Category: legacy application modernization

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Considering Deploying Microsoft365 for Your Entire Organization? Success is in the details.

Technology is ever advancing, and even the smallest of businesses must keep in step to remain competitive. Efficiency is the key to modern, effective operations, yet keeping teams aligned and working towards the common goal can be tougher than ever when members are remote working. Microsoft solutions can help the business increase productivity and modernize their operations, and at the same time provide stronger security and enhanced protection.

For just about every business, it makes sense to consider using Microsoft 365 services. But there are a lot to choose from, and not all services work as you might expect, so here is a little information that might help with making service selection a little easier.

Does it make sense to implement Microsoft Teams for intra-company calls, meetings, and collaboration?

Teams is great for calling your co-workers, sharing screens, presenting content, and collaborating in workgroups or with the whole company. But be warned that Teams meetings don’t work for everyone, particularly those outside your organization or for users that don’t have useful Internet connectivity.

  • To use Teams with people outside the company, or even for users that don’t have Internet connectivity, you’ll need to also have a calling plan for each user.
  • A calling plan allows Teams to connect a phone number to the Teams meeting, creating a means for non-Teams users and those without internet to connect to the meeting audio.

Should you migrate employee email inboxes to MS365 (Outlook Desktop and/or Outlook Online)?

Using Microsoft for email services make a ton of sense, especially with the advanced phishing and threat protection that comes standard with the service. It is pretty much foolproof for most businesses and is a great value. If your business is migrating to Microsoft from a legacy email platform or from a different mail provider, there are a few things to consider.

  • Many companies use their desktop Outlook email folders as a sort of file cabinet, storing and categorizing emails for future use. In older MS Exchange environments, Public Folders were also used, enabling company-wide access to certain email folders and the file attachments within.
  • MS365/Office365 email services don’t support public folders, and every email box comes with a storage quota. If the business is used to saving lots of emails, then it might create difficulties with mailbox management.
  • Outlook Desktop still has limitations on the file size it can reasonably handle. This means that Outlook, when connected to hosted Exchange mail (Microsoft365), should run in cached mode, keeping only recent data in the Outlook file on the computer and leaving the rest of the mail on the server. Mail on the server is still available for search by Outlook; the program will simply search in the local data file first.

Can you, or should you, migrate your company’s files to the Microsoft cloud?

Keeping your files on the “cloud” is a concept that sounds convenient, but it isn’t quite as straightforward as it sounds. In this case, the idea is to migrate files from PCs and servers to Microsoft OneDrive or SharePoint, where the files can be available to all users regardless of where the user is working from.

  • Putting a big hard drive on your PC or server can be relatively inexpensive. “Storage is cheap” we hear quite often. Yet all storage facilities are not alike. It might be a cheap option to add a big hard drive or USB drive to your local system but paying for storage space on the web becomes a different deal. You may find that safe, protected storage for your files is not quite as inexpensive as you thought, especially over time. When you must pay every month for the storage you use, you rapidly realize why file housekeeping is essential.
  • File and folder permissions do not translate from your Windows file system to a SharePoint or OneDrive. You must create your own groups and set file and folder permissions as you want them AFTER the data is uploaded to the cloud platform.
  • Once the files are in the cloud platform, each user must determine what and how the files will sync with their local computers. There may be an option to “sync on demand” (depends on device platform) that can allow users to selectively sync files to/from their computers, but the fact remains that the data is being downloaded to the local computer so that it can be worked on. This still means that the local computer must have the necessary software installed, and the PC should be protected with backup, anti-virus and anti-malware and MFA.
  • Database files cannot work in a web file location. This means that programs that have associated database/data files must still have their files located on a network server for users to access them. QuickBooks, tax software, trial balance software, workpapers and fixed assets, inventory management or manufacturing, and more may require the server to serve the application and/or data to the users. This means that servers and networks and the need to manage the network and the individual computers remains in full.
  • If all other data is stored on the cloud platform, then you now have data and resources to manage both places.

What does the new Microsoft365 Cloud PC mean for small businesses?

