anywhere/anytime access to the software with an Internet connection and cost stabilization provided by the hosted environment.

  Productivity – Today there are numerous software titles developed just for productivity. Titles like Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace are two of the most utilized cloud productivity options. They provide the software needed to be productive with integrations designed to enhance collaboration.

  Communication – Technologies like Hosted VoIP are revolutionizing business communications, providing businesses with the telephone system and conferencing features they need to connect remote and in-house teams, alike. 

  Security – Today, there are many network security tools available through the cloud. Not only does this reduce the management costs a business is responsible for, it also ensures that, since it is delivered as a service, it gets the coverage it needs to keep their business secure.

  For modern business, the cloud is an indispensable tool that can help reduce organizational computing costs by up to 40 percent. If you would like to learn more about how the cloud can help your business succeed, give us a call today at 484-546-2001.

Email is a solution that your business uses just about every single day, and as one of your central methods of communication, you need to consider how it’s managed and maintained. Thankfully, modern businesses have more choices available to them than ever before, some of which are so hands-off and easy that they can completely change how a business views their email.

  The typical business might choose to host their email management system in-house on their own server infrastructure. While there are various benefits to doing so—chiefly, the security benefits—the same challenges that also apply to server management in general, apply to email server management. The hardware and software need to be effectively managed and maintained, a process which might include updating the operating system with security patches and updates, keeping the hardware in proper working order, and ensuring proper climate control so that the devices do not experience difficulties with operations.

  Furthermore, email access can also be challenging when your email is exclusively hosted on an in-house infrastructure. Unless your infrastructure has cloud capabilities, your employees will have limited access to their email while outside of the office. It’s also important that your systems are appropriately secured and backed up, which can be stressful to manage for an in-house team, especially if IT is not necessarily your forte.

  The alternative is email hosting through a managed service provider, and it solves most of the problems associated with email management. Rather than hosting your email system in-house where you are responsible for taking care of it all, you can outsource these responsibilities to a managed service provider who hosts it on their own infrastructure. The managed service provider takes on the responsibilities of managing and maintaining your email system. This ensures that the system is taken care of adequately, as small businesses frequently have trouble keeping up with the maintenance of IT resources like email servers.

  Infradapt can help your business manage and maintain its email solution. We can even host it on your own infrastructure so you don’t have to worry about it at all! We can take care of all the challenges of protecting, backing up, and maintaining your email solution so you can focus on what matters most: running your business.

  Don’t wait any longer; all it takes is one phone call to change the way you do business forever. To learn more about email management and other technology services we can provide, reach out to us at 800-394-2301.

The cloud is a tool that businesses can use to improve operations in a variety of ways. Through the use of the cloud, businesses can dramatically alter the way they conduct themselves, many of which can reduce costs. If you implement cloud solutions, you can expect them to improve accessibility, enable scalability, and improve flexibility, all of which contribute to cost savings in the long term.

The Cloud Improves Accessibility

One of the greatest benefits of working with cloud computing solutions is that the data and applications for accessing this data are made more accessible. Due to the online nature of the cloud, these resources can be accessed in a moment’s notice, allowing your team to get work done wherever and whenever they can, be it on company-owned devices or their personal devices. With this amount of accessibility, you’ll never have to be concerned about work not getting done due to resources not being available.

The Cloud Allows for Scalability

Adding or removing licenses for software applications can be a tough task to handle, especially for larger workforces. The cloud allows you greater control over your software licenses and grants the ability to scale your workforce according to your specific needs. Most cloud software solutions are delivered on a subscription basis, so it’s just a matter of creating an account and ensuring the user has access to a device capable of running that cloud solution. This type of scalability can help you eliminate unnecessary costs.

The Cloud Improves Flexibility

Employees are generally more productive when they are using devices they are comfortable with, and cloud solutions give them the ability to work with a smartphone, laptop, desktop, or tablet of choice. They essentially grant access to services and applications that can be accessed on any approved or applicable device. This means they aren’t limited to the work laptop assigned to them that they are perhaps uncomfortable using due to the operating system. This type of flexibility can empower your team to get work done on their own terms and encourage productivity.

  If you are ready to implement cloud solutions that can help your business cut costs, then you should begin by contacting Infradapt. We can help you identify the best opportunities to save money while implementing new cloud solutions. We can perform a network audit that can identify opportunities for improvement.

  To learn more about our services, reach out to us at 800-394-2301.

You may already be familiar with the concept of hosting your business’ technology on your own in-house network, like a server unit, but some businesses struggle to manage hardware like this effectively. In all honesty, you can get largely the same benefits of an in-house server through a hosted solution. Nowadays, the cloud makes utilizing cloud services easier than ever.

