On September 8, 2010, Citrix, Cisco and NetApp joined forces to unveil an exciting new desktop virtualization solution that combines all the benefits of Citrix XenDesktop, with all the power of the Cisco Unified Computing System (UCS), and the strength of NetApp storage for a winning combination.Because it is based on XenDesktop, the new solution delivers any mix of virtual desktops and apps to any device with a brilliant, high definition user experience. And, because it incorporates the innovative new Cisco UCS platform, it features a highly efficient datacenter infrastructure that is scalable, cost effective, and perfectly suited to desktop virtualization.

Easy to Deploy, Easy to Support, and Easy to Scale

 This new solution includes templates for easy deployment, a starter kit for the first 300 desktops, plug-and-play expansion packs to scale to tens of thousands of additional users, and a single integrated support number for customers to call. It has been designed as an open solution that supports all leading hypervisors, storage systems and end user devices as well as more than 10,000 Citrix Ready products currently verified to work with XenDesktop.This groundbreaking new desktop virtualization solution is the first offering on the market to incorporate software, hardware and support into a unified offering that makes desktop virtualization easy to deploy, easy to support, and easy to scale.

  To learn more contact Capital Network Solutions, Inc. 916-366-6566 in Sacramento, CA 95827.

David Strom, contributer to SearchVirtualDesktop.com, published a very helpful article for anyone who is looking for conversion tools to move phusical desktops or servers to virtual machines.

Let Strom guide you to the best conversion tool for your environment:  http://go.techtarget.com/r/12466872/1667444

For more assistance with virtualizing your environment, contact a CNS virtualization expert.

A growing number of executive and management personnel are purchasing their own mobile devices and looking to connect them to their business networks; Exchange, VPN, Citrix, etc. In the past, many businesses limited these practices by having the IT department act as a barrier, refusing to set up the links or not authorize use by these devices.

With the advent of the iPhone’s ability to connect directly to an Exchange server through ActiveSync, it became unnecessary to involve the IT department, the process of connection was simple and it just worked.

There is little doubt that the explosion of mobile technology has made life much easier for staying up on emails, contacts and appointments. The ability to directly tie your smartphone (iPhone, Android, etc.) and now tablet (iPad) directly into your corporate Exchange server means that you are never out of touch.

However, there are serious implications to adding business accounts to your personal mobile devices:

• Intermixing of business and personal email, calendar and contacts, without individual account password protection.
  • Full access to business information by your family and friends, who have access to your mobile device.

• Exchange Remote Wipe – Microsoft offers very efficient tools for removing connections to mobile devices, however these tools also wipe all your personal information as well.
  • Microsoft gives company IT departments access to wipe all data from “unknown” devices (a.k.a. your phone). A remote wipe can fully erase all data on a computing device once you log into your email account.

Good for Enterprise™ provides a means for isolating and securing your business communication accounts as well as protecting your personal information from remote wipes. Without compromising IT security and control, this powerful mobility suite supports mobile collaboration on popular handhelds like iPhone, iPad, and Android devices. Good for Enterprise proven security architecture has even been adopted by top Fortune 500 companies and government agencies. All mobile devices can be managed from one web-based portal and access to information is available all the time using Good’s architecture to support and track mobile connections to critical data.

Good for Enterprise™ Overview:

Good for Enterprise is a suite of productivity and management tools that enable you to provide mobile users secure access to corporate data and applications.

• Support for Apple iOS (iPhone, iPod touch, iPad), Android, Windows Mobile and Symbian (Nokia)
• End-to-end 192-bit AES encryption and FIPS certification
• Compatible with Microsoft Exchange and Lotus Domino email servers
• Real-time visibility for mobile devices and software versions
• Good’s server is deployed behind corporate firewall using a secure outbound connection on port 443.

