How do I choose a Managed Service Provider?

Posted on August 10, 2021 by Oak & Bluebird

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A Managed Services Provider (MPS) is an organisation that manages technology products and services for other businesses; the potential source of a great deal of frustration or peace of mind, depending on the vendor you choose.

Managed Service Providers have an economy of scale on their side, allowing them to charge less for essential IT services while offering a wide range of expertise. Of course, that's assuming that you've hired a good one. The wrong Managed Service Provider can result in poor communication, network downtime, lack of follow-through and general mistrust all around. And with your technology on the line, a brush with a bad vendor can cost you.

It feels like the term 'managed service provider' (Managed Service Provider) has been around since the beginning of computer technology. In a nutshell, a managed service provider is a company which can be outsourced to manage some part or all of an organisation's IT platform.

Before Managed Service Providers became the norm, companies predominantly worked around a break-fix model of outsourcing when an issue couldn't be handled in-house; however, over time, the market demanded more proactive solutions. Managed Service Providers filled this gap by offering services around monitoring equipment and identifying future issues.

Like practically everything that relates to technology, Managed Service Providers have had to function in a state of flux, meaning that they have had to evolve through the years to avoid irrelevance.

The advent of cloud computing, for example, has added a great deal of complexity and challenges to the mix as Managed Service Providers now need to find ways to maintain complex hybrid environments. This has also given them great opportunities to grow cloud-based offerings, like cloud-based backup and disaster recovery.

With so many different types of providers offering such a wide range of services, making a decision can be challenging.

What is Managed IT?

A managed IT service is an information technology (IT) task provided by a third-party contractor and delivered to a customer.

In a managed service arrangement, the managed service provider retains responsibility for the functionality of the IT service and equipment, and the customer typically pays a monthly fee for receipt of the service. There are many different types of managed IT service offerings. Still, the idea behind all of them is to transfer the burden of maintaining IT from the customer to a service provider. In an effective managed services relationship, a customer benefits from predictable pricing and the ability to focus on core business concerns rather than IT management chores.

Managed IT services allow businesses to delegate their IT operations to an expert third-party organisation that specialises in handling these responsibilities. These third-party organisations, known as Managed Service Providers (Managed Service Providers), are responsible for the entirety or portions of a business' IT systems, as agreed upon in a Service Level Agreement (SLA). The client typically procures IT equipment and depending on the SLA, Managed Service Providers may provide round-the-clock monitoring, issue resolution and reporting, and more.

According to the SLA, managed service providers charge a flat fee for delivery of their services over a set time. The SLA defines precisely what services will be furnished and the degree they will be offered, as well as metrics for measuring the success of these services.

Cloud computing has allowed managed IT services to expand beyond the regions and borders that would constrain the average break/fix IT through the adoption of Software as a Service (SaaS) technologies, as well as Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) and Platform as a Service(PaaS) also. These capabilities allow managed IT services to scale at a rate dramatically larger and faster than in-house IT operation or break/fix providers.

It is now a common trend in the enterprise world to undergo a digital transformation doctrine, whereby old and onsite hardware and infrastructure get replaced with digital systems and services.

But moving from old to new systems and IT operations can be a daunting task. There are numerous advantages but to get the most out of digital transformation, IT leaders and teams need to have a very careful and considered approach, which can be time-consuming and require a lot of ongoing work post-transformation.

This is why managed services have ballooned in popularity, with some two-thirds of businesses now partnered with at least one managed service provider. Such external firms can work with the client enterprise to ensure their new digital services and infrastructure are running smoothly and effectively for their business operations.

The overall idea is that a managed service provider takes care of all the maintenance and day-to-day running of such systems and services. This will free up time for an in-house IT team to explore new ways in which technology can benefit a company's daily operations and potentially boost its bottom line.

It aligns the outcomes of the organisation. An IT company is incentivised to do an excellent job; they want to minimise problems for your organisation because they have KPIs directly linked to the efficiency of your IT.

IT experts give you peace of mind

You're not an IT expert. Managed service providers take care of your IT, so you can focus on running your business.

Proactive support

Managed services offer proactive support. So instead of your IT firm always fixing problems, they will actually try to identify issues before they happen, keeping your systems up and your problems down.

Strategic IT planning

What IT systems do you need in 12 or 24 months? Managed services help you think ahead and give you advice on what you need to be planning from an IT department. This links to proactive support and ensures that your IT infrastructure and software is upgraded and updated to minimise risks such as downtime, viruses and crashes.

Complete outsourced IT

Managed services give you access to a complete IT department. You don't just get day-to-day IT support; you also get an IT manager and a virtual CIO so you can think strategically about how IT fits into your organisation.

Why do we need managed services?

Computer networks are more powerful, efficient, but more complicated than ever. Every small business has multiple computers, mobile devices, and critical business applications running on cloud services. While computers provide a platform for intelligent business operations, it also creates access points for hackers to try and to get into your network. Information security should be a primary concern. A business computing network requires full-time attention, but can your organisation afford an IT manager, let alone an IT team?

Fortunately, there's a more cost-effective approach. A managed service provider can handle all aspects of your network maintenance for a fixed monthly rate. With a Managed Service Provider, you get the reliability and security which a full-time IT staff provides at a fraction of the cost.

Both small, medium and large businesses are becoming acutely aware of the reasons to choose the managed-services business model, and the demand is strong. Here's an outline of some of the reasons why your business should choose IT managed-services.

Why is technical expertise important in choosing a managed service provider?

As the person responsible for IT, your job is to take a strategic view of your IT environment and map technology investments to business goals. Managed Service Providers can be invaluable at helping you succeed in this role. On the one hand, they take the hassle of managing basic infrastructure off your plate. On the other hand, a leading Managed Service Provider will have technical specialists on staff who can act as part of your team when you need advanced or specialised knowledge that your staff doesn't possess. Collaborating with a Managed Service Provider is a way to both efficiently and cost-effectively augment your team's skills with deep expertise in security, networking, or communications, without increasing payroll.

Expanding on bringing Managed Service Providers into staff meetings, IT companies need to make sure they are getting the most out of their services.

If you look around at the market, the expertise offered by Managed Service Providers has expanded dramatically through the years, such as data analytics, business intelligence (BI) and advanced application monitoring.