  • The new Cloud PC from Microsoft365 can solve a tremendous problem for the very small business in that it can become the IT infrastructure and it is fully cloud platform.
  • Cloud PC is meant to replace your local PC as your operating environment. Rather than installing software and storing data on your local device, the idea is that your software gets installed on your Cloud PC and your data is stored, ideally, in your OneDrive, or maybe on the drive of your Cloud PC.
  • This makes the Cloud PC a perfect solution for that single user that needs to run their QuickBooks or other applications from anywhere.
  • The thing with the small business Cloud PC is that it cannot be networked. It may be able to “see” and work with your local device hard drive or even mapped drives that your local device is connected to, but it isn’t able to work with a network server or share like a local PC would.
  • This means that you may be able to store and retrieve files from servers or other drives on your local PC or network, but you won’t be able to access databases or other server or network-based applications that need the network to function.
  • This also means that you can’t share data on one cloud PC to another cloud PC… they aren’t networked together.

Why NOOBEH’s Cloud Service model is better

There’s a reason why businesses adopt NOOBEH QuickBooks on Azure services, and the benefits are as great as ever. Businesses work with NOOBEH and our QuickBooks on Azure services because we have the flexibility to do what the business needs, and to offer a comprehensive approach that doesn’t leave applications, services and data hanging around on local networks or unprotected computers.

Where the Microsoft365 Cloud PC is a great answer for the single-user, NOOBEH’s cloud servers are designed for multiple users needing access to common applications and/or data. Multi-user QuickBooks desktop applications, Sage or AccountEdge, MISys Manufacturing or Acctivate Inventory, ShipGear or Starship, Fedex or UPS and much more… we host the applications that businesses use every day.

NOOBEH keeps the applications and data securely running on private Microsoft Azure cloud servers. Centralized, server-based management of applications and data means that software does not have to be installed and maintained on individual computers, so the need for local PC backups and anti-virus and malware protection is also minimized. All users work on the same version of the same software, and everyone accesses the same data in real time. Version control issues and sync problems are entirely avoided when everyone is working in the live system with live data, and Microsoft’s Azure platform ensures that issues due to transient hardware failures are a thing of the past.

When the company has workers that must operate from their local computers, NOOBEH can enable a solution to keep SharePoint in sync with the cloud server, ensuring that workers on and off the server are able to reach the most current version of the files. Users working in QuickBooks can interact directly with SharePoint files and folders by using the native Windows File Explorer where users operating on their local PCs access SharePoint via OneDrive or via the web. This approach delivers the best of both worlds to businesses who need more flexible modes of operating.

Contact us today to find out more about how we can help your business do more in less time, improve efficiency and work more effectively with a system that works where and when you need it.

jm bunny feetMake Sense?

J

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Finance Department Participation in Supply Chain Management

When most businesses approach Supply Chain Management, the focus is on the item or product – the physical thing that ultimately gets delivered somewhere, somehow. What many businesses do not consider is that the orchestration and timing of “supply chain” activities can have significant impacts on financial performance, reporting and cash flow. The current processes could just be working just “okay”, and not delivering the financial benefit that might be obtained through modernization of technologies and transformations in approaches. The key is to get the right people involved.

One big aspect of seeking to integrate electronic commerce and collaboration with customers, suppliers and payment services is the recognition that supply chain activities involving orders, invoices, payments, and remittances are directly related to finances, revenue recognition and cash management.

For any project to be successful, it should include execs from both the supply chain and finance areas so that all concerns relating to event timing may be addressed to allow proper treatment in the financial statements. After all, the same things that trigger supply chain activities (orders etc) are the same documents which drive finance. When the information is accurate and timely, and when the inefficient manual processes can be replaced with electronic workflows, the business is best positioned to improve cash flow and overall financial performance as well as business value.

Unfortunately, few business owners have a real understanding of the costs associated with manual entry activities and how the direct financial impacts they have. The speed and accuracy of processing orders and invoicing customers means faster cash in, and leveraging the speed of electronic data interchange with suppliers so that “just in time” orders may be placed and logistics processes more fully enabled means cash out when necessary and not ahead of time.

