New Company, Old Stuff…Old Company, New Solutions

A recent acquisition of a company by one of our clients illustrates the problems you can face with old software as well as old hardware. And our onboarding of a new client illustrates the problems that compound each other after neglect and poor shortcuts. Here’s how we tackled them together.

The software issue, which involved an old, old version of QuickBooks, drove home the benefits of keeping applications up to date. Our client, an accounting firm, recently acquired another firm, and we knew the technology had lapsed, and we even developed a budget number to bring it all up to date. Our question was whether to implement our project now or wait until after the upcoming tax season.

Wanting to do it right, we decided to move forward. Based on the problems we encountered, we made the right decision – because it was not a simple file conversion process. The old version of QuickBooks was from 2008; 2019 is the current version. There was an interim version is 2012. As with Microsoft Windows updates, we had to go through numerous updates because each update was built on a previous update.

In addition to the QuickBooks updates, we had to work with various versions of Windows and aged computers that couldn’t run Windows 10 and the current QuickBooks. Complications arose when people didn’t know the administrative emails and passwords required to set codes and perform updates. We tried numerous combinations, but the problem was solved by talking to the owner of the acquired company, who recalled a Hotmail account for QuickBooks. We had to work through additional emails and passwords – and inconsistencies on security questions.

We finally got it all done after several extra hours of time and another access issue. Our client is set for tax season, but we can’t help but wonder about the cost difference between software updates and the time and expense of the extra work.

Similarly, with old and new, we recently added a client who had been disenchanted with the managed services (monthly fee) program of their previous IT provider. We bid against another company that also offered managed services.

We don’t offer managed services because we believe it shortchanges clients. They pay a monthly fee but never know what the provider is doing for them. When we bill for the hours we work, we always provide a detailed description of our services.

We also don’t like to scare new clients into buying and installing new equipment, such as a server, until we take a deep dive into their systems and their needs. The bidder said the client needed a new one ASAP, which was logical because the server was eight years old. But when we talked to people there and learned how they work, they hadn’t been using the server, which had an old firewall that had never been registered. We registered the firewall and upgraded the software, putting off their need for a new server, which they were using to scan files to send to their printer.

Going forward, we’ll show them a different way of doing things without a server, and it should save them several thousand dollars.

We pride ourselves on being trustworthy, and we build our business on that trait. If you know a company or individual who’s looking for a new IT service provider, we hope you’ll refer us. And if you need a look at your systems, you can rely on us for an assessment that will show you the most cost-effective options. Contact us by phone – 973-433-6676 – or email to set up an appointment for you or a referral.

Tech Upgrades for New Year

New technology is a great value. You can improve the performance and cost-efficiency of business and home systems by investing in new hardware and upgrading application software. Consider some of these upgrades.

December is always a good time for businesses to look at technology investments because it can affect your taxes. Your CPA or tax advisor can tell whether a year-end expense can help reduce your taxes while increasing your capabilities, and we can tell what might work best for you to make those capability increases a reality.

First, look at your operating system. If you are on Windows 7, remember that Microsoft’s support of this ancient OS will go away in a year. They’ll no longer provide security updates and bug fixes. Cybercriminals salivate when they see any outmoded system because they can likely pull a hacking technique off the shelf and get into your system.

Yes, there will be some workarounds for you to continue to use Windows 7, but why do it? Windows 10 is much more efficient and secure, and Microsoft is dedicated to supporting it. Most common business apps running Windows 7 are easily upgradeable to run on Windows 10. If you have customized software from a publisher that’s still supporting it, they should be able to help with a conversion to the newer OS. If not, you may want to move to a new app, especially for the security aspects.

You should also look at your hard drives for business and home computers. Solid state drives (SSDs) have come way down in price this year, and while they’re not necessarily Walmart specials, they are good values.

SSDs are faster and more reliable than mechanical hard drives. The mechanical drives have moving parts that can wear out and crash, putting your data in jeopardy. They also require more space to move files around, and as they become fuller, they are less efficient. SSDs have no moving parts and don’t physically move around files. That makes them immune from physical crashes, and you only need a drive half the size to hold the same amount of data.

Call us – 973-433-6676 – or email us with questions about technology upgrades or to help you install new technology. You can hit the ground running in 2019 or get up to speed early on in the new year.

Using Alternatives to Passwords

We have harped…and harped ad infinitum…about having strong passwords simply because those strings of upper- and lower-case letters, numbers and special characters offered the best chances of staying ahead of the hackers. But we’ve always reminded you that something better is needed because the bad guys have a vested interest in developing better systems to crack passwords and in finding more ways to exploit vulnerabilities in anybody’s electronic vaults that store vital personal and corporate info.