The right managed services provider will sit down with you and assist in your technology planning for the future. Look for their advice and expertise to assist you with yearly planning and look for ways for you to save money and improve efficiency on technology that will help your company grow to the next level. Make sure your managed services provider is forward-thinking and looks out for your interests.

Industry Relevant Managed IT Service Provider

Most IT professionals will be excited to face a new challenge, but it is best for your business if your managed service provider has real experience working in your industry. If you run a restaurant, then an IT expert with foodservice industry experience will be able to serve you much better than one who has primarily worked with accounting firms. Industry experience ensures your managed service provider will be able to foresee potential problems and also anticipate your operational needs.

OK, so they're offering some great sounding solutions, but what level of expertise do they have with these applications and partners? Are they an Amazon Web Services certified partner for instance, and what other certifications and qualifications can they show you?

When trying to gauge these criteria, take a look at the personnel working at the Managed Service Provider. After looking at the expertise and experience of each employee, partner, and founder - gauge the company holistically, to measure what their weaknesses and strengths are.

Don't be afraid to ask questions to gain further insight into this important factor to consider. A Managed Service Provider is only as good as the people who are working in it.

The most advanced technology

The reason that Managed Service Providers can offer you such sophisticated services at such competitive rates is that they've leveraged their investment in advanced technologies-and in training for their staff-over a large number of customers. By taking advantage of this shared model, you get the latest technology and most sophisticated IT talent available without having to make those investments yourself. And when it's time for an upgrade, you no longer bear the expense and the pain-all of that is handled behind the scenes by your Managed Service Provider.

How flexible should be a managed service provider?

The Managed Service Provider should understand your unique service needs rather than just offering cookie-cutter solutions. You should have your choice of data plans, telephony options, and business applications, as well as flexibility as to deciding on what hardware is installed in your office. And, as your requirements change, the Managed Service Provider can scale either up or down as needed.

Make sure that you have options to choose among private, public and hybrid cloud solutions for data, voice, infrastructure and applications. And you should be able to choose the level of service you want from your Managed Service Provider: whether consultation-only services for planning purposes, management of existing onsite equipment you own, or fully hosted solutions that supplement or replace existing systems' assets.

Involve Your Managed IT Service Provider in Staff Meetings

Just because a managed service provider is outsourced, it does not mean they should act like they are. In this day and age, it is common for Managed Service Providers to sit in on staff meetings, not only to keep in line with the strategy but to contribute and share experiences. Given the apparent benefits, CTOs mustn't be afraid to push the dynamic of the relationship in their favour.

Despite the technicality of being separate organisations, if something needs to get done working as a team is the best way to do it. After all, if you're using Managed Service Providers to deliver things that are mission-critical to your enterprise and it goes down, it's still your job at risk.

Business needs to change quickly, and technology changes even quicker. You need a Managed Service Provider that has the flexibility to take on additional projects and services as needed, as well as the ability to guide you as you consider new technologies.

While you probably do not want your company to be the guinea pig that discovers all of the bugs in the latest technology, you also do not want to fall behind. Offering the latest services and adopting new technology early on will ultimately give your business an edge over its competition. A managed service provider who stays on top of the latest innovations and offers the most advanced options in IT will ensure your company remains contemporary, functional, and relevant.

What should be the infrastructure services of a Managed Service Provider?

Your Managed Service Provider should provide more than essential infrastructure services. It should offer you the option of subscribing to business services that run on top of the network-services such as collaboration tools, email, and remote data backup. After all, these services are just as essential to running your business as infrastructure components-and can be easily managed remotely at a cost that is probably lower than if you tried to do it all yourself.

Proactive stance

Your Managed Service Provider should make infrastructure management invisible to your users. Rather than reacting to them complaining when something breaks, a top-line Managed Service Provider will automate IT management as much as possible to avoid problems from occurring in the first place. For example, your Managed Service Provider should detect bottlenecks in your network long before users report slow system response times. And if an issue does occur, your Managed Service Provider should have an automated response to resolve it as quickly as possible. Also, your Managed Service Provider should make you aware of any issues that arise before they impact your users.

At a busy, growing company, often the temptation is only to fix technology when it is not working. A managed services partner will make sure you are proactively running the updates you need now to avoid problems later.

Third-party Vendor Partnerships

An advantage of using a managed services provider is that they can handle technology vendors for you, saving you the time of tracking down multiple vendors for service and support. When evaluating a provider, look at who they partner with and make sure they have expertise on the tools you use.

Visibility

You should have complete visibility into your IT environment through a web-based customer portal that provides a centralised management dashboard. You should know at a glance what has been done to your IT infrastructure, as well as what is currently being worked on, and what still needs to be accomplished. Additionally, you should also be able to both view your IT environment from a high level and drill down into individual components to see how they are functioning. Not incidentally, you should also be able to run reports on your IT infrastructure to help you with long-term IT planning.

How should a Managed Service Provider respond?

The Managed Service Provider should support and proactively monitor its data, voice, and security services on a 24/7/365 basis. Although this should primarily be done remotely-meaning you won't have to wait for a technician to come to your office should something go wrong-the Managed Service Provider should also offer prompt onsite servicing for those things that can't be diagnosed and fixed from a distance.

In the midst of an IT emergency, you don't want to be wondering if your vendor's help desk will really have your back.

Find out how IT support is managed

Are support team members outsourced? Is support online 24/7? How do you get in touch when you need something? Answering these questions will give you a true sense of the Managed Service Provider's disaster response abilities.

You don't work 24 hours a day, but your computer network needs to, and so does your IT provider. When choosing any managed services offering, you must make sure your provider is available to you 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year. Your business depends on it.

A managed service provider should be able to give you an upfront estimate of response times in any given situation. This will provide you with a good idea of the time it will take to fix problems which arise in the future.

Many times technical support issues are what drive businesses to a new Managed Service Provider in the first place. The headaches of downtime, coupled with security threats and slow response from existing support, make outsourcing the IT department and gaining cloud computing capabilities very alluring. Thus, businesses are laboriously searching around seeking the right provider for them.

Do Your Research

Check out the Managed Service Provider's technical support promises and options within their services. For example, do they offer a guaranteed response time for service requests? Do they rank customer satisfaction through continuous surveys? How do they cover after-hours support? Are they available to handle emergency requests 24/7/365?