Traditional Hosting

Small businesses often have trouble with more traditional methods of application hosting, mostly because many do not have the space to dedicate to traditional hosting. They also may run into issues related to more limited budgets or device procurement; even if they do get the right technology in place, maintaining it properly can be the last straw.

  Managed service providers give small businesses access to professionals they may not be able to hire outright, meaning that they can also host your business’ hardware and applications effectively. Infradapt is one such provider; with our cloud services, your small business can get the technology you need without having to spend large chunks of capital. Whether you want us to host your email service, your line-of-business applications, or even your VoIP system, we’ve got you covered. You might be surprised by how much a cloud hosting service can improve your operations and workflows!

Cloud Hosting

Cloud hosting is something that can only really be discussed after complaining a bit about the limitations of traditional hosting. It used to be the case that you could only host your applications on your own infrastructure, but now you can host applications and infrastructures right in the cloud using virtual hardware. This type of anytime-anywhere access is a particularly good investment for businesses.

  You might be surprised to learn that most services your business implements can be deployed or accessed through the cloud, as long as you are working with a cloud provider to handle the responsibilities of managing and maintaining the infrastructure. Outsourcing these responsibilities can lead to your organization investing more of its time and energy into other endeavors, including some that can yield a greater profitability.

  Infradapt can be your business’ go-to resource for anything cloud-related. To learn more about what we can do for your business, reach out to us at 800-394-2301.

  The cloud is a popular choice for businesses that need access to tools to sustain operations, but there is an innate flaw that comes from hosting anything in an online environment: security. Do not pretend that security is not an issue for your cloud-based resources—failing to acknowledge the importance of security could be a fatal mistake for organizations that leverage cloud-based technology resources.

Misconfigured Cloud Settings

Cloud tools and solutions can work quite well, but they need to be set up properly first—particularly in the realm of security. Due to its nature as an accessibility and communication tool, the cloud must ensure that security is kept at the top of mind so as to avoid data breaches and vulnerabilities. Make sure that you are reviewing, checking, and confirming that your cloud’s security settings are correct on a regular basis so as to not put your organization at risk.

Ineffective Access Controls

The cloud allows resources to be accessed from more than one location, a benefit that simplifies remote work and makes it more accessible to small businesses. Your team will need to know how to effectively utilize these resources to ensure they can get the job done, but you must also do your part to allow or restrict access to important data or applications as needed. A cybercriminal can lean into ineffective access controls set by your organization, too, for if they manage to get their hands on credentials for a network administrator or someone with upper-level privileges, you can bet that they can cause a lot of damage. To protect from this, it also helps to build secure passwords.

Targeted Attacks

Look, it’s no secret that there are countless threats out there, but the fact that the workplace has grown exponentially more connected over the past several decades means that there are more avenues than ever for cybercriminals to make their way into your infrastructure. What’s worse, cyberattacks are quite lucrative and easily repeatable, and due to the sheer number of different threats out there, hackers can switch their tactics up based on what they think will be most likely to succeed against your business.

  Depending on your type of business and the compliance regulations of your specific industry, a data breach might mean much more than simple data theft. It could mean fines, lost confidence in your market, legal action, and even costly compensation. Other threats might try to harm your productivity, like Denial-of-service attacks and ransomware, with the latter being particularly devastating. You must be prepared for not just the cyberattacks we have outlined here, but for all potential threats that can derail operations. It all starts with a solid preparedness strategy.

Employee Behaviors

Your cloud solutions—especially in regards to security—will only be as effective as the team members that utilize them. If you don’t teach them how to use your solutions in a secure way, you are putting yourself at greater risk of cybercriminal activity. The other side of this is when the employees themselves are the danger, abusing the permissions they have been granted and using them in a way that is destructive to your business. Since the cloud is so accessible, it can be difficult to know when this is happening for your company, but it’s not impossible.

Turn to us for help with dealing with these cloud security challenges.

Industry professionals like Infradapt can help your organization identify, prepare for, and respond to cloud security threats. To learn more, reach out to us at 800-394-2301.

With cloud computing being utilized by a majority of businesses nowadays, it’s not as big of a surprise when one wants to move files from a locally-hosted server to a cloud server; or, from a cloud server to a new cloud server. This presents a fair amount of problems that you have to be mindful of if you want to move the data and applications over properly. Today, we’ll take a look at some problems you may face, and how to make sure they don’t weigh down your next cloud migration.

