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Welcome to the September 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.
In this issue:
-
QTS and Partner News
-
Events
-
President's Corner
-
QuikSecure Tip of the Month
-
Patches and Upgrades
-
Product Support Lifecycle Watch
-
Solution Spotlight
-
Special Offers
-
Partner Spotlight
QTS AND
PARTNER NEWS
QTS IS HIRING!
QTS is recruiting for mid and senior level technical
personnel. If you know anyone who might be a good fit,
please have them submit their resume to Liz Meechan, our
Office Manager. Liz can be reached at
lmeechan@QTSnet.com, or (973)984-7600 x223.
PRODUCT NOTICES AND ADVISORIES
TERMINAL SERVICES CAL TRADE-UP ENDING SOON
Due
to a change in the way Microsoft licenses Terminal
Services as of April 2003, customers may be eligible for
free Terminal Services Client Access Licenses (CALs).
With the release of Windows Server 2003, the �built-in�
CALs under Windows 2000 were
eliminated. However, customers owning Windows XP Pro
receive a free Terminal Services CAL for each XP
license. These licenses must be processed by 12/31/05,
however, when the transition program ends. For more
information, visit
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsserver2003/
howtobuy/licensing/tscaltransfaq.mspx.
EVENTS
QTS
and Microsoft
are hosting an Executive Solutions Briefing for small
and medium business customers (25-500 user
environments). Join
us for this informative, 3 hour event to learn how your
organization can benefit from new Microsoft technologies
and solutions, and what tools and resources are
available to you from Microsoft. Microsoft and QTS will
also review the benefits of Software Assurance, discuss
available promotions that can save you money, and review
the roadmap for upcoming product releases and features.
We will also present on key Microsoft initiatives such
as Trustworthy Computing (Microsoft�s security efforts),
the Dynamic Systems Initiative and the integration of
Microsoft�s Business Solutions offerings. This event
will provide valuable information to any Microsoft
customer! Join us on
Thursday morning, November 10th at
Microsoft�s Iselin NJ office or on
Thursday morning, December 1st at Microsoft�s
New York City office. Contact your QTS Account
Manager to register for these events, or follow the web
links above. Note that a signed Microsoft
Non-Disclosure Agreement is required for attendance at
these events.
QTS,
New Horizons and Microsoft are hosting a half day
seminar on Tuesday, November 15th at New
Horizons in Iselin, NJ on how to implement a Secure and
Well-Managed Infrastructure. In this event, QTS will
present on how Windows Server 2003 and Exchange Server
2003, combined with Microsoft�s management and security
technologies, can help to provide a reliable and secure
platform for employee productivity. Microsoft and New
Horizons will discuss how employee training can enhance
productivity and effectiveness, and how to leverage
Software Assurance benefits, including training
vouchers. For more information or to register, contact
your QTS Account Manager,
click here, or visit
www.clicktoattend.com and enter event code 104165.
Back
to Top
PRESIDENT'S CORNER
Many
of you who have been reading
QuikNews for some time are quite familiar with
our �10 Steps� columns, some of which are soon to be
released as QTS White Papers. This month, I�d like to
try to provide you with another 10 Steps series, this
time on a very �hot� topic in light of recent events in
the Southern U.S. � Disaster Recovery.
STEP
ONE: ESTABLISH KEY ASSESTS
A
Disaster Recovery or Business Contingency effort should
start with identification of key assets and definition
of the impact of asset loss. This is a critical step �
you need to know what you�re protecting and what its
value to the business is, to define how it should be
protected. We do this routinely in our
QuikSecure Security Policy
engagement and our new QuikRecover
Disaster Recovery Plan engagement � essentially, you can
pull your business team together in a conference room
and brainstorm on all the key assets of the business �
electronic, paper, physical, etc. � and identify the
impact of potential loss. This exercise allows you to
determine, based on the impact of loss, the appropriate
method of protection.
STEP
TWO: DETERMINE THE RECOVERY WINDOW
You
need to determine the Recovery Window for each asset �
how long can you go without access to this resource.
Clearly the recovery plan is going to be very different
if your IT assets can be unavailable for 3-5 days
following disaster, versus a mandate of being up within
3-5 hours. However, since this difference has a huge
cost impact, it is important that this decision � asset
by asset � be tied to the business value of the asset.
�Knee jerk� reactions such as �everything needs to be
available in hours� are not only unrealistic, but don�t
allow the IT team to set and manage against priorities.
