Month: September 2016

Why We Don’t Outsource Our Technical Support

For years, as Triton Technologies grew we were approached by many third party IT support contractors. From telephone only, to individuals we were contacted sometimes almost daily. The offers were inviting. Learn why we’ve been vindicated by our decision that we don’t source our technical support.

How We Kept It In-House

Like all things, we did the research and eventually agreed NOT to do third-party outsourced support. The research showed us that the only benefit would be for the company who provided the services, not the MSP (Managed Service Provider) and certainly not the end client. Each call the technician would have to guess at the possible problem and hopefully resolve it within a 15-minute window or be transferred to an actual MSP technician. That sounds good in theory but it never really worked out like that with people already using them.

So years ago we decided to keep it in-house. All service, support, telephone systems, monitoring agents and more have been in control and owned by Triton Technologies.

Now, outsourced IT technicians have their place, especially when you’re just starting out and need to have the resources in order to provide the service, they are excellent. Triton Technologies grew at a managed pace and it never was a major consideration.

Dodging the Bullet

In July 2016, it proved to be an excellent choice. Continuum encountered a sustained hack on their network infrastructure. All clients, end users and more were hacked and local accounts were installed across the empire.

Yes, Continuum patched the hole, but the damage was done. Violations of HIPAA, Business Associate Agreements invalidated and hundreds of thousands of end user machines and network compromised

It’s been nearly 3 months and we are continually getting calls on people existing networks being infected by their previous MSP and wanting us to take over.

Sometimes the best course of action is to keep all your cards close to your chest. If you’re looking for a Managed Service Provider who avoiding outsource our support, contact us.

Amazon AWS: Amazon, Part Deux

We get a call on Monday morning, like you do, but this one was more panic. The owner went on a week long vacation and came back to a resignation letter sitting on his desk from what was then his previous IT person. In-house person, quit Wednesday the previous week.

The boss was in a panic. So he googled the first IT company he could, which luckily was us and called us. The server had always acted slowly but now it was to a screeching halt.

Troubleshooting the In-House Server

We came down and analyzed the situation. Basically the server was 2008 R2 but it had multiple hardware failures. From a critical raid array, to a failed secondary power supply, the UPS failed and more. It was a mess. That was just the main server, there was two more servers in similar shape.

But we needed to get him up and running in case of an event or even worse, failure.

Time to virtualize!

Transferring the Server Image

We currently have a custom made software which allows us to image any server and bring that image online on Amazon. So that’s what we did. Our team installed the imaging software, and began the upload to a newly created S3 instance on Amazon. The next morning when it finished uploading, we implemented the image on an EC3 instance. Boom! It worked. Adjusted the IP address, DNS, linked Amazon VPC to their new Sophos Firewall and their hardware issues vanished.

Within two days we got the client stable, their infrastructure operational and their security concerns gone. Amazon was a big part of it, and our certified team implemented it.

That is why we recommend to our clients at least a virtual Active Directory server for backup purposes in case of an event. Contact us to learn more about your options and pricing.

Amazon AWS: Amazon Saves The Day

A Client in Need of a Solution

Triton Technologies does a lot of different kinds of business. Some logistics, medical, hospitality, government, military and more. So we are quite diverse on the types of clients that we work with.

We were asked about 3 months ago to install software for an oil distribution company on a new server, tablets and so forth.

The owner gave us the specs and balked. It was significantly more expensive than the person was willing to spend. That is where we came in.

Finding a Cost-Effective Alternative

The software company asked for a very powerful server, over $6000 but it was for a single purpose, just to run a database.

So we came up with a plan. Since we are an Amazon partner, let us see if we can virtualize the SQL database and get the same performance or better.

We logged into our AWS, ramped up exactly what the software people wanted, and began the install. Total time: 3 hours.

Using AWS Instead of the Standalone

3 hours it all it took to start up the server, install it, adjust the RDP settings and voila! Done. The server has been operational for over 2 months, stabile, easy to access and the client has 100% uptime INCLUDING outages by their ISP. That is impressive.

The software company is so impressed that they are recommending Triton Technologies to clients who are apprehensive about the cost of their own server. The cost of an Amazon server: $125 per month. Cost of the stand alone AFTER install: $8500.

Saving Money with a Private Server and Managed IT

Amazon virtual private servers aren’t for everyone, but they are available for all tasks large and small. For this client, it saved LITERALLY thousands of dollars, gave them the reliability they needed and the performance which they could afford.

Want to learn more about AWS and how Managed IT can help you run your business smarter, not costlier? Contact us.

Data Breaches and Dropbox

Dropbox over 4 years ago had a data breach which exposed over 86 million users to hackers. The hackers could have access to the passwords for the accounts, encrypted and unencrypted. We look at data breaches and Dropbox, namely their failure on handling it.

It was 4 years ago. They are just making available the data now. That is a massive breach of trust. 4 years of your personal data exposed to the world and you not knowing about it. Only in August 2016 did Dropbox make users aware of the data breach, but what was even worse is how they handled it.

How They Handled the Data Breach

In most data breach situations, they make the users aware almost immediately upon learning about it, force users to change their passwords and almost always there is another layer of security added to prevent it from happening again.

This time around, no such luck.

At best, Dropbox advised users to change their passwords, but did not require it. This is terribly bad. Not only did they delay in the discovery of the breach, their remedy does nothing to prevent a back door from being implemented and all the data stolen before you’re even aware.

Triton’s Recommendation: Change Your File Sharer

Many businesses and personal users rely on file sharing services like Dropbox to transfer files and be able to access them on the go. The copy or deletion of these files in a data breach can not only be a setback, but can also become a real liability for companies transferring client data.

You have to be able to trust the service you use.

That is why Triton Technologies can no longer recommend Dropbox for your individual file sharing and mobile needs.

We recommend a product called Share Sync. Share Sync has proven to us how safe, secure and compliant it is with industry standards and laws.  If you do use Dropbox, uninstall it and switch away. Contact us to learn more about our recommendation, and other secure services available through managed IT providers.