The Planning Stages

If you are moving part (or all) of your computing infrastructure to the cloud, you are probably familiar with the reasons businesses do so. That doesn’t mean, however, that you’ve given the process the attention it deserves. Like most things in business, a bad plan will likely result in a bad result. In order to complete a cloud migration that is effective for your business, you have to create a definitive strategy to get all of the information over properly, as data loss can become a major problem.

Data Protection

Speaking of data loss, protecting the data while it’s being moved is actually a significant problem. Enough so, that we thought it was important to mention. Data being moved from a physical server to a cloud, or from one cloud to another, is effectively exposed. This is one main reason why Infradapt suggests having IT professionals that are versed in the exact nature of data protection assist or perform the migration for you. This will ensure that you have the knowledge-base and experience needed to ensure your data stays protected during the migration.

Taking on Downtime

Downtime is a major consideration any business that is looking to perform a migration has to address. If you don’t have any regularly-scheduled time available to allow you to finish a successful migration, you may be looking at significant operational downtime. This can get expensive quickly. Many organizations will choose to set up a backup environment that will allow people to access the data and applications on the server while the changeover is happening, but this comes with a slew of other considerable problems. To minimize your operational downtime during a migration of any kind, it is best to notify all affected parties days ahead of time, and then try to fit the migration into a time period that isn’t going to saddle your company with huge payroll losses.

The Matter of Interoperability

Of course any new migration is going to have to work with the rest of your computing infrastructure. This process is actually much more difficult than you may think. So much so that interoperability is one of the most confounding issues during any cloud migration. While a lot of these issues are best confronted when performing due diligence, the ones that don’t can be a major drawback to moving hardware, applications, and storage over. Often it will take professional IT technicians to ascertain whether or not a certain piece of computing will work or if they will need to adapt the solution to the cloud platform itself.

Scale and Adapt

Cloud platforms, as a rule, are more scalable than any other computing construct. So on that front, there should be very little issue. The problem with that additional ability to scale up and back is cost. Some cloud solutions can get very expensive when your demands outweigh your capabilities, so understanding exactly what your needs are, and what you are paying for is important.

  As far as adaptability goes, it is a major issue for any organization that is moving from one platform to another. Having a baseline knowledge of how to manage anything is not like managing it day in and day out. Not surprisingly, the training required to properly utilize a new cloud platform can be substantial. Where there’s training, there’s only cost. This is where Infradapt can help the most. Regardless of what type of cloud computing system you’ve decided to use for your business, you can always count on our experienced technicians and consultants to help to make any IT transition palatable for your business. Call us today at 800-394-2301 to learn more.

Of all the technologies currently used by businesses, the Internet is a strong contender for the most important. Regardless of their size, many businesses invest thousands each month into online Software-as-a-Service solutions as a means of more affordably equipping their users. Let’s talk for a moment about another cloud platform that has seen some advancement: Infrastructure-as-a-Service.

An Intro to Infrastructure-as-a-Service

Infrastructure-as-a-Service essentially boils down to this—rather than purchasing the equipment and dedicating the space to host their critical solutions in-house, IaaS eliminates the need for native servers and transfers their functionality into a cloud environment. With the market for cloud storage and processing at $100 billion and counting fast, this has proven to be a popular option.

Cloud services like hosted desktop, which enables a business user to access specific software solutions, have been around for years. Over time, applications have grown to be much more sophisticated. Pairing this increased sophistication with considerable investments made into these services, it only makes sense that entire computing infrastructures can now be had via the cloud. With big names like Amazon, Google, and Microsoft all contributing, essentially all processes involving computers nowadays can be delivered in such a manner.

With IaaS in place, a company can enjoy its needed access to computing resources on demand without having to worry about the considerable upfront costs that would traditionally come with these capabilities. IaaS also helps prevent a lot of waste via overinvesting in necessary space. Along with its customizable resource allotment, the cloud and IaaS give businesses many additional benefits:

Superior performance – Your business’ IaaS platform is managed and maintained by the service provider, with all the tools needed to keep systems up and secure.

Powerful security – Security has been a crucial consideration for many years, so today’s cloud providers invest heavily in security.

Enhanced flexibility – Companies can access effectively unlimited computing resources, and it provides a lot of flexibility and scalability.

Built-in redundancy – Hosted infrastructure includes built-in redundancy, disaster recovery, and continuity options.

Consistent Pricing – Companies that are looking to make a move to IaaS, are normally doing so to avoid huge upfront and maintenance costs. While IaaS isn’t the consistent price that Software-as-a-Service options provide, IaaS does offer a transparent pricing structure and provides businesses that know their underlying traffic the means to successfully predict their computing costs.

For a business looking for value, IaaS can be a promising option. Call Infradapt today for a consultation into how you can best acquire the computing resources that support your business at 800-394-2301.