Then check out what past clients say about them, concerning their technical support abilities. Ask them direct questions about how they plan to provide technical support and the price structure around it. This should give you a good picture of what sort of Managed Service Provider you're choosing.

Why is it important for a Managed Service Provider to have financial stability?

As with any vendor, you should check out the financial strength of the Managed Service Provider. The last thing you want is to have to go through the selection and provisioning process all over again. Choose a Managed Service Provider that's going to be around for the long term.

You want to select a managed service provider who will be around as long as your company (hopefully forever). You can verify a provider's history by searching for press releases, asking for financial statements, or checking with references.

Why do I need to consider business-class service level agreements (SLAs) in choosing a managed service provider?

A Managed Service Provider's SLA tells you how successful they are at maintaining the system and network availability. These SLAs should be quantitatively measurable and easy to understand. To make sure that SLAs have some teeth in them, leading Managed Service Providers will have triggers and penalties built into your contract so that you get customer credits if SLAs are missed. However, leading Managed Service Providers will rarely miss their SLAs.

Whatever expectations you set for an Managed Service Provider, the best way to assess their commitment is to look at their service level agreement (SLA). The SLA sets out what the vendor will provide. If the vendor is unable to meet their obligations, the SLA will also offer a customer with recourse.

Service level agreements vary on a case by case basis. However, typical components usually contain:

- Warranties: These agreements should spell out legal fine points, such as compensation policies.

- Client Duties: It's common that Managed Service Provider users also agree to a code of conduct.

- Procedures for when problems arise: This should cover how problems are reported as well as distinguishing the various levels of severity of different problems. It should also indicate the Managed Service Providers response time.

- Performance agreement: Typically, an SLA should outline what metrics will be used to quantify and report on service levels.

- Termination: The agreement must specify under which circumstances the Managed Service Provider or client can end the relationship.

Chief Technology Officers should use the contracting process to build an understanding of what they want from their Managed Service Provider. By setting clear expectations in black and white, clients can allow providers to build an understanding of their duties.

Be sure your provider offers a contract and list of services which covers the entire scope of your company's needs, including computers, laptops, phones, tablets, payment systems, and even cloud computing. You do not want to get stuck in a contract with a company that cannot handle the entire job.

What are the pricing models for managed service providers?

To differentiate themselves in a crowded marketplace, suppliers offer a diverse range of payment models, below is a quick explanation of some of the popular ones:

- Per-device monitoring: Customers are billed a flat fee for monitoring selected devices, for example, mobile devices and desktop systems. This is a very common payment structure, mainly because it offers predictability and flexibility as you can scale up and down the number of devices as needed. One drawback with this structure is that it can get expensive as the number of devices used by workers multiplies.

- Per-user: This model is similar to the per-device pricing model, the difference being that the flat fee is billed per end-user on a monthly basis. This will cover support for all devices used by each user.

- Tiered pricing: This is perhaps one of the most popular pricing models. Essentially, the service offered will have different price points. The more you spend on a service package, the more services you get.

- Value-based pricing: This revolves around setting the price of a product or service based on the economic value it offers to customers. If a company wants to do this, they need to be certain what value means to them.

The way provider bills will affect more than your accounts payable; it can also reveal the quality of the company's integrity. Avoid those who strictly charge by the hour, looking instead for providers who charge flat fees for certain services. For these managed service providers, doing the job right the first time is mutually beneficial.

How do I look for the best security in choosing a managed service provider?

Last but not least, ask the Managed Service Providers you are considering for their security certifications and their ability to meet HIPAA, PCI or other qualifications that help you comply with regulatory and industry statutes.

One of the areas the lack of available skills is hurting the most is in cybersecurity. This is why many organisations are looking for managed service providers to help prevent and counter threats.

When it comes to having the talent to keep up with the security landscape, some providers are better than others. According to their research, most providers are following standard recruiting and retention best practices, while others are taking more creative approaches to ensure that they have enough talent to serve clients and mitigate future risks.

Another thing that customers are pushing for from their Managed Service Provider is that they take on responsibility for regulatory compliance, such as the General Data Protection Regulation.

However, Chief Technology Officer's regulatory compliance is a critical issue across most industries, especially if engineers will be working with confidential data.

When it comes to security and regulatory compliance, the best thing you can do is to ask if the Managed Service Provider has undergone a third-party accreditation. You should also ask if the Managed Service Provider has adopted any business continuity standards.

A good managed services firm will help protect your network from cyber-criminals and hackers. Make sure that your plan includes regular security testing and monitoring for attacks.

Whether it is improving efficiency by saving time, saving money on problems before they occur, or avoiding costly disasters and repairs, a managed services provider can bring great value to your business and improve your bottom line. Finding a true partner to look out for your technology needs will help your business grow to the next level.

It might sound contrary, but keeping IT infrastructure management in-house often prevents you from focusing on important IT issues. The right Managed Service Provider can free you up to do what you're best at strategizing on what technology investments will best advance the business. You get a true partner in IT for the long haul as well. By considering all the above characteristics, and choosing wisely, you could achieve much more than if you go it alone.

When choosing a Managed Service Provider, considering these factors will help ensure a good fit for your business. Remember, not all Managed Service Providers are the same, and you should heavily vet them to find one that speaks your language and connects with your ideals. This way, when problem-solving occurs, a profitable relationship will be formed. This relationship should have mutual respect and consideration for the success of both.

What is the difference between photocopy and print?

Posted on August 9, 2021 by Oak & Bluebird

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Printing & Photocopying, what's the difference?

There was a time when photocopying is something you do not consider an option for your printing materials. That you would rather have them printed and spend more money to have a presentable print result, it cannot be denied though that copiers are getting more sophisticated and going digital as time goes on. This development is indeed creating a thin line between photocopying and printing.

Photocopiers are standard pieces of office equipment and have been since the 1970s. As technology has developed, the majority of photocopiers in offices today are 'multifunction' devices. It can be hard to distinguish the difference between a photocopier and a scanner as they appear to operate in similar ways, yet the method of output is vastly different.

The beginning processes of photocopying and scanning are identical. You place a document on the platen - the flat glass surface on the top of the device, or in the document feeder (which allows multiple sheets to be copied or scanned at once). You then push a button and the machine acquires a digital image of the document.

The next stages of the process are quite different, however. If the machine is a photocopier, it merely prints the digital image onto one or more blank sheets of paper. If the machine is a scanner, it stores a digital copy of the image and transmits it to a computer (via email or network), or stores it on a USB or memory card.

