The Challenge:
Customer required a secure computing environment and did not allow company proprietary data to leave the building in any form. Customer wanted to ensure that all data was not dependent on a single point of failure and securely backed up.
The Solution:
MACS suggested and implemented the use of Network Home Folders for all users in the office. All user data resides on a redundant central server system and not on each desktop. Copying data to portable memory devices, CD’s and DVD’s, has been disabled, and all email is monitored for compliance and blocked if suspect information is detected, thus ensuring all data will remain in-house.
Additional Benefits:
Having all data in a centralized server environment is beneficial for our backup solution, which performs incremental and full backups to the server regularly. The use of Network Home Folders has other benefits as well. Instead of setting up users on each machine, users can be managed in a centralized user database and can log into any computer on the network and access all of their data. All major system settings are controlled by system administrators from one central location. A standard operating system and applications software “image” ensures each computer is functionally identical, making software upgrades simple and fast. When a new machine is introduced to the network as an upgrade for an existing user or for a new employee, a few clicks are all that is needed to prepare the computer. New employees can be set up with email, computer, and network accounts in as little as fifteen minutes out of the box!
This speed provides the IT staff with high degrees of flexibility with replacing broken machines as well. When it is determined that a machine needs to be serviced or upgraded, a new or replacement machine can be provided to the user. After the user logs out of the broken machine, the hardware is swapped out, and powered on. In less than 5 minutes, the user then logs into the new machine just as they logged into their former machine. The only downtime the user experiences is the time it takes to deliver a spare machine and plug it in. The user’s files, email and even their desktop configuration appears on the replacement machine, and the user is able to pick up where they left off.
We have also implemented a series of XRAID servers to handle the large amounts of data needed to backup all email and network home folders.
The above technologies are only the foundation for the rest of our services to this corporation. We offer individual user training in Microsoft Office, Mac OS X applications, using Internet technologies and general best practices. We also consult regularly with our client on new technologies and applications ensuring their environment remains impenetrable and secure from outside viruses and threats.