When one of our clients got hacked, we installed a password-less system to offer them better security. Our solution, which uses Microsoft Azure, is one of the emerging technologies to replace passwords with biometrics, one-time codes, hardware tokens and other multi-factor authentication options. What they do is exchange tokens and certificates without users – you, your employees and your customers – needing to remember anything. The new pathway to better protection even bypasses the password managers that many of you use.

IT industry figures show that more than 80 percent of security breaches involve stolen passwords and credentials. We all pick passwords that are too simple and easy to guess, or we store and reuse a few complex passwords that we can remember. That problem is exacerbated by forcing regular password changes even without evidence of breach. If password reset systems rely on people, they can be fooled by social engineering. Password-less technologies can combine certificates with contextual security policies that require less from you. They rely more on trusted devices and connections, and they can add layers of complexity as risks rise. New security can be based on the value of the content and factors such as user behavior, device location and connection, or the state of the device.

You can already set up password-less access using Microsoft’s Azure AD Conditional Access. Many of you who use our backup services already have Azure accounts, and you can use the technology to manage:

  • Sign-in risk to identify who’s signing in and determine who’s a risk.
  • Network location to determine if access is being attempted from a network location that is not under your control or the control of your IT department.
  • Device management for accessing cloud apps from a broad range of devices including mobile and personal devices.
  • Client application to manage cloud access using different app types, such as web-based, mobile, or desktop.

There are some cross-platform technologies available for going password-less, but it all starts with the Microsoft Authenticator app. It uses key-based authentication to create a user credential that’s tied to a device and uses a PIN or biometric. Instead of using a password to sign in, users see a number code to enter into the Authenticator app, where they have to enter their PIN or provide a biometric.

Password-less sign-in for Microsoft accounts with the Microsoft Authenticator app is already available, and support for signing into Azure AD is now in public preview. Right now, the app can only cover a single account registered with Azure AD in one tenant, but support for multiple accounts is planned in the future. It covers Office 365 and Azure and works with a variety of other apps.

If you’re ready to go password-less, we can help you decide what’s right for you and set up your accounts and devices. Just give us a call – 973-433-6676 – or email us to set up an appointment.

Choose the Right Router

As we add more traffic to our Wi-Fi networks in the office and at home, choosing the right router is critical for performance and security. If your router is more than a few years old, the combination of improved technology and the probable loss of full power due to wear and tear means you should consider investing in a new system. The good news is that you don’t have to spend a fortune.

How do you know it’s time for a new router? The first sign is sluggish performance, and it’s a subjective call. Whether you use your router for business or home entertainment, you can notice that data just isn’t moving throughout your location as fast as you’d like. With today’s demands for moving more data faster, your router could be worn out or not have the capacity to meet your needs.

Routers do wear out over time. Heat can damage internal components, and that slows them down. Newer routers have fresher components, and they meet better performance protocols. This is especially true when it comes to dual-band routers. Older routers tend to operate on the 2.4 GHz wireless band, where they share space with your other household products, such as cordless phones and even your garage-door opener. That creates a lot of interference that affects network performance. This problem is more likely to affect home offices and small retail systems. In some homes, whether used for home offices or as converted office space, multiple stories and thicker walls require more powerful routers to send signals where needed.

Dual-band routers work on both the 2.4 and 5 GHz wireless bands, and that gives you options. You can set some systems to run on the 2.4 GHz band and use the 5GHz band for managing bigger data capacities. Some routers even allow you to run on two 5GHz bands. For a home office, a home with multiple devices (computers, mobile devices and smart TVs), a business in a converted home, or a small retail space, this allows you to dedicate bands to specific uses. Think of it as having a slow lane, an express lane, and a lane dedicated to buses and trucks.

For a home or small office or retail use, look for a router with at least four 10/100/1000 (Gigabit) Ethernet ports to connect wired devices such as desktop PCs, network-attached storage drives and home-automation hubs. A USB port makes it easy to plug in a printer or a USB drive and share it across the network, but with two ports you can do both.

You can manage how your Wi-Fi network is being used with parental controls, Quality of Service (QoS) options, and a guest-network feature. Parental controls and QoS are for home use. The latter helps you assign network priorities for applications and clients, such as downloading files, running printers or managing streaming to TVs or devices. You can also manage priorities for gaming systems.

A guest network for a home or business lets you create a separate network to offer Wi-Fi connectivity to guests without leaving your entire network vulnerable. This lets them connect to the Internet, but doesn’t give them access to your files, printers, and other connected devices.