“… using a digital transaction for payments allowed [businesses] to hold on to cash longer and better control the timing of the release of funds, something more difficult to control when mailing a physical check. Check fraud remains rampant across many industries. According to an AFP payment fraud and control survey, 70% of U.S. organizations reported check fraud in 2019, responsible for more than $18 billion in losses.” –

source: What Every CFO Needs to Know About Supply Chains; Study published by DiCentral and Lehigh University; 2012

For example, there are many studies which show that purchase orders that are not sent digitally are most often manually processed, and that this manual processing may be done by any number of departments in the company – but most often the job falls to finance. Rather than looking to eliminate the manual entry of data and the errors and delays that come along with it, businesses execs first looked to where the lowest labor cost rests and had them handle the extra data input.

A digital strategy that transforms inefficient manual process into efficient electronic workflows is the better solution. While many companies have approached streamlining of activities by exchanging manual entry operations for data file formatting and imports, they still have not solved the problem as would be with an integration that takes even less human time and effort.

The real goal of any business improvement effort is to improve overall business value. By bringing in finance along with supply chain execs to the “digital transformation” discussion, the business is much better positioned to make real progress in areas that directly impact cash performance as well as long-term business value. It comes down to having all the information and being able to weigh the risks against the potential rewards to be gained from the contemplated changes.

jm bunny feetMake Sense?

J

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Where in The World is Your Data?

Where in the World is Your Data? Even better.. where would you like it to be? In a datacenter near you? In a datacenter far away from you? Maybe you’d like your production system nearby, but backups stored on the other side of the country. Or perhaps you want redundant systems on each coast as well as something somewhere in the middle.
With Microsoft Azure as your platform, you have all the choices in the world, literally.

Microsoft Azure is the platform of choice for businesses of all sizes, offering virtualized infrastructure and services that can be tailored and tuned to meet the unique needs of any organization. No longer tied to on-premises infrastructure, companies find that they can implement better and more comprehensive solutions because they have the agility to adapt systems to immediate needs while retaining the ability to adjust as conditions change.

With Microsoft Azure and Microsoft 365 Services, NOOBEH enables businesses to focus on transformation and improving efficiency, not the IT that supports it.

NOOBEH cloud services, part of the Mendelson Consulting team, sets up Azure infrastructure and manages it for their clients. Business users focus on getting their work done, not on the IT supporting it. NOOBEH QuickBooks on Azure services give small and medium size businesses the most flexible and resilient infrastructure available to run all their desktop and network applications.

Because QuickBooks is rarely a standalone solution, NOOBEH QuickBooks on Azure services have no limitations on what add-ons, extensions, integrations or other applications the business may need to use. All the software a business needs can be deployed on the platform, allowing the company to keep its information systems and assets secure, fully-managed and available when and where they are needed.

While NOOBEH uses Azure platform and Microsoft 365 services to continue to deliver new capability for private sector users, Microsoft is advancing innovation in the delivery of connected services and computing power for private and government sector users wherever it is needed. Azure Modular Datacenters represent a partnership that delivers computing and communications capacity anywhere in the world… and beyond.

Microsoft Azure Modular Datacenters and SpaceX

The Azure modular datacenter is basically a “data center in a box”. It comes with everything needed to deliver computing capacity anywhere in the world.

“We designed the Azure Modular Datacenter (MDC) for customers who need cloud computing capabilities in hybrid or challenging environments, including remote areas. This announcement is complemented by our Azure Space offerings and partnerships that can extend satellite connectivity anywhere in the world. Scenarios range from mobile command centers, humanitarian assistance, military mission needs, mineral exploration, and other use cases requiring high intensity, secure computing on Azure.”

https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/blog/introducing-the-microsoft-azure-modular-datacenter/

It has power and everything else it needs, and now it also has the connectivity needed, even when there is no (zip, zero) infrastructure. Microsoft has partnered with SpaceX, using SES satellites to bring Internet connectivity to remote areas.