Good Mobile Control – Centrally managed web-based portal, with over-the-air configuration

• Lock down device functionality, such as camera, wi-fi and Bluetooth features
• Over-the-air set up for fast and easy deployment
• Policy-based management by user groups.
• End User Self Service options, permitting the users to set up their own access to the corporate network
• Deploy and update third-party software on mobile devices over the air
• Control which applications are permitted
• Remote wipe of a lost or stolen mobile unit

Good Mobile Messaging – dedicated secure mobile communication applications

• Email, calendar, contacts, RSS Feeds and IM applications are separate from device’s native mobile apps
• Required user authentication for access
• Email viewing preferences include single or double-line display as well as email conversation
• Full calendar and appointment support – check meeting participants free/busy status, view appointments by day or month
• Contact management – add, delete, edit and search within your corporate directory
• View rich content attachments (Word, Excel, PDF, etc.)        
• Consistent user interface across all mobile platforms

Good Mobile Access – mobile device VPN to corporate network

• Allows mobile device apps to access secured corporate databases and servers
• Managed through Good Mobile Control Web console
• Easy to implement with over-the-air management and security
• Provides end-to-end 192-bit AES encryption and FIPS 140-2 certification
• Ability to block certain protocols; HTTP, TCP, FTP, Telnet, SMTP, etc.
• Push policies and updates to mobile devices

For more information about adding business accounts to your mobile devices, contact Capital Network Solutions!

Have you tried EchoSign – the #1 electronic signature service on the web? We have and love it!

EchoSign is an electronic signature service that lets us get our documents signed within minutes rather than days.  We use it for all client agreement documentation and it really is a time saver.  Not only does it reduce the turnaround time, it also helps manage the status of documents that are outstanding.  We send out 5-10 work authorizations a week and EchoSign is the only way we can keep track of them. But it can do even more!

How many times have you wondered if that contract you needed signed was even looked at, let alone signed and mailed? With EchoSign, you can monitor how your documents are progressing in the signing process. If an issue or delay arises, EchoSign will alert you instantly so you can act quickly to correct the situation. EchoSign will also send automatic reminders and notifications on events and alerts so you are always on top of the signing process.

Staying true to acceleration, EchoSign makes signing up fast and easy. There are no software requirements or hardware installations. It is all done through a web browser.  It takes seconds to send out a contract and is a must have for companies that have to get client signatures.  Sign up for EchoSign and within seconds you can send out your first contract.

Try to Google the name of your company today. Do you see reviews from third party review sites like Yelp, Insider pages, City Search, or Kudo’s? See anything you don’t like? With potential customers researching products and services, bad reviews or complaints that turn up in a search can mean lost business.

Search Engines rank 3rd party reviews highly because it carries more weight than what you may put on your own website. Once a negative review is posted on a public review site, it can be very hard to remove. To add insult to injury, your negative review may be duplicated in other review sites causing the one negative review to show up in many positions on the first page of search engine results.

Some review sites let you claim your business and respond back to the negative review, others don’t. Responding to a negative review can also have a negative effect if it is not done correctly. Another problem is most review sites only post a user name like “Soccerdad” without providing you with contact information so it is almost impossible to contact the person that gave you the negative review to correct the problem.

There are Reputation Management Companies sprouting up all over the place geared towards combating your negative reviews. You can spend thousands of dollars with no guarantee of success. 

What does CNS suggest?

CNS has been providing Web Design and Search Engine Optimization for nearly four years. We understand the frustrations of managing negative reviews. We suggest starting a positive review campaign that can be pushed through your emails, newsletters, website and any other marketing  that you are pushing to your clients both past and present. Let your happy clients help you sell your services. With a positive review campaign in place, sooner or later you will outweigh any negative reviews.  This process will also keep you in tune with how your customers feel about your services and terms which in turn may help you eliminate future negative reviews.

We use a company that is called RatePoint which is a review site just like Yelp or Citysearch except it gives you more power to change a negative review into a positive review before it is ever published to the Web.

RatePoint gives businesses a seven day arbitration process that lets you:

·        Contact the person that gave you the negative lead

·        Remove a review that is not a client of yours

·        Remove a review if the reviewer does not respond to your email

RatePoint charges by the number of reviews you receive per month. Reviews that your clients provide can automatically be added to your website and can also be pushed to your business facebook account.