Copying documents is a simpler process than scanning. Most photocopiers require users to press a button to start the photocopying process. Additional buttons are available to change the print quality or increase the number of copies. In contrast, scanning requires users to have a basic knowledge of computers to manage the transmitting, storage and editing of scans. When you press the button for scanning, you may be faced with a pop-up message, asking you what to do next - scan to folder or email.

Scanners are the tool for business owners that want to go 'paperless', yet if the paper is your medium of choice for document transmission and recording, then a copier will suffice. However, any devices combine the two functions today. Multifunction devices combine a printer, copier and scanner into one device, giving you all the options, as well as the option of fax.

In photocopying, especially digital photocopying, a fast turnaround is given not only in large quantities but also in smaller ones. Copy shops now have more machines ready to cater to the copying needs that people require. This saves their customers the trouble of waiting in line and wasting a lot of their precious time. Besides that, preparations are not anymore needed as digital copiers are always ready for the next copy job. Moneywise, fixed and affordable prices are associated with the number of copies the customers may wish to have. This makes copying more ideal for lower quantities than for larger quantities.

In printing, on the other hand, a printing job will take longer because of the pre-press preparation that should be done initially. Direct-to-plate printing could have done the printing job faster but only a few printing companies offers this kind of service now. If people choose this printing type, they would have to wait for the others who may want to have the same service. The customers can get the best quality in prints that the company can offer using their sophisticated tools. The money you pay for is justified by the best result you will get.

Comparing these two in terms of quality, printing wins hands down. You would not be able to get the same or even close to the quality of printing in copying. You can have a variety of paper stocks to choose from that will best suit your printing needs. The cost is the downside, though. Printing is much more expensive, and only the people with enough budgets can afford having them done this way.

Photocopying, obviously, is cheaper. If time is a consideration and not the quality, this is how you should go about reproducing your project. Also best for small amounts and budget-conscious people.

Printing and photocopying have their advantages and disadvantages that can be likewise compatible with what suits the needs of their customers. It will all sum depending on the different needs that different people have. Knowing these facts would surely help them decide which is best for their printing needs.

What Is Photocopying?

A copier is a photocopying device that allows users to make duplicate copies of a document or an image, that too cheap. Copiers use xerography technology that is similar to the technology used in a laser printer. The printer is a peripheral device that creates a solid copy of the digital data that is represented on the computer screen. Printers can be used to connect to a computer using a USB or wirelessly.

A copier is a machine that makes exact copies of something along the lines of a document, photograph, drawing, etc. The very first basic copy machine was released onto the market around 1959. Although they are not as popular as they once were as individual pieces of technology, copy machines can still be found being used in many places.

You could expect to see one in many of the same places that you would see a printer. Despite similar technology, they serve a much different purpose. For example, a professor may use a copy machine to make copies of a chapter in a book for a class homework assignment. This situation would call for a copy machine instead of a printer.

In the previously mentioned scenario, it can be assumed that the professor has a physical copy of the book needed. The copy machine would be used because the professor would need exact copies of the chapter in the book. In a slightly different scenario, maybe the professor wants to share an article that they found on a webpage with the class.

A printer would be used in this case because the information needed is on a computer. Technically speaking, the professor could make copies of the article with the printer. However, it would certainly not be the same as making the copies with the photocopy machine.

When thinking about creating duplicates for a document, two things come to mind; one can print two or more copies or one can photocopy the original document. These two options are because of two devices a copier and a printer. With the increasing technology, many people are confused in these two different devices as many multi-purpose printers come with copier features. It's quite simple to distinguish as a copier's main purpose is to make duplicate copies, while a printer's main goal is to print. However, a multi-purpose printer is able to do both and much more.

A copier is a photocopying device that allows users to make duplicate copies of a document or an image, that too cheap. Copiers use xerography technology that is similar to the technology used in a laser printer. Xerography is a dry process of creating an image by applying toner and heat to the paper. The purpose of a copier is to create a duplicate document that is available faster and cheaper. Copiers were an alternate option to printers, which were initially expensive and time-consuming. Modern copiers have become multi-purpose and are available with features such as printing, faxing, stapling, hole punching and other capabilities. Patent attorney, Chester Carlson invented copier. It was also popularly known as Xerox machines with the process being referred to as Xeroxing for a while, before the Xerox Company fought to keep the trademark from becoming genericized.

A copier is usually a vast device that takes up room and can duplicate multiple different types of paper and documents.

The device works in 5 steps:

Charging
Exposure
Developing
Transfer
Fusing

A cylindrical drum present in the machine is charged electrostatically by a high voltage corona wire. The drum then develops photoconductive material. A bright lamp scans the document that is to be copied and reflects the white areas of the form on to the photoconductive drum. The photoconductive drum becomes conductive when exposed to light. The black portions on the document do not reflect, and that portion on the drum remains negatively charged. The negative charges pick up the positively charged toner, which is then transferred on to the document and fused by heat. Viola! The form is copied and printed.

Photocopiers don't use liquid ink; they use what's called toner, which is a dry powder contained in a cartridge. While the process is pretty complicated, it's basically a combination of light, heat and static electricity. In ultra-simple terms, photocopiers use light to illuminate the image or text be copied, then charges the toner with a positive charge. At the same time, the page itself carries a negative charge to attract the toner. The charged toner jumps to the page while heat fuses the toner to the paper.

What is a Printer?

The printer is a peripheral device that creates a solid copy of the digital data that is represented on the computer screen. Printers can be used to connect to a computer using a USB or wirelessly. One printer can also be connected to many computers allowing all computers to be able to print on that printer. Many newer printers are also able to support memory cards, digital cameras or scanners. Higher-end models for offices also come with other features such as scanner, copier and fax. These models are known as Multifunction printers.

A printer is defined as a machine for printing text or pictures onto paper, especially one linked to a computer. Now indeed you have at some point used, or at least seen a printer. They are widely used around the world in a multitude of spaces and for an extensive range of purposes.

A few places that you are almost guaranteed to find a printer include schools, offices, libraries, photography studios, design studios, and a million other locations. They can be used to make tangible printouts of almost anything, from essays and webpages to posters and photographs.

