Best Technology Practices For Your Business

1. Back up your critical business data no less than once per month.
   Don't become a statistic. Unexpected catastrophes like hard disk failure, accidental file deletion, virus infection, fire, and theft happen frequently to businesses every day. It is absolutely essential that your business perform periodic backups of all your critical data to protect your business in case the unimaginable occurs. Even better: Perform weekly or daily backups instead.



2. Leave your computers running (almost) all the time.
   With each power cycle, computer hardware becomes increasingly unreliable. Turning computers on causes them to heat up which causes the internal components to expand slightly, and turning them off causes the components to cool and contract. Eventually this expanding and contracting may cause contacts to break in the circuitry, which may eventually lead to electrical shorts and hardware failures. On the flip side, however, it is often worthwhile to reboot your computers once or twice a week. This will clean out the memory and give the operating system a fresh clean start.



3. Configure antivirus software so it updates automatically every day.
   It is an unpleasant fact, but there are people out there with too much time on their hands who wish to make your computer unusable. So after thwarting their efforts by installing antivirus software, go ahead and configure it to check for updates on a daily basis. With high-speed connections becoming the norm these days, this course of action is somewhat of a no-brainer. Need a recommendation? Try AVG Anti-Virus from Grisoft (http://www.grisoft.com). Oh, and for spyware you'll want to install Windows Defender (http://www.windowsdefender.com).



4. Install a firewall on your network.
   A firewall manages all traffic coming into and going out of your network, and prevents outside intruders from accessing the critical data on your network. Firewalls are critical to the security of your business; without them, your business could lose thousands of dollars in lost information and productivity.



5. Clean your computers inside and outside every 6 months.
   We recommend that you clean your computers every 3-6 months. Removing dust and dirt buildup not only stops the spread of germs, but also keeps your computers functioning properly, and even extends the life of your computers by allowing them to properly cool themselves.



6. Secure your wireless network.
   The default installation for most wireless networks does not include setting up security, which means that over 75% of all wireless networks are NOT secure! So unless you have taken deliberate steps to implement security, more than likely your network is at risk. Ensure that your wireless router is configured to only allow access to the computers that you want to have access to your network.



7. Use software to restrict and monitor employee surfing.
   On average, employees waste about two hours a day (much of which is spent online). Studies have shown that this loss of productivity costs businesses about $759 billion dollars every year. Don't let your employees take advantage of their Internet privileges! Make sure to install Internet filtering software that blocks access to irrelevant or obscene websites and prevents your employees from spending too much time online.



8. Tune-up your computer at least once a year.
   Without periodic maintenance your computers become increasingly sluggish, disorganized, and cluttered. Optimizing your system accelerates system performance, makes Windows boot faster, and increases your Internet and download speeds. You should also perform critical system updates, maintenance tasks, and repairs such as correcting hard drive problems, cleaning and optimizing your system registry, and deleting unused software and files that clutter up your file system.



9. Max out the RAM in your computer.
   Hardware costs have plummeted in recent years meaning that there is no better time than now to upgrade the RAM in your computer. Dollar for dollar, this is the best hardware upgrade you can perform to improve your system's performance. It is often inexpensive to install the maximum amount of RAM your system can take.



10. Utilize uninterruptible power supplies (UPS).
    There is no better way to insure the investment of your hardware than to use a UPS for your computer. A UPS will protect your machines from damaging power spikes and surges, and will give you a chance to save your data in the event of a power failure. Think again before you plug anything of value directly into the wall!

If you need help integrating any of these best practices into your business, contact us today for a free quote. We are here to help!