Company Files/database

[Donstu71]

Hi All,

My IT knowledge is limited so hopefully someone can help me? I will be setting up my Ltd Company in January and hopefully working from an office premises if things go according to plan. However due to the nature of my Business I will sometimes be working out of office hours and unfortunately the office premises I've set my eye on doesn't have 24hr access.
Can I have a laptop for example set up in my office at home that is linked to my Business Premises system whereby I could access client files, Business Files, etc..? If so, how would I do this, it also needs to be secure.

Stu

 

[DarrenMcCabe]

YOu can do as you say, however this is a cumbersome and pain to work with.

I would suggest looking at hosting your company files in the cloud, therefore giving you access to them from any machine in any location.

One of the main problems of hosting files on a machine in the office and accessing them via remote software or VPN, is that the machine in the office needs to be on 24/7. Your internet line needs to be up at all times and you also need to make sure you have backups.

Moving them to the cloud means getting rid of all these worries, plus it can be done for as little as £4.25/month with technologies like Office 365. Compare this against the cost of buying a PC for the files to be hosted on (£400) then it makes commercial and financial sense. Plus it's your business continuity and disaster recovery rolled up too.

There are some limitations with cloud based storage though, but that just depends on what you're wanting to store there.

Give me a shout if you would like to know more about Office 365 (other technologies are available ) 0845 621 6660

 

[Paul_Rosser]

As Darren said you would probably be better off going for a cloud solution as trying to setup remote access yourself would require a lot of spend on security etc.

I use Rackspace personally for file storage and they charge 1p per gig/per month, with all data being encrypted by me first, so even if they have a security issue then my data is safe.

 

[SourChocolate]

I use Rackspace personally for file storage and they charge 1p per gig/per month, with all data being encrypted by me first, so even if they have a security issue then my data is safe.

Out of interest, what software do you use for client-side data encryption and for uploading (auto sync or periodical backup?) files to rackspace?

 

[Paul_Rosser]

I use truecrypt for the encryption and then files are auto synched using CloudBerry Explorer every hour, a copy is also sent to google drive using their own software and thats in realtime.

Works for me as I don't have that much data, when I worked for a firm with TB's of data we used safeguard to encrypt whole areas of the SAN.

 

[Quest Cloud Solutions Ltd]

I'll second what Darren has said, a cloud solution is ideal for you. If you go down the route you suggested then your bottleneck is the upload speed of the Internet connection OUT of the managed office; that is pretty much always going to be slower than your download speed at home. But use a cloud service and the upload speed will always be better than your download speed.

365 is very well priced but doesn't offer much in terms of flexibility. If you would like an idea of alternative solutions to 365 feel free to drop me a line - 01733 359115.

Cheers

Ryan

 

[Laurenpears]

What everyone else has said really, look at the Cloud.
Google Apps for business would be brilliant for you, and be very cost effective!

 

[SourChocolate]

I use truecrypt for the encryption and then files are auto synched using CloudBerry Explorer every hour, a copy is also sent to google drive using their own software and thats in realtime.

Works for me as I don't have that much data, when I worked for a firm with TB's of data we used safeguard to encrypt whole areas of the SAN.

Truecrypt has container files so if you have 500mb worth of data and modify one file within the container then 500mb will be sync'ed? Or the tools are able to make differential uploads/downloads?


Not trying to high jack the thread +1 for cloud file storage as it's virtually trouble free as opposed to in house storage solutions. Although, cloud might be not an acceptable solution for your clients, don't know what your business is.

For cloud storage, I recommend allwaysync (allwaysync.com, not free - $20, definitely worth the price IMHO) which encrypts individual files into encrypted zipped archives that can be subsequently live sync'ed with the cloud (google, dropbox etc.) so nobody can see what's inside once they've left your machine. Bonus is, that if you modify a single file then only it's zipped version is uploaded which means very low in/out traffic.

 

[Paul_Rosser]

Truecrypt has container files so if you have 500mb worth of data and modify one file within the container then 500mb will be sync'ed? Or the tools are able to make differential uploads/downloads?


.

Nope the tools allow for just the changes to be uploaded.

