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Windows Server
Large companies have been
using technology to brighten their
outlook for many years now; and the
good news is, much of that
technology is available economically
to even the smallest of businesses
today. So: what technology could you
economically introduce right now, to
prepare for a better business and an
easier workload tomorrow? The humble
server is worth investigating. A
server is a computer, separate to
the personal machines used by your
staff, designed to take on all sorts
of management jobs. Because it’s not
used by employees, it can be left in
a corner to get on with things; and
because it connects staff machines
in a meaningful way, it can be used
to help everyone collaborate
securely. Servers are the Swiss Army
Knife of business technology:
nothing much to look at, but useful
for just about everything,
surprisingly affordable, and being
used by millions around the UK for
more purposes than you’ll ever find
in the instruction manual:
• Are you swapping
documents around on USB sticks (or
“dongles”)?
It’s annoying and highly
insecure. With a server, you can
share files easily and in a
controlled fashion.
• Would you like to access the
office – files, programs and data –
from home? Your server will
administer remote access safely and
reliably, and give different people
in your organization just the access
they should be allowed – making
flexible working a reality.
• Your server is a storage
repository, saving data (and
backups) fast and centrally. There
will be no more grinding to a halt
just because “Bob’s on holiday and
we can’t get into his computer”.
• Many programs, including
specialist line-of-business tools
are designed to run centrally; so
not having a server could be
seriously holding back your
business.
• Finally, it’s a security guard
for the rest of your network,
keeping threats to your business
out, yet keeping the lights on so
your team can work day or night.
Your first server will
almost certainly save you money in
the long run.
For starters, a server takes work
away from your existing PCs and
laptops. That will extend their
lifespan and make a difference to
cash flow.
Many growing
small companies find that their
first server helps to put off other
piecemeal IT buying by a couple of
years.
Servers shave costs and
drive efficiency without
compromising on productivity, too.
In a recent survey, 47% of
businesses bought a new server
because they envisaged savings like
cheaper maintenance and energy
efficiency. Those are gains that
come without a sacrifice somewhere
else in the business – as a server
also increases performance (indeed
another 19% bought servers to run
new applications on their networks,
and 10% just wanted to improve
overall network performance). These
sorts of figures suggest that if
your network is running without a
server, your business is running at
a disadvantage
Microsoft Small Business Server
(SBS), which includes a raft of
best-of-breed software and services
in the server package. SBS includes
Microsoft Exchange for email, shared
calendaring and email web access.
Collaboration is made easy – even if
you want to share files with
customers or other people
outside the business. And SBS makes
going mobile a doddle – giving sales
staff on the road access to their
email on a mobile phone or PDA is as
simple as flipping a virtual switch.
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