Wednesday 10 May 2006

Protecting Data in Today's Fast-Paced & Uncertain Environment

Protecting Data in Today's Fast-Paced & Uncertain Environment 
Online server data backup and recovery takes hold 
  
By Bud Stoddard, President & CEO, AmeriVault Corp. 
  
Data, Foundation of Today's Business 
  
Data is not only the foundation of businesses in all industries but remains a vital irreplaceable strategic asset.  But, this asset is threatened today more than ever, given the increasing threat of disaster resulting from the impending war and recent and potential future terrorist activities.  According to the U.S. Department of Labor, 93% of companies who experience a significant data loss will be out of business within 5 years. 
  
As a result, data protection has become a critical component in an organization's disaster recovery and business continuity plans.  Today's disaster planning professionals are responsible for ensuring uninterrupted operation and immediate recovery of data.  Faced with increasingly narrow recovery windows and "zero tolerance" for disruption they will have no choice but to look outside the box for recovery solutions.  The ability of traditional disaster recovery and business solutions to fulfill corporate objectives in the overall business continuity scheme should be evaluated and a new methodology introduced.  
  
With its ability to most quickly and efficiently perform backup and recovery, online backup is responding to the demands of today's businesses in these uncertain times.  Its no wonder a technology that used to be seen as unconventional and experimental, is quickly becoming mainstream.  IDC estimates that through 2006, rapid growth will continue in the area of remote backup. 
  
Lawyer's Weekly, the nation's top source of legal information for practicing attorneys, has used online backup for years to protect their data.  "My feeling is that you're only as good as your last backup. Our company has many remote locations without systems administrators. As a result, we really have come to depend on online backup as a means of assuring that our backups are done on a daily basis at these sites," said Tom Bannister, Systems Manager, Lawyer's Weekly.


  
Data Management Evolves 
  
Remarkable changes in the way businesses work, are being fueled by online and other electronic processes going on 24 hours a day.  Business processes are becoming more compressed, and business activities that took days now happen within hours or minutes globally. Companies without a strong foothold in technology will be disadvantaged when facing the evolutionary trend of business changes.  Disaster recovery and business continuity planning must change to coincide with the fast-paced and highly competitive business environment and offer protection against uncontrollable looming disasters. Continuity Planners must turn to solutions that are internet-based. 
  
The recent SQL Slammer virus was a prime example of why contingency planning must change to keep up with technology-dependent businesses.  Although SQL Slammer's effect could have carried a more damaging payload, it brought down 13,000 ATM machines at Bank of America, making it impossible for customers to withdraw cash for an entire weekend and reportedly caused widespread damage at HP and even Microsoft itself.  The disaster recovery and business continuity planning industry was forced to take notice. 
  
Myths About Online Backup 
  
Whenever an innovative idea threatens to replace current solutions in day-to-day business practices, myths begin to sprout like weeds spotting your favorite golfing green. The uncomfortable reality is that many businesses today suffer from insufficient backup plans.  Data backup is critical for every company. Remember the last time you didn't suffer from backup headaches? You can't. 
  
A new solution entered the market in the mid 80's but didn't launch until the World Wide Web phenomenon took off.  Only then did it catch the attention of IT professionals responsible for safeguarding mission-critical data.  Online backup or electronic vaulting, no matter the coined term, eliminates many typical backup headaches.  The ability to automate your backup and remove the data off-site to a secure vault with a click of a mouse button is now a reality. Online backup is the most innovative, cost-effective and reliable solution out there today. But dispelling the myths about online backup continues to be a challenge for companies offering this technology.  
  
Myth One:  Online backup is too expensive. 
  
Initially it may appear that way. Compare a tape scenario for instance. Hardware, software licenses, tapes, personnel -- and let us not forget basic human error, add to the cost of traditional back up procedures.  Additional costs accrue with traditional off-site courier service and tape solutions have large up-front and sometimes unexpected costs, while online backup costs are declining.  AmeriVault Corp.(TM) predicts a double-digit annual decrease in cost due to bandwidth and storage hardware pricing declines.  A small ten gigabyte user with daily backup would pay approximately $460.00 for traditional albeit partial service; while the same user would pay approximately $294.00 for complete, automated service. In addition, online backup technology utilizes a company's existing telecom lines.  A company can better justify the 24 x 7 cost of its dedicated Internet connection.  Online backup eliminates all these traditional cost factors. With total automation, local backup and off-site protection occur simultaneously. 
  
Myth Two: Data is not secure on the Internet. 
  
Online backup utilizes the same technology the U.S. Government uses for its security.  Encrypted, fragmented data is sent over telecom lines -- pieces of a puzzle in gibberish language.  Online backup vendors can offers clients a highly secure VPN (Virtual Private Network) connection.  This higher level of security ensures that all communication between the client and the vault is encrypted.  Online backup is actually more secure than storing unencrypted data tapes in a remote vault. 
  
Myth Three: Online Backup can't handle a fortune 500 company's data. 
  
Handling large amounts of data over relatively small bandwidth is a popular feature of online backup.  An initial backup or "seed" of the server's data is extracted.  The Delta Processing technology then seeks out updated portions of changed files.  Only the fragmented change of data is sent to the vault.  Large-volume and highly redundant disk storage systems store the data online.  Online backup providers service businesses with a responsibility to ensure that storage space is always available, no matter what the size.  To further data integrity, reliability and recovery, the massive amounts of data online are backed up to tape on a daily basis, and shipped to an underground vault for safekeeping. 
  