Conversely, some of your systems may have a 1 hour (or
less threshold), while others may be fine if they are
operational the next day, and this allows the IT team to
focus on the most important systems first. This
requires consensus and input from your management team �
hence the value of the exercise in step one, when done
properly.
STEP
THREE: DEFINE SOLUTIONS
The
third step builds upon the first two, and here we define
the appropriate approach and solutions based on the
Assets and the Recovery Window. An e-commerce web site
may need to be operational at all times since it is
customer-facing, and this dictates co-location and
possibly data replication. Email may need to be
available within hours � but depending on the
requirements, the solution could vary between
replication of the whole email system versus �turning
on� a secondary web-based email site. Conversely, an
accounting system might be fine if the Finance staff can
be up and running in 24-48 hours, which possibly maps to
a tape backup/restore solution. Each Asset, based on
its defined value and Recovery Window, can then have an
appropriate DR solution identified, with a commensurate
budget that maps back to business value and impact.
STEP
FOUR: DRAFT A DR PLAN
Based on these preliminaries, it is now time for the
fourth step - developing a draft DR Plan. This plan
will dictate a number of key elements � not only
what are the assets and how
they will be protected, but also key
communication-related elements. Furthermore, the
process for assessing damage to the existing site, as
well as mitigating/minimizing damage, needs to be
considered. How will employees get to the DR site, and
what if employees cannot get to the site (i.e., severe
human loss at the primary site or travel/transportation
issues) � what is the true emergency plan for recovery
and staffing key functions?
STEP
FIVE: ESTABLISH A COMMUNICATION PLAN
Our
fifth step is actually a key subset of the DR Plan:
identifying the communication plan � who is responsible
for �declaring� a disaster, and what is the
communication chain? Does IT simply assume it should
fail over systems, or is this a
business decision � not all disasters are obvious,
either in scope or duration. For example, if there is a
building-wide power failure, how long does the business
wait before switching over to backup systems? Aside
from declaring a disaster and initiating recovery
process, what is the communication plan to employees?
To customers? To suppliers and partners? To the
general public? All of this requires some level of
planned thought, and management buy-in. Equally
important, who is responsible for each element, and who
are the backup personnel? Are they trained, and are
there �out of band� communication channels to initiate
key communications and activities?
STEP
SIX: DR SITE PLANNING
Assuming the above 5 steps have been put in
place, the next step is to
implement the systems or capabilities required to
deliver the plan. In most cases, this will involve
definition of some type of disaster recovery site.
There are three primary types:
o
A
�Hot Site� is a site that has live communication links,
working systems and real data (typically with real-time
data replication), ready for an immediate or
near-immediate failover of operations;
o
A
�Warm Site� typically has live communication links and
some amount of hardware, but typically requires
installation of software and/or restoration of data from
tape or another media format � typically in a span of
hours or a day before the site is operational;
o
A
�Cold Site� typically is a facility where your staff can
go to when a disaster is declared, and which may have
external communications, but which does not typically
have pre-existing hardware, software or data.
Obviously, the cost associated with a Hot Site is vastly
different from that of a Warm or Cold Site � hence the
importance of the initial steps defining importance,
business value/impact to thus determine the suitable
investment level to properly protect the business.
There are several ways to implement data replication in
a Hot Site scenario, ranging from timed copying of files
or database backups (least automated/expensive) to using
replication software such as NSI�s
Double-Take, to SAN-level replication (most expensive
and complex).
STEP
SEVEN: ACCESSING DATA AND APPLICATIONS
The
seventh step is defining the appropriate mechanism for
access to your data and applications. In the old days
(not so long ago, really), this typically meant setting
up rows of PCs and phones at work tables and desks, for
staff to work from the DR site. With the prevalence of
universal connectivity, the more modern approach is to
have some computers and work space at the DR site, but
the majority of users connecting via VPN from home
computers, laptops or remote sites. Some applications
are web-server based and therefore lend themselves to
this approach, but most applications even today are
32-bit Windows-based, and for these applications
technologies like Citrix MetaFrame
Presentation Server and Windows Terminal Services allow
these �thick� applications to be run over low-bandwidth
links from think client systems. In effect, this
approach extends the DR site worldwide if needed, and
significantly improves the capability of businesses to
integrate more employees into the DR plan as needed.