Printers take information from a device, such as a computer or a cell phone, and transfers the data onto any given paper type. Different types of printers have been created to tailor to specific industries. Some of the most popular printers are inkjet, laser, solid ink, and LED.

They each have slightly different qualities that make some of them better suited for the printing of high-quality photographic works versus being solely used in an office setting.

There are various different kinds of printers that are available. These printers are classified depending on the type of technology that is used in printing. Technology includes Toner-based printers, Liquid inkjet printers, Solid ink printers, Dye-sublimation printers and Inkless printer. Toner-based printers use dry powered toner as ink, which is then fused on the paper by hot rollers. Liquid inkjet printers use liquid ink that is heated into a vapour bubble and then sprayed onto the paper. Reliable ink printers use thermal transfer technology and use solid sticks of colour that are wax-like in texture; these inks are melted and then sprayed on a rotating, oil coated drum, which passes the image onto the paper. A dye-sublimation printer uses heat to transfer dye to a medium such as a plastic card, paper or canvas. Inkless printer printers work by heating regions of a heat-sensitive form that creates images or text on it.

Many believe that printing multiple copies is more expensive than photocopying it. However, it depends on the number of documents, pages and the data on the paper that need to be printed. If many copies are to be published, then copiers are usually a cheaper option. However, if only a few pages need to be printed, then printing becomes much cheaper. Another major difference between the printer and the copier is quality. Printers usually produce high-quality images as they use the inkjet process (which is also available in copiers but quite rare), while images are produced using xerography are low resolution.

Copying vs Printing

When some of us think of copying, we think of placing a sheet of paper face down on the glass of a copier and keying in quantity on the control panel, pressing start and waiting for the copies drop into a tray on the side of the machine. Others may imagine even dropping coins into the device at a dime or a quarter a copy! The process is actually called photocopying and describes the process of transferring images and information to paper with toner, a dry agent that is transferred electrically and adhered to the page in a heated process. Copiers have evolved in the last 25 years from the descriptions above.

Copy machines with document handlers were designed to accept stacks of paper so multiple page documents could re-circulate again and again for each copy that was made. Machines got bigger and faster, accepting larger quantities of paper and going longer between paper jams that seemed to be unpreventable. Copy machines still exist and still make copies, but most produced these days are utilized as printers connected to a network of computers and incorporated with scanning and fax capability. Colour copying too has evolved, and colour printers are becoming more common, although still more expensive to operate than basic printers.

Documents can be shared electronically now over networks and emailed from one user to another. And when paper copies are needed, the document can be sent to a multi-function printer designed to collate, staple, 3-hole punch and even stitch into booklets. The document goes straight to the printer from the user's computer, and each "copy" is actually an original "print"! So the term "Copying" is often misused referring to "Printing", not to be confused with offset printing where images are transferred in ink from a plate to a blanket to the sheet. But that is another story for another day.

Photocopy And Print Cost?

While photocopiers generally cost more upfront than copiers, the per-copy cost when running a photocopier is much less. For example, a single toner cartridge typically produces thousands of copies, while an ink cartridge only gets you to the hundreds-of-copies range. However, the real cost to you and your business depends on how often you make copies. A good way to put everything in perspective is to determine how much it costs you to copy each page. To do this, determine how many copies you regularly make over a certain time period, such as per month. Then find out how much an ink cartridge costs as well as how many copies it yields per cartridge, on average. Do the same for a toner cartridge. Divide the cost of the cartridge and toner by their respective yield rates, and that's the per-copy cost. Multiply that by the number of regular copies you make to tell you how much you're spending.

Cloud Computing Costs & Pricing Comparison

Posted on August 9, 2021 by Oak & Bluebird

By 2021, 94% of the internet workload will be on the cloud, according to our friends at Cisco. Take a moment to let that sink in. Most companies use a hybrid strategy, with the 'big three' commodity clouds going head to head to make their cloud offering the most cost-effective.

Cost Benefits of Cloud Computing

The overall cost benefits of the cloud come down in large part to hardware responsibilities. If your on-premises hardware fails, that's a hefty cost on your business bottom line. On the cloud, even if a VM, a server, or an entire data centre goes down - that's the responsibility of the cloud provider, and you can continue with business as usual.

Running costs can also be a lot cheaper on the cloud than on-premises, because of PAYG pricing and elastic scaling capabilities, for example. To understand how each of the primary public cloud providers handles their customer pricing - let's turn to a cloud pricing comparison - and break down their unique pricing benefits with some of the cost innovations that each provider is particularly proud of.

Amazon AWS Cloud Pricing & Costs

AWS splits its cloud pricing benefits into three categories. The first is Pay as you Go. They compare this to the way that you pay for your utilities. You pay only for the services that you use and when you use them. This diagram shows how they compare the cost of on-premises to using AWS, complete with the added expenses of underutilisation.

AWS's following tool is Reserved Capacity. This is a shared cloud concept and means that if you know you're going to need a certain amount of computing or storage, for example, you can reserve this ahead of time and slash your costs. This could save you as much as 75% over the on-demand pricing, a great way to reduce costs on AWS.

Lastly, AWS offers Volume-based Discounts based on economies of scale. For something like storage, when looking at Amazon S3 pricing, for example, the more you use, the less you'll pay for each GB. Up to 50TB of storage is 0.023 GB/month, while 500TB+ will reduce the cost to 0.021 GB/month. These can add up. The AWS pricing calculator can be used to estimate AWS cloud pricing ahead of time.

Google GCP Cloud Pricing & Costs

Google Cloud pricing is also built around a pay-as-you-go model and promises no activation or termination fees. On top of this, your Google Cloud cost can be considered alongside the following added cost benefits:

- Preemptible VM Instances: If your workloads don't need continuous availability, such as background processes for data management, for example, set them up to be interrupted where necessary, and save up to 79%.

- Per-second billing: With Google Cloud VM pricing, you pay for exactly what you use, by the second - and no further.

- Sustained-use Discounts: Thinking about Google Cloud compute pricing? If your workloads are running a significant amount on Compute Engine and Cloud SQL each month, you'll be automatically eligible for a discount of up to 30%, as seen below.

Committed-use Discounts: While sustained-use discounts help you reduce costs on long-term or larger projects, committed-use discounts are great for users with just a few projects. These can be agreed upon ahead of time, and you'll get a discount of up to 57%, without any lock-in.