Wireless routers for businesses have improved tremendously. To meet the complexity and requirements of running a wireless network these days, routers now have a much more varied feature set, including hardware that is often found in computers. You can find systems with dual- and triple-band connectivity, as well as a slew of other features usually found on far more expensive enterprise-grade models.

Priorities for business users differ from most consumer users. Security, support, remote access, business-grade VPN, WAN redundancy, connectivity options and scalability are critical. However, this doesn’t mean that some consumer routers cannot be used as business routers, especially in a home office environment.

We can help you find a router that meets your networking needs and help you find the best location and configurations to maximize performance. Call us – 973-433-6676 – or email us to answer your questions about router selection and help you with setup and settings configurations.

Hack Attack Continues vs. Businesses and People

While government-sponsored hacking and disinformation makes big news, don’t take your eye your eye off the ball when it comes to protecting your personal and corporate data. A report from a consulting firm, Positive Technologies, painted a dark, dark picture, saying the second quarter of 2018 showed a 47 percent increase over 2017. You need to remain vigilant, even when events are beyond your control. Nobody is immune.

As reported in Tech Republic, Positive Technologies said the most common methods of cyberattack are:

  • Malware (49%), with spyware or remote administration malware being the most widely used forms of infection.
  • Social engineering (25%) is the term for manipulating users into believing a message, link, or attachment is from a trusted source, and then infecting targeted systems with malware, stealing money, or accessing confidential information.
  • Hacking (21%) exploits vulnerabilities in software and hardware, causing the most damage to governments, banks, and cryptocurrency platforms.
  • Credential compromise (19%) targets password managers used for storing and keeping track of passwords.
  • Web attacks (18%) are online racketeering attempts to extort website operators for profit, sometimes by threatening to steal client databases or shut down the website.
  • DDoS (5%) tends to be the weapon of choice for business rivals, disgruntled clients, and hacktivists. Political events can drive attacks on government institutions. Criminals can use DDoS attacks to take websites offline and demand payment from the victims.

Attacks can be made in tandem, such as the common duo of using phishing emails to trick users into downloading malware.

Financial and healthcare institutions, retailers, and government databases remain prime targets, but higher education institutions and even school districts are being attacked. Wired reports that this past March, the Department of Justice indicted nine Iranian hackers in alleged attacks on 144 US universities and 176 in 21 other countries. They were also cited for attacking 47 private companies.

Hackers are homing in on the money. Positive Technologies said targeted attacks are outnumbering mass campaigns, with attacks directed at companies and their clients, as well as cryptocurrency exchanges. Data theft is driving an increasing number of attacks, with many criminals seeking personal data (30%), credentials (22%), and payment card information (15%). To steal this data, hackers are compromising online platforms, including e-commerce websites, online ticketing systems, and hotel booking sites.

The scary part for us is the report you can never be sure that criminals don’t have your credit card number from one source or another. Even a brand-new smartphone in a store can have pre-installed malware.

People and businesses can take steps to keep their data safe by installing updates for operating systems and application software and installing antivirus protection on all systems and endpoints and keeping it up to date.

Businesses can encrypt all sensitive information, perform regular backups, minimize the privileges of users and services as much as possible, and use two-factor authentication. Enforcing a password policy with strict length and complexity requirements, and requiring password changes every 90 days, can also help protect systems.

We offer security audits for businesses, and we can answer any questions individuals have about protecting themselves from cyberattacks. Call us – 973-433-6676 – or email us to set up an appointment.

Updating Your Cloud Strategy

We hear all about the cloud without end. For large corporations and individuals, using the cloud is a nearly flawless solution for storing and accessing apps and data from anywhere. But for small businesses, exclusive reliance on the cloud may not be the best solution. Here are some decision-making factors.

First, for all their differences in size, a huge corporation and an individual have a few things in common. Individuals and corporate employees can travel anywhere in the world and need to access apps and data wherever they are. The cloud works really well for this.

Although they operate on totally different levels, subscription-based apps such as Office 365 work really well for individuals and large corporations. Individuals can share the cost over a large user base, enabling each to benefit from constant upgrades that app publishers can update from central locations. Large corporations essentially do the same thing within their communities. They spread their cost over many users, and their tech teams control the software-update process to keep operations running as smoothly as possible.

A small business is different in one significant way. It’s essentially a self-contained community of users who use the same apps and data in one location. Yes, that business may have employees who log in ‘from remote locations, and yes, it may benefit from subscription-based application software. But we are likely talking about 10 to 100 people who are working with the same apps and data in a “bubble” known as the office. While small businesses combine to form a huge user base, each has its own specific needs, and our clients rely on us to customize systems to meet specific needs.