“We can connect via satellite links any element on the Earth to another point on the Earth..”

https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2020/10/microsofts-new-data-center-in-a-box-will-use-spacex-starlink-broadband/

They’re calling it part of “a multi-orbit, multi-band, multi-vendor” approach to connectivity. That’s pretty cool, if you ask me.

It takes the whole bookkeeping in bunny slippers philosophy of “work when and where it works for you” to an entirely new level.

Make Sense?

jm bunny feet

J

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Office 2013 Loses Support for Commercial Office 365 Services

If you’re not on a subscription for your Office desktop applications, you may lose access to your email box and other services.  Why? Because Microsoft announced that, effective October 13th, 2020, Office 365 services (like OneDrive, Hosted Exchange and more) will only support client connectivity from subscription clients or perpetual clients with mainstream support.

Basically this means that Office 2013 is about to be no fun any more.

You won’t be able to use Office 2013 Outlook to connect to your Microsoft-hosted Exchange mailbox, and your Word and Excel won’t connect to OneDrive.  If you are with a hosting provider who supplies your Office licenses as part of the service, cross your fingers and hope that it isn’t Office 2013. It will be pretty frustrating if your Outlook suddenly has problems accessing your Microsoft-hosted mailbox.

Like many other products, a lot of the functionality in the desktop software has been turned into web service and the Microsoft Office applications are a great example. With cloud connectivity being the focus, desktop solutions are more frequently leveraging online resources to extend and expand their capabilities. This also means they’re more frequently turning from one-time software purchases to subscription service.

After October, Microsoft’s ongoing investments in the Office 365 cloud services – including Exchange Online, SharePoint Online, and OneDrive for Business – will be made based on “post-Office 2013 requirements”.  Now is the time to migrate your Office 2013 to Microsoft 365 Apps (formerly Office 365 ProPlus). We highly recommend this move anyway, so businesses can take advantage of using their Office applications seamlessly on Azure servers as well as their local PC desktops and mobile devices.

Users of Office 2016 and Office 2019 have a little more time before their software no longer supports the cloud services. That end date is currently October 2023. You can find the support lifecycle site for Office mainstream support dates here.

It isn’t that Microsoft plans to actively block older Office clients from connecting to Office 365 services. It’s just that older applications may have performance or reliability issues when they try to connect to the constantly-updated cloud services.  Increased security risks are certain and users may even find that they are no longer compliant with certain requirements. The big thing is that Microsoft support will likely not be able to resolve issues related to unsupported connections.

The days of buying software once and running it forever are just about over.

Developers have recognized that cloud services can expand and enhance their solutions in ways that static local installation can’t. For many businesses, it becomes easier and ultimately more efficient to migrate to subscription service for IT platform and software. Azure cloud servers, for example, allow businesses to always have modern infrastructure that is more fault tolerant and agile than on-premises hardware.

Combing these benefits with software that is cloud-connected and always up to date means the business never faces lost productivity or revenues due to outdated systems or lost compatibility with newer solutions.

Make Sense?

J

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Windows Server 2012/R2 Not Aging Well, Loses Support for Microsoft 365 Apps

Lots of people loved (and continue to love and use) Windows Server 2012/R2. This Windows Server release introduced several new and improved features that made it a cornerstone of business and service provider networks worldwide. Notable improvements in virtualization with Hyper-V, along with improvements in storage, networking, remote access and server administration features, made 2012/R2 a necessary upgrade from the 2003 and 2008 versions still present in many networks.

Sadly, even though Release 2 (R2) for Server 2012 was largely a new OS due to its features and capabilities, it did not receive a new lifecycle end date and instead inherited the end dates for 2012 version. And an extended lifecycle end-date doesn’t guarantee extended usefulness or compatibility.

Windows Server 2012 began with mainstream support on October 30, 2012 and that mainstream support ended in January 2018, including for R2. Extended support for 2012/R2 goes through January 2023, but that is only if you are paying for Software Assurance for your licenses.