You still need a battle plan to combat the negative leads that you may already have. If you would like us to assess your online reputation give us a call.

Click to Watch Recorded Video

Time: Recorded Video is about 40 minutes in length

Cost: Free

Don’t waste your valuable IT budget on a Non-Productive Upgrade! Most businesses have been forced by the economy to hold off needed IT infrastructure improvements.  Over the last couple of years Virtualization and Storage Area Network technologies have greatly improved, and there are a lot of competing products out there marketing for your attention.  Virtualization of servers and workstations can, if done correctly, have huge savings and bring remarkable flexibility to address your company’s constantly evolving needs.  Many companies have made the mistake of doing a virtualization project only to find out that they have not provisioned properly and have to ask for more equipment and/or software licenses: a position no CIO wants.  The greatest risk is not fully understanding what is running on the current computer infrastructure and the resources they require.

Although server virtualization can sometimes be more easily “guessed at”, workstation virtualization is a whole other world.  Implementing the correct workstation virtualization solution is critical since it directly impacts the end-user’s productivity.  In many cases companies need a mix of desktop virtualization products to hit the “sweet spot” of the lowest cost and best user experience.  The only way to guarantee a successful implementation is to understand exactly what your end-users are doing and when.

To maximize our clients investments, CNS has been in both the server and workstation virtualization space for more than five years and works with all of the best-of-class vendors and solutions.  We specialize in doing in-depth environmental assessments that look at all facets of your IT infrastructure.  This includes information that most IT support staff find difficult and time consuming to gather: current user workstation configurations, user profiles, application use, peak load periods… to list just a few of the critical metrics for developing an optimum solution.  CNS assessments gather data points on servers and users, giving you a deep look into your day to day operations.

Our assessments go beyond rehashing the information you already know about your environment, providing you with a deep understanding of what is going on with your systems.  As part of the reports, we provide detailed recommendations, breaking down the type of software that will best suit your needs, provide you highly accurate budgetary pricing, as well as side by side comparisons from multiple vendors.

We will provide sample assessment reports during the webinar.

Will insurance companies use your social media posts against you? Should you take down your rock climbing and skydiving pictures on Facebook? Is there still time to delete your Tweets about last Saturday’s drinking debacle?

Where will insurers, consumers, and privacy advocates draw the line?
Caution: Facebook, Twitter posts can cost

Capital Network Solutions, Inc. (CNS) has partnered with SureWest. SureWest offers a broad-range of services including high speed internet, full featured voice systems and they take pride in providing clients with the best customer care in Sacramento. SureWest provides responsive, local people who know and care about your business and are available 24/7.

Better Together

This partnership means you will be able to take advantage of SureWest’s line packages along with our Managed IT Services.

• We can conduct a free line speed test and bill review for your business.
• We can also provide services to see what traffic or protocols are travelling on your Internet and Wide Area Network connections.
• Plus determine how much bandwidth is being used by each computer user.

Our Tools Include

• Internet Speed Test to verify your T1 speed and help you determine how much shared Broadband/DSL network you really need.
• Utilization Reports to get a clear picture of what traffic is being used on your internet connection. Is it email, file transfers or Internet surfing that is slowing down your employees? Determine what to change by evaluating it with the right information.
• Visibility Report to see where your employees are surfing and how much bandwidth they are using. We can give you the tools to restrict your employees to approved websites. You’ll be able to make the right decisions with real data.

As your trusted advisor we will keep you up to speed on current specials that SureWest may be running. You can even check our website link under SureWest Specials. This month they are offering a business package for $399.00 which includes High Speed Internet, and up to 15 phone lines with local calls included.

If you have any questions at all or would like us to schedule an appointment with you please contact Capital Network Solutions, Inc. (916) 366-6566.

Thank you for attending our GPO Class. 

Click here for  Class Courseware.