Therefore, the cloud may not be the solution, especially if you are a small business still working with a combination of a Windows 7 operating system and a Windows 2008 server, either in your office or in the cloud. We’re approaching a perfect storm with that combination because by January 2020, Windows will no longer support that OS and server platform. They’re too old and expensive for Microsoft to develop performance upgrades and security patches. You are being brought to a decision point.

We recommend that small businesses look at a cost/benefit analysis that covers five years to determine whether you upgrade your OS and server or migrate to the cloud. Five years is a good projected lifetime for a server and OS, it makes it easier to compare their cost with setting up and using a cloud-based system.

Setting up a server on the cloud involves costs, including the cost of server space and the cost to set it up to meet your needs. Once that’s done, your maintenance cost should be minimal. If your business runs Office 365, you already have a cloud presence through Azure, Microsoft’s cloud system. And while Azure automatically updates its server, it’s still a maintenance operation. All cloud servers need maintenance, and it’s something you pay for as part of your agreement.

Of course, using a cloud-based server requires access to a good internet connection, one with sufficient bandwidth for your needs and virtually perfect reliability. If you don’t have the bandwidth, your business won’t operate at its desired level. If your service goes down, you’re out of business until it’s restored.

If your computing needs are largely internal, you might be better served with your own server on a strong internal network, which can be hard-wired for better performance and security than a Wi-Fi network. You’ll incur purchase and set-up costs for your server, and you’ll need to install all updates in a timely manner. But your maintenance expenses should be relatively low once you’re up and running.

By setting up computers as terminals on a server and hard-wiring the network, you won’t need a router system or a big pipeline to the internet. You’ll also have fewer internet access points to secure, and that could help keep out intruders. Finally, depending on your employees, they’ll likely be less likely to wander off to other things on the internet.

Whichever way you go, you will have the most up-to-date servers, application software and security technology available at the time of installation. Cloud systems will update automatically, but your internal system can be configured to download and install updates.

With a January 2020 deadline, you have time to analyze your options and start moving along your chosen migration plan. We can help you analyze your business’s needs over the next five years and put a plan into action so you don’t miss a deadline or a beat. Call us – 973-433-6676 – or email us for an appointment.

Hello, New Security Technology

Passwords are on the verge of becoming extinct, and for many people, the passing of passwords will be like getting rid of a migraine. With the latest Windows 10 major update from Microsoft, your computers and devices may now say “hello” to you to access Microsoft accounts, and additional security measures may now work together better with smart devices. Facial recognition is playing a big role.

Security is more important than anything in today’s world, and hackers keep cyber defenders back on their heels in many instances. Our message continues to be that you need to harden your security measures while you have control of your computer, device, network, etc. If you wait until it controls you, it can cost you a lot of time, money and aggravation.

Combining facial recognition with another authentication factor is one element of Hello, which is available on certain computers with Windows 10 installed. It replaces a password with biometrics to authenticate secure access to devices, apps, online services and networks with a fingerprint, iris scan or facial recognition. It’s considered to be more user friendly, secure and reliable than traditional passwords, which are easy to crack because most people use simple ones they can remember or leave written notes in easy-to-find places.

You can authenticate a Microsoft account or a non-Microsoft service that supports Fast Identity Online (FIDO) by setting up a facial scan, iris scan or fingerprint to log into a device. Hello uses 3D-structured light to create a model of someone’s face and then uses anti-spoofing techniques to limit the success of people creating a fake head or mask to spoof the system. Once you set up your initial scan, the image will enable you to unlock access to Microsoft accounts, core applications and third-party applications that use the system. You can modify facial and iris scans, and add or remove additional fingerprints, and you can uninstall biometric identification.

Microsoft has updated Hello to support new security keys and offers two-factor authentication. There are keys to authenticate users for Azure Active Directory without requiring that a user enter a username or password, or even set-up Windows Hello beforehand. Technology advances could include authentication through a smartphone, but don’t expect any of those to involve text messages. Your cell phone number can be easily highjacked, and a perpetrator can simply have all of your passwords sent somewhere else without you ever knowing about it.

Windows’ latest update, version 1809, which is being pushed out this month, will increase the number of computers able to use Hello, and that will certainly help expand its user base – which, in turn, will spur more development of more ways to use it.

Microsoft is working with a growing number of service providers and device manufacturers to give its users a more seamless method to authenticate multiple accounts. Ultimately, the industry needs to tighten its false rejection rates and “liveness detection,” which ensures that the scan is that of a living person.

We’re confident that use of these new systems, such as Hello, will make us more secure, especially for business systems. We still see so many offices with passwords attached to computer monitors. Hello will go a long way to eliminating this particular potential for security breaches.

