MSPNetworks Blog

If your business is looking to use technology beneficially, the ability to store data is going to be a major consideration you are going to have to confront. After all, not having enough storage space, or having too much, can be major problems for most businesses. Today, we’ll ask some of the most pressing questions you’ll need to answer to get the right (and the right amount of) storage space for your needs.

Storage is a major consideration, no matter your business. If you don’t have storage enough to house your cleaning supplies and instead have to leave them out in the hallway for everyone to avoid, it is a problem, right? What if unsightly clutter isn’t your biggest cause for concern? What if you run a furniture retailer, for example? Being in a position where you don’t have enough warehouse space available to keep your furniture in; or, you have too much warehouse space left over, will both likely end up being expensive.

Business Data

Every piece of your business data tells a story. Data is emails. It’s invoices. It’s every move your business makes. With that much data being kept, data storage has to be structured in a way where it will help the business. Since technology continues to evolve, this means data storage will as well.

The traditional model for data storage has been one made up of three tiers. You have storage facilities, servers that allow users to search those storage facilities and the networking angle that allows more users access to the data. Under this model, a business would have to understand exactly what data storage they need, and will need, for up to five years.

In many cases, five years is too long.

Today there are seemingly superior options that provide all the resources you need. Hyperconvergence is an IT framework that was created to deliberately reduce data center complexity and improve the scalability of physical hardware, while there are many cloud options available that deliver all the computing resources you need for an often-reasonably-priced  monthly payment.

In any case, there are options out there. But you need to know what to look for. Here are four questions you should ask.

1. What capacity do I need? - Understanding the amount of data storage your company needs is a major determination. Today’s cloud solutions are more scalable, but by considering what type of storage your company is ultimately going to purchase.
2. What about my performance needs? - Not all options are created equal. Some are faster and some offer huge storage capabilities. Knowing how you plan on using your applications and databases will go a long way toward helping you know which solutions will be right for you.
3. What does my current IT look like? - One consideration that has to be at the forefront of this process is what infrastructure do you already have in place. Knowing your current needs will help you ascertain how you are going to handle the future.
4. How will you handle your backups? - Every business has to have a backup plan. If you depend on data, you likely can’t afford to lose any of it without some blowback. Having a comprehensive backup and recovery plan will ultimately dictate what any new data storage will look like.

Finding good solutions for your company is important in any regard, but when you are talking about the storage of what is quickly becoming your most prized asset, you should take your time and find the solutions that will work and not hinder your ability to create revenue. Call MSPNetworks to get started finding the right storage for you today at (516) 403-9001.

Microsoft is the world’s most profitable software company, and if your business is like any of the millions of businesses that rely on Microsoft’s servers, you know they are both useful and secure. Occasionally, however, Microsoft will retire older software titles as they need constant care and support. On July 9, 2019, Microsoft will officially retire their SQL Server 2008 and SQL Server 2008 R2 operating systems. If your organization still uses this software there is no time like the present to get you systems updated, as losing support will be a major problem.

What is SQL Server?
Microsoft SQL Server is a relational database management system (RDBMS). SQL server is used to securely manage the storage and retrieval of, and access to, large amounts of data. Often line of business apps like your CRM system, inventory management, and other business applications use these databases to store their information.

That’s the exception here. Since the only reason you would need a database is if you had, or will potentially have, a lot of data, the only reason you would need a RDBMS is to manage the data within. In order to quickly retrieve the queried information, you need a management system that integrates with the applications you are using.

Essentially SQL Server is Microsoft’s Database Management Software, and with Microsoft software on the majority of enterprise servers in the world, plenty of people utilize Microsoft database products. If your business has been using one of the SQL Server 2008 versions, your time is running out to upgrade your SQL Server before you are put into a real bind.

SQL Server 2008/SQL Server 2008 R2 End of Life
As we come up on July 9, the 2008 versions of SQL Server will be losing their support. After previously stopping mainstream support in July of 2014, Microsoft has decided to pull the plug on SQL Server 2008 and SQL Server 2008 R2 five years (to the day) later. Organizations that don’t upgrade away from SQL Server 2008 or SQL Server 2008 R2 could be looking at immediate security problems and potential data loss. These factors could completely decimate your reputation, which could cause your entire business to collapse.

Your Options
For the business that is on the clock, they’ll need to consider moving quickly to upgrade their database management system. MSPNetworks can provide you with solutions that could completely change the way you look at your business. Today’s RDBMS is light years past 2008s in terms of integrations and intelligence. Any RDBMS can be locally hosted, but we can also implement a cloud-hosted database, that can be used to make your business even faster.

No matter what option you choose, you have to have your SQL Server migrated by July 8, 2019 to ensure that you have the security and data protection you need to keep your business’ most powerful asset safe. Call MSPNetworks today at (516) 403-9001 and see how we can help your business get all the technology it needs to succeed.