3 Steps to A Universal Password

As we become more reliant on cloud, online storage, and services we need to step up our security practices. But in fact, internal business Best Practices have recommended the use of secure passwords for the past decade. Online users have become accustomed to using simple and generic passwords for online services for various reasons. Using secure passwords is essential to maintaining security and privacy in the work place as well as in our personal lives.

Recent studies show that our passwords too easy to guess and susceptible to brute force attacks. The tendency is to leave them around for prying eyes to find, and we often use identical passwords and user names across multiple sites and services. To help you safeguard against security threats we have put together a list of best practices and provided a 3-step guide to creating a great universal password.

(more…)

6 Reasons to Switch from Tape Backup to the Cloud

Traditionally tapes have been the most popular way for businesses to backup their data, but that technology has become outdated. If your business is still using tapes for data backup an online data backup solution is one of the best ways you can take advantage of the cloud. Here are six reasons for you to switch from tape backup to the cloud.

(more…)

10 Steps to a Social Media Policy

Your current, future, and former employees, customers, and partners are all using social media these days. Whether it’s for business or personal use your stakeholders are involved and they likely have something to say about your business.

Establishing ground rules and best practices is important to protect the privacy of your employees, the security of your information, and the integrity of your business. Instituting and enforcing a social media policy is something we believe every IT department should be a part of, follow these ten steps to create your social media policy.

(more…)

5 Reasons Businesses Are Venturing Into The Cloud

Cloud has become one of the hottest buzzwords of the IT world, and for good reason. While cloud solutions aren’t right for everyone there are some very compelling reasons why businesses are leveraging cloud technology. Here are five reasons why Nexus customers have ventured into the cloud.

(more…)

The Cloud for the Clueless

Cloud computing technologies have been around for a while (Nexus has been using cloud technology for years), and although the cloud has been getting a lot of press recently we’re finding that too many people still do not really understand what the cloud is about. So we decided to provide a brief explanation and breakdown the different cloud models.

Today the term cloud generally means ubiquitous access. Most cloud services are accessible via a web browser or app; so you have the same level of access regardless of your location or even device. Clouds are offered in several varieties depending on control versus efficiency, and the service that the cloud is providing.

(more…)

IT Resolutions For 2012

Each year innovations in technology provide businesses the tools to achieve new levels of efficiency and production. This year is another great example. Adapt our five IT New Year Resolutions to make 2012 a truly great year.

(more…)

Communicating On the Go Just Got Easier

December 2011 marks Microsoft’s one year anniversary of releasing their newest Unified Communications (UC) suite, Lync 2010. If you aren’t already familiar; Lync 2010 is being positioned by Microsoft as the holy grail of UC, capable of replacing expensive PBX systems for a fraction of the price. Our friends in Redmond celebrated the birthday of their communications masterpiece by releasing mobile clients for 3 major mobile device platforms, including Apple’s iOS, Google’s Android, and their own Windows Phone 7.

This is a big deal. 

(more…)

6 Considerations When Choosing an IT Service Provider

There are a bevy of benefits to employing an information technology managed service provider, but the quality of those benefits depend greatly on choosing the right one. The company you hire will essentially become a part of your team so it’s very important that it’s a good fit. Although every business will have different needs here are some universal aspects to consider when choosing an IT managed service provider (MSP).

(more…)

7 Steps to a Disaster Recovery Plan

Your business relies on its data and IT infrastructure, having that infrastructure go down for any amount of time and losing your data would be devastating. Disasters as common as flood and fire or as simple as a nearby gas leak can claim your data or freeze business instantly. A proper disaster recovery plan will minimize the amount of damage your business will suffer from a disaster, so you can assure your customers that you will always be there for them.

(more…)

The Top 6 Misconceptions of Cloud Computing

Cloud computing is not exactly as new as many would have you believe. While the term ‘cloud’ is relatively new, the technology is an evolution of virtualization, utility computing and other technologies. Cloud computing as a concept has actually been around since the 1960s.

Widespread adoption of cloud computing, resulting from developing technology and increasing needs for efficiency, has sparked the interest of many businesses. But many still do not fully understand cloud computing and are burdened by misconceptions. Hopefully these misconceptions will be cleared up below.

(more…)