Microsoft's Azure Cloud Pricing & Costs

Microsoft Azure's cloud pricing also comes with the ability to reserve instances ahead of time, but with a one or three-year commitment to lock in the price savings. You can exchange or cancel your instances at any time to make it work for a growing or evolving business model. There are some bonuses when it comes to Azure cloud cost control.

First, you will pay less for development and testing resources, including zero software charges for Azure VMs, and reduced dev-test pricing on additional Azure cloud services.

Azure also has a similar process to preemptible VM instances on GCP. Spot VMs are 90% most cost-effective than traditional Pay-as-you-Go VMs on Azure and are used for interruptible workloads.

You can also use Reserved Instances in a similar way to Reserved Capacity or Committed Use Discounts. By agreeing ahead of time, cost savings can be more than 70% over Pay-as-you-Go. On top of this, Azure has a Hybrid Benefit offering, which means you can use your existing licenses from Windows Server or SQL Server with software assurance. As you can see below, this results in even deeper savings where applicable. Here's the Azure pricing calculator that can help you make sense of it all.

How Much Does It Cost To Build Cloud Computing Service?

Dedicated resources are a reliable source for handling the business. The cost of infrastructure and the requirement of hiring system engineers increases the cost. This fears the new organisations from setting up the infrastructure. The lack of scalability and the urgent necessity of the resources are met by Cloud computing. Cost investment funds are one of the principal reasons why organisations are moving to the Cloud.

Even though Cloud Computing services can offer your organisation numerous budgetary favourable circumstances, it is essential to plainly comprehend the cost ramifications of the Cloud and how it could affect your organisation.

Probably the most basic cost investment funds include:

- No enormous forthright capital investment

- Diminished programming costs with upgrades included in the month to month charges

- Decreased spending for IT support

- Business Continuity is inculcated in the Cloud condition

- Reserve funds increase through higher human capital productivity and more noteworthy effectiveness

- Tax cuts

The cloud can eradicate recurring large capital expenditures

With cloud computing services, you never again need to spend many upfront capitals on the software and hardware essential to run your system. In most cloud environments, these expenses and the cost to keep up your system are recognised for a level, month-to-month charge. Moreover, when the server and system spine (switches, firewalls, stockpiling) should be improved, the cloud supplier must do these redesigns - with no additional expense to the client. In this way disposing of enormous monetary responsibilities of performing future company-wide updates.

Cloud Servers and Network Hardware are of Higher Quality

A significant distinction in the foundation of the onsite-based system versus a cloud-based system is that the servers and hardware of the network are the absolute best and most excellent when obtained for cloud situations. An excellent premise-based server may cost $10,000 - $15,000 through a Cloud-based server may cost $70,000 - $100,000 or more. The same is found for the switches, the firewalls, and the remainder of the hardware utilised in a cloud situation. Sap development services suppliers can't bear the cost of hardware failure, so great gear is utilised, and every last bit of it is exceptionally redundant inside the data centre.

No expenditures on costly hardware

When all is said and done, big data solutions don't require the outright acquisition of server equipment, storage of network, reinforcement frameworks, recovery systems for disasters, power or cooling frameworks, utility costs, or data centres. When a business moves to a cloud environment, they dispense with the requirement for servers and the physical space expected to house those servers.

No requirement for the Upfront Expense of Capital for Infrastructure Software

Cloud Integration services eradicate the requirement for the upfront capital prerequisite of obtaining programs like Windows Server, SQL Server, Application and Database Servers, Client Access Licenses, Middleware, SharePoint, Citrix Server, and customer licenses, etc. These expenses are paid in the month-to-month charges for the cloud condition and backing.

Less Expensive Software Upgrades

Many developers include free programming upgrades for applications that are facilitated in the cloud and are paid as a membership inside the month-to-month cloud environment charges. This implies no costly programming updates and none of the interference that product upgrades make in organisations.

The Cloud renders unsurprising IT costs

The unpredictable nature of the current "Break-Fix" arrangement for PC systems has baffled entrepreneurs for a long time. One of the largely favourable circumstances of cloud computing for entrepreneurs and their staff is the consistency that it brings. Cost of continuous updates, replacement of outdated servers, and other variable expenses are dispensed with Cloud processing. Most organisations that have moved to the Sap development services enormously welcome the predictability and consistency of paying a fixed month-to-month cost for their IT needs.

This consistency occurs on two or three levels. To start with, organisations pay for the services they use, rather than paying for software, hardware, power, and the help for keeping these things secure, steady, and working appropriately.

Second, in the old, on-premise model, when you buy programming, you are left with that adaptation for a long time, alongside the product's multi-year upgrade cycles. While you can work around this with additional outsider items, it's not so proficient as cloud programming.

Cut-down expenses made on IT Operations

This is ordinarily perhaps the best wellspring of reserve funds when a business moves a few or the entirety of its frameworks to the Cloud. Staffing costs in the IT division or for redistributed IT Support for sending, working, and keeping up applications and hidden foundations can be way too expensive, and a considerable lot of these expenses are incredibly decreased in a cloud domain.

When a business is working in the cloud, the big data cloud solutions' merchant takes on almost the entirety of the expenses related to introducing, running, and keeping up the applications, the primary programming framework, and the associated equipment. For most organisations, this speaks to reserve funds of a full-time IT proficiency. Also, this doesn't constantly mean disposing of employees in the IT office - it can likewise be viewed as evacuating unnecessary, low-worth work from IT, which permits the IT group to concentrate on increasingly vital, esteemed services.

Tax advantages of Cloud Computing

As opposed to representing hardware and software as a capital cost and afterwards devaluing those costs over the long run, with the Cloud's membership-based model, those costs are viewed as operational and can be deducted each year, instead of more than quite a while.

Is Cloud Storage Expensive?

When it comes to the cloud, there are still many differences between countries. The European cloud market is much more fragmented than the American one for several reasons, including the slightly different regulations in each country. Cloud adoption is slower in Europe, and many organisations still like to maintain data and infrastructure on their premises. The Australian approach is quite pragmatic, and many enterprises take somewhat advantage of the experiences made by similar organisations on the other side of the pond. One similarity is cloud storage or, better, cloud storage costs and reactions.

Data is growing everywhere at an incredible pace, is nothing new, and often faster than predicted in the past years. At first glance, an all-in cloud strategy looks very compelling, low $/GB, less CAPEX and more OPEX, increased agility, and more, until, of course, your cloud bill starts growing out of control.

