Quality
Technology Solutions, Inc.
QTS
QuikNews � July 2001 � Issue 2001.7
July 30, 2001
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Welcome
to the July edition of QTS QuikNews, our Monthly E-Mail newsletter. In this monthly e-mail, you will receive an update of what's
new at QTS - new products we support, new patches and upgrades, solution
ideas and promotions to save you money, and information about our company
and our clients.
As
a QTS client, a prospective client we have had discussions with, or a
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this page, or call your QTS Account Manager.
Please do not respond to this e-mail.
This is an unmonitored account.
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IN
THIS ISSUE
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1.
QTS News
2.
Events
3.
Patches & Upgrades
4.
President�s Corner
5.
Special Offers & Featured Solutions
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QTS
NEWS
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QTS
ATTENDS NETWARE 6 PRE-RELEASE BOOT CAMP
QTS
had five CNEs attending the NetWare 6 boot camp in New York this past
week, and the staff�s feedback has been enthusiastic.
The two day session focused on new features of the operating
system, including full NSS support (the server mounts volumes in seconds,
not minutes), native access (browser based access to the file system, no
Novell client required) and clustering support.
QTS will be working with the beta version of the product and be
ready to deploy when NetWare 6 ships toward the end of the quarter.
MICROSOFT
END-OF-LIFE FOR WINDOWS 95
As
a reminder to QTS customers, please note that Windows 95 will enter the
�Non-Supported� phase of its lifecycle on December 31st,
2001 along with MS DOS and MS Windows 3.x.
This means that Microsoft will no longer provide support to
customers or QTS on this platform. Customers
with Windows 95 as their desktop operating system should be planning for
upgrades to either Windows 2000 or Windows XP.
Windows 98/98SE and Windows NT 4.x will be entering the Extended
phase on 6/30/2002 and will enter the non-supported phase on 6/30/2003.
Read
more at http://www.microsoft.com/windows/lifecycle.asp
or contact your QTS Account Manager for more information.
PERSONAL
PC PURCHASES IN PENNSYLVANIA TAX-FREE WEEK OF 8/5-8/12
Pennsylvania
will have a Sales Tax Holiday on personal computers (including related
peripherals) purchased by an individual for non-business use during the
week from August 5-12, 2001 and again February 17-24th, 2002.
For more information, visit www.taxfreepc.state.pa.us.
+++
FROM THE WEB +++
QTS
ANNOUNCES FALL SEMINAR SERIES
7/30/2001: Quality Technology Solutions, Inc. (�QTS�) announced its Fall 2001 Seminar Series, with a focus on Internet Security as the centerpiece of the educational events.
Read
more at http://www.qtsnet.com/stayinformed/l3_stay_pr16.htm
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EVENTS
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QTS
TECHNOLOGY ROUNDTABLE SCHEDULE
QTS
will supplement its fall seminar series with focused, small group
technology roundtables for its customers and active prospects (upon
invitation/approval by the account manager).
The roundtables will be held on Tuesdays from 12:30 to 1:30, over
lunch. The current roundtable
schedule is:
*
August 14th � Upgrading to GroupWise 6
* August 28th � Building effective eCommerce Solutions (David
Roth from Stratis Group will present)
* September 11th � Microsoft Software Licensing &
Compliance
* September 25th � Wireless Networking
Solutions & Issues (Cisco will present)
* October 9th � Desktop & Server Management with Novell
ZENworks OR NetWare 6 (TBD)
* October 23rd � Citrix MetaFrame XP and Thin Client
Computing
* November 6th � Introducing Microsoft Windows XP
* November 20h � Introduction to PKI and Digital Certificates
(RSA Security will present)
See
our web site at http://www.QTSnet.com/roundtables
for any changes or updates, and to register.
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PATCHES
& UPGRADES
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Call
the Customer Support Center to have us apply QTS-standard patches and keep
your systems current. The
following patches have been recently released and are recommended by QTS:
*
Novell NLS LSP v5.02 Deployment Tool (licensing patch)
* Microsoft IIS Patch for
�Code Red� Worm (see Microsoft
Security Bulletin MS01-033)
* Microsoft Windows NT Post-Service Pack 6a Security Rollup Package
Novell
NetWare 5.1 Support Pack 3 has just been released by Novell as part of the
Consolidated Support Pack, along with GroupWise 5.5 Enhancement Pack
Support Pack 3. We are
currently testing and evaluating this Support Pack and will advise in the
next newsletter if/when it is QTS-supported.
Note
that IIS HotFixes should NOT be applied to SharePoint Portal Servers, as
they are not necessarily compatible.
Check the Microsoft web site or call QTS for more information if
needed.
CA
InoculateIT 4.x signature files are currently at version 26.29 (7/26/2001)
and McAfee VirusScan/NetShield is at version 4150 (7/25/2001). Please keep your antivirus signatures current!
If you do not have your system set up to automatically distribute
updates from your server to your PCs, please call your QTS Account Manager
or the Customer Support Center.
Some
patches can cause problems, especially in combination with other software
programs or patch levels. Please
talk to us to verify whether we see any possible problems in your
environment before patching your systems independently.
We make best efforts to test patch combinations but cannot
guarantee compatibility between software and hardware manufacturers�
products.
