• As you probably know, Daylight Savings times
have changed.
Most PCs will be updated with the new information
automatically.
Unfortunately this is not the case for Windows Mobile
Devices & some people have had trouble with appointment
times being incorrect, but there is information &
an update available HERE.
• The last few months we have been familiarising
ourselves with the latest in Server Virtualisation
technologies.
We recently converted our server here to a VMWare
ESX server & have all our servers running as virtual
machines.
This should increase server reliability & decrease
downtime for those that use services hosted by us.
• We will be attending training sessions for
VMWare Virtualisation on the 17th & 18th of November
& as such will be unavailable on these dates.
If you have any urgent requests, please email us or
leave a voicemail at the office, as we will check
these often.
We will not be available by mobile.
• Microsoft have launched their new server platform
for small business, Microsoft Small Business Server
2008.
It has been released to manufacturing & should
be available to us mid November.
If you are thinking of upgrading your current server
system or thinking about purchasing one, now is the
time.
• A reminder that all new PCs are now only available
with Windows Vista, the newest Microsoft operating
system.
As of the 30th June, Windows XP has been discontinued.
Some recent PCs can be upgraded to Vista. You can
download the Windows Vista Upgrade Advisor tool from
Microsoft to find out if your computer is Vista compatible.
• Office Suite 2007 has new document formats,
which are not compatible with the older versions.
Businesses with both versions will be in trouble,
however there are solutions! Office 2007 can be configured
so that it by default will create files in the Office
2003 format. There is also an add-on for Office 2003,
which enables that version to work with the new Office
2007 formats. This add-on can be downloaded from the
Microsoft website.
• Want to know what Windows Vista & Office
2007 are like? Take a virtual test drive!
http://www.microsoft.com/midsizebusiness/products/WindowsVista/try.mspx
• Microsoft have released several service packs:
Vista SP1 & XP SP3 – These are now available
via Automatic Updates. These fix several issues &
also improve performance.
Office 2007 SP1 – Also available via Automatic
Updates. Improves performance & fixes some compatibility
issues.
It is always advisable to keep your windows up to
date & install all updates when they become available.
• Want to test the speed of your broadband connection?
The perfect tool for this can be found HERE.
8Mbit connections are now available from most ISPs
for those that cannot get ADSL2. Ask your ISP about
upgrading!
• To improve the quality of our support, we
have moved our focus to business users only.
Remember, networks with servers allow us to provide
a much higher quality of support & makes for a
much smoother running network.
If you do not currently have a server, we will be
more than happy to help you implement one.
• Over the last 12 months, we have been expanding
our knowledge in the fast growing world of Voice Over
IP, specifically VoIP based PABX phone systems.
These systems offer all the features of a top of the
line phone system for a fraction of the cost, including
such features as:
Interactive Menus, Ring Groups, Voicemail, Conference
Rooms, Unlimited Extensions & more.
Of
course, apart from using your existing phone lines,
it can also be implemented with a VoIP account, allowing
you to make calls via the internet to help reduce
your phone bill.
We have implemented one of these in our office, as
well as in some of our clients premises.
If you would like to know more, please give us a call.
• We are having a clearance sale & have
some hardware available for you at great prices:
Check out our website soon for more details.
• We recently implemented a new server monitoring
solution called Nagios.
This give us real time information about the state
of our clients servers & allows us to pro-actively
deal with server issues.
• Worried about security? We have a wide range
of IP Security Cameras that will suit almost any situation.
•
Please remember to direct all your support requests
as follows:
-
Low & normal priority requests: Send an e-mail
to support@vanree.com. This is our central mailbox,
which is monitored by all.
-
Urgent requests: Call us on the office phone 08-8556
4387 or use our Skype connections. If you have Skype
and not have a connection with us, please e-mail
us.
-
Very urgent request: Call our mobiles after you
have tried the office phone.
Please note: sometimes we are in areas with no reception
or are unavailable to take calls.