There are at least two reasons why a cloud storage bill can get out of control

- The application is not written correctly. Someone wrote or migrated an application that is not explicitly designed to work in the cloud and is not resource savvy. This often happens with legacy applications that are migrated as-is. Sometimes it's hard to solve because re-engineering an old application is simply not possible. In other cases, the application behaviour could be corrected with a better understanding of the API and the mechanisms that regulate the cloud (and how they are charged).

- There is nothing wrong with the workload, it's just that data is being created, read, and moved around more than in the past.

Optimisation

Start by optimising the cloud storage infrastructure. Many providers are adding additional storage tiers and automation to help with this. In some cases, it adds some complexity (someone must manage new policies and ensure they work properly). Not a big deal, but probably not a huge saving either.

Also, try to optimise the application. But that is not always easy, especially if you don't have control over the code and the application wasn't already written with the intent to run in a cloud environment. Still, this could pay off in the mid to long term, but are you ready to invest in this direction?

Bring Data Back

A standard solution, adopted by a significant number of organisations now, is data repatriation. Bring back data on-premises (or a colocation service provider) and access it locally or from the cloud. Why not?

At the end of the day, the bigger the infrastructure, the lower the $/GB and, above all, no other fees to worry about. When thinking about petabytes, there are several ways to optimise and take advantage of which can lower the $/GB considerably: fat nodes with plenty of disks, multiple media tiers for performance and cold data, data footprint optimisations, and so on, all translating into low and predictable costs.

At the same time, if this is not enough, or you want to keep a balance between CAPEX and OPEX, go hybrid. Most storage systems in the market allow to tier data to S3-compatible storage systems now, and I'm not talking only about object stores - NAS and block storage systems can do the same. I covered this topic extensively in this report but checked with your storage vendor of choice, and I'm sure they'll have solutions to help out with this.

Multi-cloud

Another option that doesn't negate what is written above is to implement a multi-cloud storage strategy. Instead of focusing on a single-cloud storage provider, abstract the access layer and pick up what is best depending on the application, the workloads, the cost, and so on, all determined by the moment's needs. Multi-cloud data controllers are gaining momentum with prominent vendors starting to make the first acquisitions (RedHat with NooBaa, for example), and the number of solutions is growing at a steady pace.

In practice, these products offer a standard front-end interface, usually S3 compatible, and can distribute data on several back-end repositories following user-defined policies. This leaves the end-user with a lot of freedom of choice and flexibility regarding where to put (or migrate) data while allowing them to access it transparently regardless of where it's stored. Last week, for example, I met with Leonovus, which has a compelling solution that associates what I just described to a strong set of security features.

There are several alternatives to significant service providers when it comes to cloud storage, some of them focus on better pricing and lower or no egress fees, while others work on high performance too. As I wrote last week in another blog, going all-in with a single service provider could be an easy choice initially but a considerable risk in the long term.

Closing The Circle

Data storage is expensive, and cloud storage is no exception. Those who think they will save money by just moving all of their data to the cloud as-is are making a big mistake. For example, cold data is a perfect fit for the cloud, thanks to its low $/GB, but as soon as you begin accessing it over and over again, the costs can rise to an unsustainable level.

To avoid dealing with this problem later, it's best to think about the right strategy now. Planning and executing the right hybrid or multi-cloud strategy can surely help keep costs under control while giving that agility and flexibility needed to preserve IT infrastructure, therefore business and competitivity.

5 Best Reasons to Use IT Managed Services

Posted on November 5, 2020 by Oak & Bluebird

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Why you should use IT Managed Services

An increasing number of companies are employing IT managed services. It's not hard to see why. The business world is becoming more and more reliant on information technology. So many companies realize that they can save on cost while staying ahead of the competition in IT developments. By employing managed IT services, companies can improve efficiency. This is because they are concentrating on the rest of the business. While they can leave the experts to take care of the IT services.

IT is now a common trend in the enterprise world to undergo a digital transformation doctrine, whereby old and on-site hardware and infrastructure get replaced with digital systems and services.

But moving from old to new systems and IT operations can be a daunting task. There are numerous advantages but to get the most out of digital transformation, IT leaders and teams need to have a very careful and considered approach, which can be time-consuming and require a lot of ongoing work post-transformation.

The overall idea is that a managed service provider takes care of all the maintenance and day-to-day running of such systems and services, freeing up time for an in-house IT team to explore new ways in which technology can benefit a company's daily operations and potentially boost its bottom line. Keep reading to discover the five reasons why you should use managed IT support.

Cost-Effective

One of the top reasons why companies choose managed IT services is because it's much more cost-effective than hiring permanent staff.

The resources required to manage your IT services can be immense. The demand for your tech-savvy staff members will gradually become overwhelming to handle. If you're determined to grow your company, it's important to outsource IT services so that your staff can concentrate on other stuff. For small and medium-sized businesses, it makes financial sense to outsource it to a professional IT management firm.

This why the finance team can calculate exactly how much is required to manage the IT systems each month. Your financial team will surely thank you for helping them determine the budget for monthly operations expenses.

Access to Latest Tech Knowledge

How can small and medium-sized businesses be expected to keep up with the latest development in technology at the time? By outsourcing your systems to IT managed services, you can leave the experts to address any issues.

This means that you get access to the latest tech knowledge and resources to make sure your company stays ahead of the game. But the best part is that you don't have to pay over the odds for it.

Maximize Uptime

Uptime is the time in which a computer network is up and running. If you want to keep your company's IT systems running all the time, it's important to have the managed IT support from the professionals.

Emergencies and disasters happen. Your company needs to be prepared for the worst-case scenario. If you're not downtime could cause untold damage to your credibility and ability to operate. By outsourcing your IT services to the experts, they'll make sure your company has a business disaster recovery plan (BDR) in place in case of downtime.

24/7 Service

With managed IT services, you don't just get the occasional check-in. But rather it's a 24/7 service that ensures your IT systems are running properly all the time. No matter how big or small the problem, you could consult the managed IT services for a solution. You can sleep easy knowing everything is taken care of.

But sometimes you won't even notice that there was a problem. Before you know it, the IT managed support will have everything working soundly once again. This means that any slight glitches or pesky bugs will be taken care of immediately.