However Cloudberry explorer Pro also comes with it's own encryption options and you can specify which folders to encrypt and it does it all for you.

 

[leemason]

Have you thought about telephony as well? If you are out of the office a lot you might want to have a look at a VoIP service rather than publish a BT phone number. VoIPallows fora lot of flexibility in terms of numbers and where you direct them to and can be a real boon for anyone running a business single handed. You can have a single number that you can answer from the office (on a VoIP handset), from your mobile, or from home. Most services come with voicemail and many will send you e-mail alerts when you get a voicemail.

 

[cjd]

Do you actually need an office at all? We found that we didn't.........

 

[RemoteTechs]

Hi Stu,

First of all, good luck with setting up the company in Jan, its a tough old marketplace at the moment, but always good to see new businesses

A wise choice to drop in here and get some info about setting up, its one of the most important aspects, and getting the correct IT infrastructure in place is essential for just about any new business.

Based on your situation of starting up and all the budgets involved with that process, I think you have been given some sound advise about some of the cloud offerings out there. By their very nature you do not need to invest into hardware onsite and the charges are monthly, and for the most part very affordable. You'll be able to budget your spend whilst still benefiting from an enterprise class service.

Getting a bit more specific I would echo TechMonkey's option of looking at either Microsoft Office 365 or perhaps even Google Apps.

The main benefit is the ability to have your e-mail hosted with a proper business domain e.g. your [email protected] and also have cloud file storage into one nice and neat package.

One point that is often overlooked at by young companies during the start-up period is the scalability of the system they adopt, it used to be that the cheaper solution often won on cost basis only to be outgrown because as the company grew it was easy to add more users / applications etc.

Based on the above considerations, I would encourage you to look at Office365, as its starts at £2.82/month per user per month, to have online storage (SharePoint online), but unlike Google Apps, you have the ability to easily add more options as you grow, which is obviously your goal.

For example you can opt to just have online storage and perhaps in the future you'll want more storage or you'll want to add the ability to have instant chat and online meetings or have hosted e-mail.
Those options can easily and affordably added as you progress, giving you an affordable baseline to expand from as the business grows.

We have much more information about Office 365 and also a blog that looks at the benefits of Office 365 vs Google Apps for business.

If you'd like to discuss any of the options further please give us a shout, and we'd be happy to give you a demo of Office 365 or help you explore other possible options : 0800 6121 380

 

[NetwiseHosting]

Stu,

I would recommend speaking to Remotetechs about anything Office 365 related, they are specialists in the area and have assisted with several of our clients before now - you really can work from literally anywhere once they set it up and configure it correctly, well worth giving them a call.

Matthew

 

[Posilan]

Stu,

An alternative to having all your files in the "cloud" would be to remotely access your PC in the office via remote desktop.

Assuming you have a PC in the office and a laptop/PC at home, you can achieve what you want to do from as little as free. It's also probably going to be faster that using cloud based file storage.

Steve

 

[Talay]

Stu,

An alternative to having all your files in the "cloud" would be to remotely access your PC in the office via remote desktop.

Assuming you have a PC in the office and a laptop/PC at home, you can achieve what you want to do from as little as free. It's also probably going to be faster that using cloud based file storage.

Steve

Whilst I've always gone down this train of thought previously, it offers little or nothing in the way of redundancy.

I'm convinced that a 21st century solution requires some form of cloud based storage but like many I guess, I'm still hovering over what is best for me. I need to get this resolved my end but if you are starting out, it is surely a no brainer that cloud storage must be part of your IT solution from day one.

I guess you need to invest a little time and perhaps money in getting someone to do an IT audit if you are not comfortable with doing it yourself. You may find that there are solutions to problems you didn't even know were problems which could be overcome.

Where you start and who you give your trust to is another matter.

 

[Quest Cloud Solutions Ltd]

I wouldn't spend money on an IT audit; the IT provider should give you a tailored proposal based on your needs and wants for free if they want the business anyway.

Stu,

An alternative to having all your files in the "cloud" would be to remotely access your PC in the office via remote desktop.

