What is Remote Web Workplace (RWW)?

Windows Small Business Server gives people the flexibility to work from anywhere via Remote Web Workplace (RWW) and is available immediately once your server has been deployed by Comcity Technology.

Remote Web Workplace, a feature of SBS, is essentially a web site page that provides a very simple secure entry point into your Small Business Server network for remote staff.

RWW uses a secure protocol SSL to connect to your network server, this is the same secure protocol used for online banking. This means remote users can use the internet from any device to access business information and applications, including e-mail, shared folders and files.

You can authorise employees selectively to connect to Remote Web Workplace using any device connected to the Internet as long as that device supports Active-X. RWW also allows users to remotely connect to their desktop computer at the office remotely. With such connectivity users can enjoy a productive desktop experience similar to being inside the office.

For more information on how Comcity Technology can assist your business in this area please feel free to contact your Account Manager.

Microsoft Internet Explorer Update

Recently Microsoft issued a security advisory concerning real world attacks on a vulnerability in Internet Explorer. There has been speculation that this vulnerability along with others related to Adobe products were used in December’s China based attacks on Google and other US companies.

The reality of the situation is that to execute an attack this sophisticated would more than likely have been the result of obtaining confidential information directly from Google employees, as a hacker has to jump through many hoops to gain access to an internal network while also requiring network – not browser – vulnerabilities to be present.

Microsoft has explained that the vulnerability only affects Version 6 of Internet Explorer with the current version being version 8 whereby there is inbuilt protection in the form of Microsoft Data Execution prevention. DEP is enabled by default when running XP service Pack 3, Vista Service Pack 1 or Windows 7.

Microsoft has now released a security update to address this issue for remaining users therefore if you have any outstanding Windows updates to be applied Comcity recommends installing these to avoid any possible issues. If you and your staff are unaware on how to install these update or If you have any questions regarding this issue feel free to contact your account manager.

Total Cost of Ownership for I.T. Part 3

Server Virtualisation is becoming increasingly common. Virtualisation is effectively a software application which divides one physical server into multiple isolated virtual environments. These environments are also known as guests.

The benefits to utilising this technology are the key reasons for the dramatic increase in the use of products such as VMware, Microsoft Hyper-V and Citrix Xenserver today. These benefits are as follows:

Cost savings
In today’s business world IT is increasingly expected to do more with less while still meeting operational efficiency targets and SLA’s. With virtualisation and the ability to place multiple servers or roles on the one physical server greatly reduces capital investment. Many of today’s servers are able to host anywhere from 2-6 ‘guests’ or virtual machines enabling dramatic cost savings for businesses when looking at deploying new servers or Line of business applications..

Energy Efficiency
In addition to the potential upfront costs that are saved there are also the ongoing cost savings with reduced power consumption and cooling that would usually be required with multiple physical servers. Dependant on the number of physical servers required studies conducted by VMware indicate that by virtualising your core infrastructure you are able to save up to 80% on energy costs. The additional benefit of this cost saving is the reduction in your businesses environmental impact. At approximately 4 tons of Co2 annually per server any reduction in this area will not only help the bottom line but also the planet.

As Comcity is both a Microsoft Gold Partner and VMware Enterprise Partner we have deployed many Virtualised solutions to our client base. If you would like further information regarding potentially utilising these solutions for your business in future please feel free to contact your account manager.