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PRESIDENT�S
CORNER
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This
month I would like to discuss a topic that should be on the radar of all
business owners, MIS Directors or staff involved in managing PCs and
software licenses. There is a
flurry of activity in this area, and a general level of confusion that
I�d like to help address. Perhaps
you can build an action plan based on these clarifications.
First,
we have received a number of questions on Microsoft�s new licensing
changes that are going into effect now.
The program is confusing, in large part because there are four
different versions based on company size and purchase requirements.
Most QTS customers fall into the lower level, Open License � if
you have more than 200 PCs then you might fit into the Select plan.
Some key points to keep in mind:
-
if you are purchasing up to 5 licenses, then you qualify for Open License. Microsoft is encouraging license sales and discouraging
retail media sales for businesses;
- retail
media is going to require serialization and registration. This has already been in effect for some versions of Office
2000, and this new system is in place now for Office XP and Visio 2000,
and will be in effect for Windows XP.
Microsoft is trusting business users to police their licenses, so
the serialization is less �aggressive� for Open License media.
- all of the different part numbers and
choices are folding into two (relatively) simple components � the base
License, and �Software Assurance� which allows the license holder to
upgrade to new versions during the term of the license.
So, for example, a user who purchases two years of Software
Assurance with an Office XP license would be entitled to any future Office
releases during the two year term of Software Assurance.
The
licensing gets much more complex with the Select plan, which requires
roughly 200 users� licenses to qualify.
At the Select and higher levels, discounts increase and there are
more options, including longer license terms and the ability to break down
the cost into an annual fee. If
you qualify for Select, call me to discuss this further, and we�ll
schedule a meeting.
Second,
we have seen a sharp increase in license compliance related activity,
initially driven by Microsoft and the Business Software Alliance (�BSA�)
but subsequently by other software vendors.
Many of our customers have received letters either from Microsoft
or the BSA requesting (or requiring) a software audit and proof of
compliance. We do not know of any specific reasons these organizations
have been targeted, but since there is personal legal exposure for the
individuals who are responsible for software purchases and compliance, and
significant financial business penalties for the business, we have
recommended that they comply with the requests.
Software piracy is clearly an area that is generating significant
legal activity right now, and frankly it is an exposure area that you
probably don�t want to hassle with.
There is a great deal of controversy in the industry about the
aggressiveness of the campaign (see http://www.zdnet.com/eweek/stories/general/0,11011,2799089,00.html
for a recent eWeek article), but that won�t change the end result.
Microsoft and other manufacturers are focusing intently on ensuring
that businesses purchase appropriate licenses for the software they are
using, and these efforts will only intensify with more time.
Your
action steps for software license compliance verification should be to (1)
conduct an inventory of your PCs to determine what software is installed
on each one, (2) review your purchase history and confirm what licenses
you have purchased, (3) review your media and license files to verify what
licenses you have documentation for.
You will then be able to determine whether you are in compliance or
not, and what software (if any) you need to purchase to be compliant.
All of this information should be organized into a binder or file
for ready reference in the event an audit is required, and should be
maintained and reviewed on a quarterly basis (to prevent the need for a
complete, expensive re-audit down the road).
QTS can help you in all of these areas, and can implement software
inventory tools such as ZENworks for Desktops to verify your licensing use
and manage it on an ongoing basis. We
can also help you procure the software under Microsoft Open License, or
other vendors� programs.
QTS
will be holding a customer roundtable on September 11th to
discuss the new Microsoft licensing program and answer group questions on
the program changes that will be effective October 1st.
Visit www.qtsnet.com/roundtable
or call your Account Manager to register for the session, from 12:30-1:30
that day (lunch will be provided).
Feel
free to email me your comments or thoughts at nrosenberg@QTSnet.com.
Neil
Rosenberg
President & CEO
Quality Technology Solutions
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SPECIAL
OFFERS & FEATURED SOLUTIONS
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NETWARE
5.1 UPGRADE PROTECTION (INCLUDES UPGRADE TO NETWARE 6)
QTS
and Novell are offering customers the ability to upgrade to NetWare 5.1
today, and NetWare 6 when it ships, by purchasing Novell VLA Upgrade
Protection, plus get a year of future updates for free!
NetWare 5.1 is a reliable, manageable network operating system
platform, and is the mainstay current release of NetWare.
NetWare 6 will expand on 5.1 by adding improved scaleability and
performance, clustering support, Internet Printing, full NSS volume
support and native client access (no client is required!).
Contact your QTS Account Manager soon for more details!
CHECK
POINT SOFTWARE SECURECLIENT �TWO FOR ONE� PROMO
Check
Point Software�s SecureClient Personal Firewall software protects
individual PCs with a personal firewall, which is critical to security of
VPNs with PCs that have �always up� Internet connections like DSL and
cable modem. However,
SecureClient is unique in that it applies its security policies based on
the centrally configured and managed policies in the VPN-1 Policy
Database. From now to
September 26th, 2001, purchase a 25, 50, 100, 500 or 1000 node license,
and receive a second matching license free (two for the price of one).
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copyright
2001 Quality Technology Solutions, Inc.
This site last updated 08/31/07
� 1999 Quality Technology Solutions, Inc.
76 South Orange Avenue Suite 302, South Orange, New Jersey
07079
telephone: 973.761.5400
fax: 973.761.1881
email: info@qtsnet.com