STEP
EIGHT: DOCUMENT THE DR PLAN
The
eighth step is an absolutely critical one � document the
plan. Although we developed a draft DR plan in step 4
above, in this step it is important to develop a more
detailed plan for each system on exactly what to do to
implement failover to the DR site system, and also to
then implement failback to
the original systems (this can include messy tasks like
data synchronization and re-load) when appropriate �
such as in the case of a power outage or less permanent
disaster situation. This is actually something I refer
to as System Recovery Plans, which are subset components
of a Disaster Recovery Plan. These plans need to be
very specific and detailed � in the middle of a crisis,
you don�t want to leave much open to interpretation, and
you may not be sure of the identity or skill level of
the people implementing the plan.
STEP
NINE: TEST THE DR PLAN
Now,
it is time to Test The Plan! Only through a real test
will the staff be familiar with what to do in the event
of a disaster, but equally important, through this
process you can identify the gaps, inconsistencies and
errors in the plan. It is much better to identify
problem areas in a test than in a real disaster. Again,
you don�t want to leave things open to interpretation in
the middle of a pressurized, stressful situation. This
first test is absolutely critical, and should be re-done
annually (along with keeping the plan current and
�fresh� as your systems change).
STEP
TEN: REFINE AND RE-TEST THE DR PLAN
Finally, the 10th Step is to refine the plan
and its documentation, and conduct a re-test based on
this revised and refined version. The second test
should be much smoother than the first, and should put
you in a position where you are ready to execute against
the plan in a real disaster recovery situation. Again,
the re-test should be an annual activity in your IT
business plan.
As
many of you are planning 2006 budgets or are chartered
with implementing a DR plan, hopefully these 10 Steps
will help you. QTS is finalizing and launching its
QuikRecover Disaster
Recovery Plan service � a productized consulting
engagement similar to our Security Policy Development
engagement, and is helping customers implement their
Hot, Warm and Cold Site solutions based on this
methodology. We will also be running a series of events
on this methodology with Microsoft, NSI and Citrix in
the near future, so pay attention to the Upcoming Events
section of QuikNews. If we
can be of service to you around your DR efforts, please
don�t hesitate to contact me.
As
always, feel free to email me your comments or thoughts
at
nrosenberg@QTSnet.com. Thank you.
Neil Rosenberg
President & CEO
Quality Technology Solutions
Back
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PARTNER SPOTLIGHT
This month QTS is spotlighting its business solutions
partner, AKA Enterprise Solutions (also known as
Interdyn AKA). AKA
is a highly focused solution
provider that provides services around Microsoft
Business Solutions � currently, the Dynamics (formerly
Great Plains) and Axapta
accounting systems, and Microsoft CRM, as well as
related eCommerce and application development services.
These solutions are a great fit for most of QTS�
mid-market customers.
For more than a decade, AKA Enterprise Solutions has
been a leading partner dedicated to the sales,
consulting, service and support of Microsoft Business
Solutions. AKA Enterprise Solutions provides solutions
that address Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP),
Customer Relationship Management (CRM), e-Commerce and
Business Process Consulting and Custom Application
Development.
AKA�s dedication and focus on the Microsoft Great
Plains, Axapta and Microsoft
CRM products benefits their clients by providing
increased access to knowledge and dedicated resources
for all areas of customer care. As a certified Microsoft
Business Solutions partner, AKA shares Microsoft's
commitment to long lasting customer relationships
exemplified by a 93% client customer retention rate and
consistently high satisfaction ratings.
AKA Enterprise Solutions has been the recipient of
numerous industry awards and national honors that serve
to reflect the combined talents, innovation, and
enthusiasm of the team members. AKA was the 2001
recipient of the Eagle Award, the highest award given to
Microsoft Business Solutions partner organizations
recognizing strong leadership, a commitment to
excellence and extreme dedication to customers and
partners. Of the 4,000
Microsoft Business Solutions partners worldwide, AKA is
routinely ranked within the top fifteen companies in the
world. As part of their dedication to Microsoft Business
Solutions, AKA has maintained the only North East
certified Microsoft Great Plains Education Center for
the past three years.
As an InterDyn company, AKA
Enterprise Solutions offers clients the advantage of
specialized talents and industry expertise of each of
its locations to maintain the highest quality of
customer care services. With more than 500 certified
professionals in locations around the world,
InterDyn supports over 3,500
customers- making it the largest, most
comprehensive, and most
experienced Microsoft Business Solutions partner
worldwide. For more information about AKA Enterprise
Solutions visit
http://www.akaes.com, or contact your QTS Account
Manager.
QTS and AKA Enterprise Solutions work together for our
customers to build new solutions that create competitive
advantage, reduce costs or create opportunity - with QTS
providing the infrastructure and AKA the software
solutions, in a highly integrated fashion.
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