Investing in managed IT services for your Austin business is a smart move that offers several key benefits. From reduced downtime to automatic backups and more, you’ll find it’s well worth the minimal investment. But what exactly does a managed IT service provider do?
What would happen if your company’s server was abruptly wiped clean without warning? Would you be able to continue operating at normal levels? For most companies, the answer is no. According to a report published by the National Archives & Records Administration (NARA), 93% of U.S. companies that experienced a data loss for 10 or more days filed for bankruptcy within just one year of the incident. NARA also found that half of all businesses without professional data management during their downtime filed for bankruptcy protection immediately.
Partnering with an Austin managed IT services provider will ensure that your company’s data is backed up on a regular basis and that it’s done correctly. Hopefully it will never happen, but if your data is ever lost — be it fire, flood, hardware malfunction, theft, etc. — you can get your company back online in virtually no time at all.
It’s bound to happen sooner or later: you or another member of your company’s staff encounters a network-related error. You try and resolve the issue through normal means like rebooting and resetting, only to discover that the problem persists. By partnering with an IT firm, you can rest assured knowing that professional technical support is just a phone call away. They will be there to offer first-class support for all your IT-related needs, educating you on the nuances of Information Technology along the way.
Of course, IT service providers will also handle software installation, including operating systems. We’ve talked about this before on the MagnetSolutionsGroup blog, but it’s worth mentioning again that Microsoft has officially stopped support for its Windows Server 2003 OS. While there’s no rule saying that companies who currently use Windows Server 2003 must transition to a new OS, doing so is highly recommended. Running an operating system that’s outdated and/or no longer supported by its developer is a serious security risk, as new vulnerabilities are not properly fixed.
Another task that an Austin managed IT services provider will do is software updates. I know what you’re probably thinking: how difficult can updating software to the latest version really be? When it involves just a single desktop or laptop, the answer is not too hard. But when you’re talking about software for dozens or even hundreds of users on a network, it can be a complex, highly technical task that requires the expertise of a professional IT company. Rather than taking the risk by “hoping” that you are updating software correctly, you can place the task in the hands of a professional IT provider.
The work of a managed IT service provider doesn’t stop there. They will also monitor your traffic for suspicious activity and implement appropriate safeguards to protect your network from cyber attacks. Cyber attacks have become increasingly commonplace in the past couple of years. In 2013, the estimated cost of organizational data breach to U.S. companies was $5.4 million per company. This number increased to $5.9 million in 2014, and experts believe that it will continue to rise in the months to come.
The first step towards protecting your company from cyber attacks and data breaches is to have it proactively monitored. This means a professional IT service provider will monitor all incoming and outgoing traffic, looking for signs of suspicious activity. If any such activity is detected, they will take immediate action to fix the problem, followed by implementing new safeguards to prevent future incidents from occurring.