Security and Data Protection

Do you work with other organizations and client data? It's important that they can trust you. If they know that you have a secure IT system in place, they will have no problem doing business with you. With managed IT services, you confidently know that your client's data is protected.

Regulations and compliance are constantly changing. It's difficult to keep up with the latest policy changes. By employing managed IT support, you can rest peacefully that your system will comply with the regulation.

Why Do We Need Managed Services

Large and small companies alike need technology to operate effectively, and as reliance on IT grows every year, the means to support it must evolve as well. Unfortunately, as these systems grow and evolve, many businesses (especially small ones with limited funds) may not have the resources to effectively manage their ever-growing networks. Small IT teams can quickly become overwhelmed with the amount of work necessary to keep everything up-to-date and running smoothly.

It is so easy to fall behind with important things such as backups, patches, updates, and security, and this greatly increases the odds that you'll face an IT outage or other huge issue that will negatively affect your business.

Imagine if your entire email server, customer relationship management system, financial setup, or network went down; you would likely face substantial productivity and revenue losses as a result. Employees are unable to do their jobs, and everyone involved scrambles to fix these major issues as quickly as possible to return to normal business procedures. This is a huge detriment to any company, and these situations are easily prevented using managed services.

Managed services also create a change in the overall philosophy of the way a business deals with its technology. Break-fix repair relies on waiting until servers, desktops, or other critical devices fail, then rushing to fix them as the company bleeds profit. A business operating under managed services, however, focuses on prevention rather than reaction, monitoring and resolving issues before they disrupt employees, management, and clients.

In today's highly competitive and fast-paced business environment, no company can really afford the risk and uncertainty that comes with relying on break-fix maintenance. Businesses are extremely dependent on having a reliable IT system.

Furthermore, having multiple vendors responsible for different parts of your system puts you in the difficult position of having to decide who should be contacted when service is required; business owners simply do not have time for this!

With traditional break-fix repair, the only way for an IT support company to make money is if something goes wrong, which is a double-edged sword. If they do the job too well, they will go out of business, which happens to about 80% of all small IT firms - they just don't make it.

So many IT companies are promoting managed services because it puts them on the same page as your business, essentially partnering with you to become your complete IT department. The service provider becomes invested in your continued success, becoming a win-win situation for both parties.

Advantages of managed IT services include:

- Expertise: For smaller businesses, in particular, being able to outsource knowledge and expertise can be an enormous help, as well as having experienced technical support available

- Predictable costs: Rather than incurring large expenses for an IT issue, businesses can instead account for potential problems within a predictable monthly fee

- Maintenance and upgrades: Organisations no longer have to worry whether the software is up-to-date, as all this is taken care of by the provider. They can also get access to newer technologies which they may not have been able to afford by themselves

- Time savings: Outsourcing management of services like security and cloud reduces the amount of time that in-house departments have to spend on it.

Disadvantages of managed IT services include:

- Control: If there's an outage or an incident, there's little a business reliant on managed services can do. Theoretically, a good MSP will be able to address issues much more quickly than an internal IT team, but it can be frustrating to not have visibility of serious problems and progress in dealing with them in-house.

- Flexibility: In general, managed IT service providers will have a standard offering which is available to all their clients. They may be able to modify this, but it will usually be less flexible than having a solution that is customised to business needs.

- Reliability: Should anything happen to the service provider, customers could be left trying to find alternative solutions in a short space of time.

MANAGED SERVICES PRICING

Surprisingly, managed IT services actually cost less than break-fix repair, especially when factoring in the cost of downtime that inevitably comes with this old method. Remote monitoring, remote maintenance, and the prevention of major issues allow a managed service provider to operate far more efficiently than a break-fix company that is constantly driving back and forth to customer sites.

Likewise, rush fees and after-hours or weekend support to handle emergencies can add up quickly. The managed service company can prevent these issues before they happen and handle most maintenance and service remotely. The MSP can, therefore, offer a "better" service without charging more.

Additionally, the monthly cost of managed services can be factored in as a business/operating expense, allowing most companies to deduct the service from their taxes to save even more money - something not available with the old break-fix model.

Managed services are generally priced on a flat-rate monthly basis. Depending on the services included, pricing is usually based on the number of devices with different packages priced at different levels. This makes it easy for a business to get the exact service they need, without paying for more than is necessary.

Features like on-site support and device leasing can even be added if needed to offer a comprehensive support package. We perform a free business consultation to determine needs and create a unique, personalized package to fit our clients.

THE MAJOR BENEFITS OF MANAGED IT SERVICE

- Freed-up resources and a renewed emphasis on core business - Both business owners and internal IT staff would much rather focus on revenue enhancing tasks like product development or the creation of cutting-edge applications/services. This is one reason routine monitoring and maintenance tasks are often neglected by an internal IT person or team, which always proves to be detrimental much later. Often misportrayed as a "threat" to an internal IT person or staff, MSPs can instead relieve internal staff of mundane network operations maintenance, repetitious monitoring of server and storage infrastructure, and day-to-day operations and help desk duties.

- A true partner sharing risks and responsibilities - The goal of an MSP is to deliver on contracted services, measure, report, analyze and optimize IT service operations, and truly become an irreplaceable catalyst for business growth. Managed Service Providers not only assume leadership roles, they enable risk reduction, enhance efficiency and change the culture by introducing internal IT operations to new technologies and processes.

- Access to expertise, best practices, and world-class tools and technologies - MSPs have experience with a variety of businesses and organizations. Managed Service Providers can keep your business relevant and on track with continually evolving technology, support, and productivity demands. Let's face it, no small or medium-sized business can afford to fall behind with technology trends in today's business world.

- The benefit of a full-time fully staffed IT department at a fraction of the cost - Most small business owners live and die by proactive management. They just haven't had the budget, resources or access to on-demand expertise to be proactive with information technology management. A Managed Service Provider gives business owners and overwhelmed internal IT staff affordable server and computer support, remote monitoring of critical network components like servers and firewalls, data backup and disaster recovery, network security, custom software solutions, and technology evaluation and planning.

- Managed service providers can decrease the overall IT support costs by as much as 30% to 50% - Rather than being stressed about technology, business owners can instead get back to focusing on growing their business. All while enjoying the benefits of highly-trained IT experts boosting their network's reliability and performance.