Assuming you have a PC in the office and a laptop/PC at home, you can achieve what you want to do from as little as free. It's also probably going to be faster that using cloud based file storage.

Steve

That is effectively what the cloud is anyway; the difference being you're accessing a highly resilient, redundant and secure datacentre platform rather than just a laptop in the office. The datacentre's upload speed is always going to greatly outstrip the upload speed of your office, and that is where the bottleneck usually occurs. You can do that kind of thing with the likes of LogMeIn, but it would be painful to use regularly.

 

[andygambles]

Based on the above considerations, I would encourage you to look at Office365, as its starts at £2.82/month per user per month, to have online storage (SharePoint online), but unlike Google Apps, you have the ability to easily add more options as you grow, which is obviously your goal.

Why doesn't Google Apps allow you to "add more options as you grow"? and what options are they?

 

[DarrenMcCabe]

Where you start and who you give your trust to is another matter.

We will gladly offer a 30 day trial completely for free, so it can be used fully and evaluated and if it doesnt meet the criteria you can get your files and go elsewhere.

 

[KM-Tiger]

... it is surely a no brainer that cloud storage must be part of your IT solution from day one.

In a lot of cases yes. But one must start from the nature of the business and the likely quantities of data that will be generated.

For instance, I have a couple of clients involved in film and images. They count storage in TB not GB, so 'cloud' is never going to work for them.

 

[DarrenMcCabe]

Agreed if you deal with very large files (eg Architects and Designers) no cloud service is going to work well for you, unless you're lucky enough to be a super quick leased line or similar.

 

[MartCactus]

I've used dropbox for a while - enables a folder on various local machines to be synchronised with their cloud service... so if I put a new document in on my desktop it syncs it with the cloud... when I login on my laptop at home that file appears after a few seconds.

The main drawback is that although it is password protected, it isn't encrypted.

Spideroak.com provide something similar but that implements encryption too - so even they can't see the files (or even file names/structure) on their server (though I've not tried it yet). This type of way of working is great - have access to all your files from any machine - quick to sync (as only syncs new files/file changes). If you fall offline then you still have access to the files from the last sync (so most of what you need). And it also acts as backup - if your work machine has a disk failure you know you have everything in the cloud and/or on any other PCs you use to connect.

There is a dropbox client on the iphone/ipad too and many apps enable you to save to your dropbox account. Combine this with a good voip system and eg gmail and you really feel like your office is wherever you happen to be working from. You can even login to the dropbox website and download files - useful when you are out on site at someone else's PC and you need access to a file or document.

 

[Posilan]

That is effectively what the cloud is anyway; the difference being you're accessing a highly resilient, redundant and secure datacentre platform rather than just a laptop in the office. The datacentre's upload speed is always going to greatly outstrip the upload speed of your office, and that is where the bottleneck usually occurs. You can do that kind of thing with the likes of LogMeIn, but it would be painful to use regularly.

Everything has it's place and whilst a "cloud" solution would be best for some, for others it would not.

We have many customers working remotely using terminal servers etc and as long as there is enough upstream bandwidth and or QoS, there shouldn't be an issue.

What the OP really needs to be clear about when choosing a "cloud" solution is what the cloud solution provider is classing as "cloud".

I've yet to see a consistent definition. It can vary from a single server in a data centre to the likes of amazon S3 or content delivery networks

Steve

 

[RemoteTechs]

Why doesn't Google Apps allow you to "add more options as you grow"? and what options are they?

• Office 2010 Pro as a monthly subscription.
• Lync: Hosted VoIP that can be integrated into a SIP system.
• Email archiving, if your using all of your 25GB mailbox!
• Public facing website
• Active Directory synchronisation
• Configurable anti spam filtering
• Hosted Voice mail

 

[andygambles]

• Office 2010 Pro as a monthly subscription.
• Lync: Hosted VoIP that can be integrated into a SIP system.
• Email archiving, if your using all of your 25GB mailbox!
• Public facing website
• Active Directory synchronisation
• Configurable anti spam filtering
• Hosted Voice mail

All available with Google Apps (except the Office 2010 but you can get that on subscription if you want).

Just saying