Cloud Based Email Solutions

In this day and age, and with the current availability of robust cloud email solutions, PC Quest recommends the use of email solutions that are not hosted in house but rather in the “cloud”. If this solution applies to you then the following benefits apply.

Moving over to cloud email instead of server-based email means moving this portion of your IT costs from variable to fixed (much to your accounting department’s delight). Cloud-based email is a great solution for companies with a strapped IT budget:

• PC Quest can focus its energies where you’ll get a far bigger bang for your buck.
• You’ll enjoy significant savings on energy and hardware investments by taking email servers out of the picture.

If the worst does come to pass and your internal server or network become compromised, every smidgen of data in your emails is also at risk. Think for a minute about every file, spreadsheet or contract agreement that’s sitting in your email archives at this very moment, and then imagine how drastically your business would be impacted by the loss of all that vital information.

With cloud email, problems with hardware really don’t matter as far as email is concerned. Your laptop crashes? No problem—all your emails are stored in the cloud. When emails are based in the cloud, your records are more than recoverable: they’re always there.

Who hasn’t gotten halfway home only to realize they forgot their work-issued laptop back at the office with all those emails they meant to catch up on over the weekend? For companies who operate on server-based email systems, this means a lost work weekend for sure.

• Cloud-based email can be accessed from anywhere, on any device.
• Email access is immediately available from your home computer, tablet or even from your smartphone.
• Productivity levels increase, particularly for remote workers.
• Cloud-based email accounts sync up instantly and automatically, so data is accessible from multiple devices.

The Bottom Line

Organizations have to become more agile than ever before if they want to succeed while running at the nearly instantaneous pace that defines modern business operations. Cloud email is one tool that speaks to this need by eliminating many of the hassles and time-suck factors associated with traditional server-based email systems. Cloud-based email fades into the background for a reliable, always-on work environment that allows companies to simply focus on daily operations instead.

Cloud based Antivirus Solutions

PC Quest installs a small agent or client piece of software runs on each desktop and makes a connection to the central monitoring server in the cloud. As long as you have an Internet connection, updates to the virus signatures are automatic. In terms of protection and processing, most of the heavy lifting happens in the cloud, and as a result, your computer needs little memory footprint. The central server's console is where PC Quest can keep track of infections, users and other reports, and it can be viewed from an ordinary Web browser.

Benefits for moving your endpoint protection to the cloud include the following:

1. You don't have to worry about users turning off protection software or forgetting to install the latest virus signatures.
2. PC Quest can instantly see what is happening across your network and which PCs are protected.
3. PC deployment is simplified because there is less software to install.
4. PC Quest can even initiate antivirus scans through the cloud service and, once again, not have to depend on individual user behaviour.

Hosted Server Solutions

A hosted system environment allows your business to outsource the management and maintenance of complex servers, storage and networking components to an external data centre. This model can reduce the capital and operating cost to the business of locating and supporting the infrastructure which manages the business systems.

The infrastructure for a hosted system typically belongs to the supplier with charges for use based on allocation of storage, CPU, RAM and Internet bandwidth. Charges are typically levied on a monthly basis with contract periods of 12 to 24 months.

The major benefit derived from running your application systems on a hosted environment is that resources can be added and removed to match business demand. This elasticity dramatically improves the business ability to respond to market conditions and control IT costs accordingly. What this means is that during periods of peak business activity, additional resource can be added almost instantly to cope with demand. When demand falls, as is often the case in seasonal business, IT resources can be scaled back and cost savings can be achieved.

What business types suit this model?

Hosted systems are ideal for:

• Businesses currently with multiple server systems and limited internal IT support capability.
• Businesses with complex systems which require dedicated human resources to manage capacity planning, backup and maintenance routines.
• Businesses with pronounced seasonal activity or long periods of quiet business activity.
• Project or development work where additional resources are required to assist collaboration or build test and training environments.

What do I need?

To make effective use of a hosted environment, a fast and reliable business grade, symmetric Internet connection is essential. Depending on the nature of the business activity and the number of people supported, a private IP network may be preferred.

Internet and Connectivity Solutions

Businesses of all sizes are critically dependent upon a fast and reliable Internet connection. Generally referred to as "broadband" a variety of techniques and services are available on the market to facilitate even the most demanding business needs.

Through our partner telecommunication providers, PC Quest is able to offer reliable and scalable Internet connectivity solutions to meet the requirements of business of all sizes. Our solutions range as follows.

Scenario 1: Small to Medium Business up to 50 people or with high Internet usage requirements, possibly multiple offices or using hosted or cloud services. Typical profile is a distributed business such as logistics, franchised business, accounting practices, administrative services, and professional services.

Solution: A business grade EFM service across either copper or fibre offering between 10Mbs and 100Mbs of symmetric data transfer. Multiple offices connected via IPSEC virtual private networks. No limit to data volumes.

Scenario 2: Larger business with more than 50 people, several offices, mission critical network connectivity to other offices and the Internet with a high degree of security. Business sites may connect to a separate hosting location for access to server resources. Typical profile includes financial institutions, retail chains, and franchised businesses.

Solution: A managed private IP network with EFM grade Internet connectivity and a central firewall solution. No data limits or restrictions. Centrally managed firewall service.