An Inevitable Evolution 
  
Despite the current myths surrounding online backup, unavoidably it is fast becoming the standard in the business of data backup storage.  Online backup has proven itself to be a fundamental component of disaster recovery and business continuity plans.  Traditional recovery solutions must be retailored to accommodate the new recovery and continuity alternatives available to businesses in this fast-paced and uncertain climate.  No longer can businesses rely on protecting their most important asset with inefficient methods. 
  
Loss of data and disasters are inevitable, and so is online backup. The Internet has radically altered the global economy, and with it, the management of securing and restoring data.  Companies who wait until disaster strikes to implement more efficient means of backing up their valuable data, will become extinct like the dinosaurs who once roamed our planet. 

Thursday 20 April 2006

How to Securely Erase Your Devices

It is not uncommon for most of us to switch out our cell phones every 2 years and the rest of our electronic devices as soon as newer models are available. Having the newest and best on the market is a way to stay up to date with the current trends and to have the fastest functioning device. However, when we trade in or sell our old devices it is imperative to make sure they are fully wiped. Wiping involves securely erasing everything on the electronic so that the new owner will not be able to access any of your personal and private information. While doing this may sound common sense it is a step that often gets overlooked in the excitement of procuring our new gadget. Wiping the drives can be easier and quicker than you think.

Wiping an External Drive on Windows

Wiping an external drive on Windows is fairly simple. The easiest and quickest option is to select one of the many free drive-wiping tools available. You can choose to use one of the many free drive-wiping tools that are available. All you'll have to do is insert your USB drive, or plug in any other external hard drive you may have and then follow the program.

Wiping a Laptop, Desktop, or other Internal Hard Drive

When it comes to wiping a computer, it's important to remember that it only needs to be done if you have mechanical or hybrid hard drives. On solid-state drives whenever you delete a file it is automatically removed from the drive so you don't need to be concerned with wiping.

If you do happen to be using a mechanical or hybrid drive then you can use these tricks. On Windows 8 and 8.1 all you have to do is select the "reset your PC" feature and then indicate that you want to securely erase the drive contents. To be on the safe side it is suggested to select the "fully clean the drive" option to make sure that nothing can be recovered later.

On Windows 7, Linux, or any other operating system use a tool like DBAN. This tool will boot up and erase the hard drives and will overwrite them with random pointless data. Keep in mind that in using these tools the next user will need to reinstall the operating system before the computer will be functional.

Wiping Smartphones and Tablets

Smartphones and tablets change hands faster than any other devices so it is important to properly wipe them. The good news is that iPhones and iPads all use encryption which means all that is necessary is to reset the device with the "erase all contents and settings" option.

For an Android phone or tablet a factory reset will not be helpful since they do not encrypt by default. To wipe an Android device you'll need to enter the settings options and select to encrypt the storage. After you done that step you can safely erase the device and then restore the original factory settings.

It has always been our top priority to review some useful and interesting gadget. Feel free to visit our Website for some cool gadget and have fun.

Tuesday 7 February 2006

The History of Printer Ink Cartridges

With the introduction of the inkjet printer and printer ink cartridge in 1984, the task of printing your documents and changing printer ink cartridges became more convenient, reliable and cleaner than the previous methods of changing ribbons or inserting a toner cartridge.

Prior to 1984, the ink delivery systems were not as dependable as they are now. The inkjet system replaced the old dot matrix method, which required changing a ribbon. It wasn't long before the printer industry began conceptualizing a new ink delivery technique, including the drop on demand method. Several companies were the driving forces behind developing the inkjet technology, and by 1990 the method was widely accepted. Today it is the method of choice for printing requirements, and will print both black and white documents as well as color graphics and photos.

The quality is excellent, thanks to the development of printer ink cartridges. It is possible to print on many different sizes and types of paper, fabric, film, etc. These printers are used in businesses, in schools and the homes of millions of people worldwide.

Each printer uses a specific printer ink cartridge, most often one each of black and color. Each cartridge is given an identifying number and lists the model number of each printer in which it can be used. While each printer manufacturer recommends its own brand of printer ink cartridge, it is possible to refill the cartridge yourself, or purchase a refilled, remanufactured or a compatible cartridge.

There are two types of refilled cartridges: You can do it yourself with a kit that allows you to refill your own cartridge. Refill kits are available at a very low price and are sometimes the choice of those who don't mind doing the filling in order to save money. The other alternative is to buy a refilled cartridge from a manufacturer. This method involves drilling, filling and sealing an empty cartridge.

A remanufactured cartridge is an original printer ink cartridge that has been taken apart and outfitted with ink and new parts if necessary. It is then inspected and tested before being placed in the marketplace to re-sell. The workmanship in these cartridges is usually guaranteed against defects during the life of the cartridge. The lifetime is generally the same as the original, they are safe to use in all printers, and the warranty on your printer will not be affected. The cost is lower than the original.

Another kind of cartridge that has evolved in recent years is the "compatible" cartridge. Simply put, it is a cartridge that is built to the same specifications as those of the original manufacturer and is generally cheaper than the original. It is also guaranteed against defects during its lifetime.

Inkjet printers using printer ink cartridges have a bright future ahead, thanks to their capability to produce high-quality printed material quickly and inexpensively. The manufacturer's printer ink cartridge is one option, and the use of alternative printer ink cartridges is another option. When shopping for printer ink cartridges, always buy from a reputable dealer. A huge inventory of hundreds of types of cartridges can also be found by shopping on the Internet, which is a convenient, safe and reliable method of finding the best deals on printer ink cartridges.