During this period where extended support may still be available for the OS, there is no guarantee that it will remain as a supported platform for your application software. An example of this is the Microsoft Office 365 Apps suite formerly known as ProPlus. The Office 365 apps, which include Outlook, Word, Excel, Powerpoint and more, are staples of business users worldwide. These applications are no longer supported on Windows Server 2012/R2.

Microsoft 365 Apps ended support on Windows Server 2012/R2 on January 14, 2020.

Innovative features and functionality continues to be released for the Microsoft 365 Apps and Microsoft needs to know that the platforms running the applications will work properly with those innovations. As the software is improved and new capabilities introduced, stability and performance issues can plague the install when it is running on older or unsupported operating systems.

Microsoft has pointed out that any Microsoft 365 Apps updated to version 2005 or later will result with functionality and stability problems because there are changes that are specifically not compatible with Windows 8 and Windows Server 2012.

The pace of change is increasing no matter what industry you are in. With technology adoption rates rising faster than ever in all sectors, business owners cannot rely upon outdated systems if their operations are to remain competitive. Application software as well as the operating system platforms it runs on must be regularly updated in order to provide the reliable performance and useful functionality demanded by today’s business users.

jmbunnyfeetMake Sense?

J

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Working from Home: Remote Access Capability to Address Coronavirus Concerns

Scanning electron microscope image of the  coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 (blue) emerging from the surface of cells cultured in the lab. Image credit: NIAID-RML

COVID-19, as the new human coronavirus is now known, is spreading around the world and that means that individuals and families – and businesses – should prepare.

The Centers for Disease Control has said that it fully expects community transmission in the United States and is asking families to be ready for the possibility of significant disruption to our lives. This shouldn’t be a call to incite panic and doomsday scenarios, but it also isn’t something to be taken lightly.

Business need to consider how they will help keep their workforce working as symptomatic individuals quarantine themselves and others look to reduce their exposure in public.

Being at risk personally isn’t the only reason to prepare. Many will feel that the risk to them is small, recognizing that the disease is quite mild in most of those that become infected. But the primary reason to prepare is to help lessen the risk for everyone. Taking preventative steps to limit the spread of the disease is essential for everyone.

Prevention means doing more of what you should already be doing to help prevent the spread of any communicable disease…

  • Wash your hands
  • Cover your mouth when coughing
  • See a doctor if you’re sick
  • Avoid other people if you are infected or showing symptoms

This means staying home from work if you are even a little bit sick.

Look at what’s happening in Japan, a country known to promote spending long hours in the office as a crucial element to success. Authorities there are urging companies to break with that long-standing belief system. They are encouraging businesses to have their employees work from home to help limit the spread of the virus, yet most businesses aren’t prepared at all to handle a remote workforce.

Panasonic, NEC, and Mitsubishi are among the growing number of firms that have mandated or recommended remote work for tens of thousands of staff. The change is testing the ability of the nation’s companies to embrace a more flexible work style—overturning a workplace culture that dates back decades and values physical presence and endurance of long hours over productivity or efficiency. https://fortune.com/2020/03/01/coronavirus-japan-government-remote-work/

This is where cloud hosting services can be a big benefit for the business. Migrating the desktop and networked applications to a cloud-hosted platform allows the business to continue using the software and systems already working in the business, but to run them from a cloud platform that enables workers to access from anywhere… including from home.

Rather than trying to convert to web-based applications, requiring retraining of employees and conversions of data, businesses find great success in simply moving their in-house systems to an agile, scalable cloud platform that can be accessed via the Internet. Particularly when it comes to enabling remote offices and at-home workers, a cloud hosting approach is the way to rapidly move critical IT infrastructure out of the office, providing a means to support remote workers almost immediately.

Businesses find great benefits from hosting their applications and data in the cloud every day and without the pressures of global disaster and pandemic facing them. When the need to support remote and mobile workers becomes a work-from-home mandate, the business is already poised to meet the demand and still get the work done. It’s just another form of prevention for the business.

Make Sense?
J