If you have computers that can work with Hello, we urge you to take a close look at implementing it. If you have questions about getting computers that are compatible with Hello or will be, we can help you set it up or prepare you to set it up. In the meantime, we can perform a security assessment to make sure your information technology system has no open backdoors or trapdoors that can allow access. This can be especially important, as one client discovered after they bought a company and started to merge IT systems.

Call us – 973-433-6676 – or email us to talk about your security.

Personally Improving Tech Service

As I’ve said many times before, the greatest value of going to conferences is talking to people. We continuously develop better networks among colleagues and voice concerns to the many techies who man the booths at expos.

One of my crusades for this year’s Ignite conference, Microsoft’s annual tech extravaganza, was to talk with the engineers from the hardware and software companies we do business with on your behalf and my IT colleagues. We get together annually and stay in touch all year long. My specific beef this year was documentation.

In one instance, I had an error message on of our clients’ system. Trying to find the resolution through the manufacturer’s documentation had me going in circles. Then, I remembered a conversation I had with one of my Ignite colleagues about a major issue he had with a piece of HP equipment. It seems that a low battery problem showed up as a “not installed” message, which left me dumbfounded because all the installation steps checked out. Resolving the battery issue resolved the “not installed” error message but having accurate documentation would have resolved the problem much faster.

I talked to Microsoft engineers about documentation for setting up encryption through Office 365. Encryption is a hassle for computer users, but it can play a key role in protecting the security of information. They admitted that documentation was a problem, and my reaction was, “What am I supposed to tell my clients?”

I’m hoping that being able to talk to engineers personally about the issues we face as IT professionals will be addressed. And with many former IT independents in my network going to work for hardware and software companies, my personal connections might help my colleagues and me get better resolutions to the issues we face. Those personal contacts will go a long way to providing you with better service.

The personal connections may prove to be even more valuable as Microsoft rolls out its new Windows 10 updates, version 1809. It has extensive updates and changes that may require tweaking for some clients, and our goal is to make your transition as seamless as possible.

If you need help with installing or tweaking new hardware and software, be sure to call us – 973-433-6676 – or email us for help. It’s likely we’ve picked up a trick or two that the documentation doesn’t cover or make clear.

Windows 7 Support Ends in January 2020

Here’s our first warning: Microsoft will end technical support of its Windows 7 operating system in January 2020. That means there will be no more security patches and bug fixes. Is that bad news? Probably not. Performance-wise, the operating system has outlived its usefulness, and all the special applications and hardware you run off it are probably well beyond their useful service life. We’d bet you’ve likely squeezed out every penny of your ROI, and Microsoft is doing you a favor (of sorts) by nudging you into its next generation OS.

The good news is that you have lots of time to plan for its replacement, and that’s important for businesses who have invested a lot of time, training and money for custom-written or highly customized software. If that’s the case for your business, you have my sympathies, but you should also know you’ve had a really good run.

We’ll talk more about the economics of performance issues in this newsletter (Refreshing Devices Re-Energizes Them – Up to a Point), but if you’re still running Windows 7, you face security issues and the need to carefully plan how you’ll replace your application software.

The loss of security patches and bug fixes will be devastating if you don’t update your technology. Because Windows 7 is an old OS, the bad guys have had lots of time to probe its vulnerabilities. Once the defenses go down, their efforts to crack a system that they can monetize will pick up. They’ll look for ways to get your financial information or disrupt your operations.

We suggest you start your transition planning now. If you have custom-written (proprietary) software, you must find out now if that software can be updated or rewritten. If it can be brought up to date to carry you into the future, your provider will need time to modify or create and test the software, and you’ll need to know how much computing power you’ll need to make it work.

We can help you look at the computer specs needed to meet your processing requirements, and we can work with your software provider to make sure hardware and software are coordinated. Microsoft is planning a massive Windows 10 update this month, and it’s reasonable to expect another update if you plan to have your new system up and running before the end of 2019. Working together, we’ll have the best chance to make sure that your new application software is compatible with the OS updates and that it will work throughout the lifetime of Windows 10 and its successor.

If you’re upgrading your software to work with Windows 10, we can’t encourage you enough to upgrade your hardware, especially if your current hardware is way below current standards. The new OS and application software will be written to work with most up-to-date and most-likely-to-be-improved processors. If you match your hardware and software systems properly, you’ll get performance levels that have the capability to make your business more efficient and profitable for a longer time.

This will move you into a new realm of business and technology management. Once we know how all the ideal pieces should fit together, we can help you budget for your transition – which could be spread out over 18 months or so. We can help you bring in new computers in stages that match your software development, so that you and your employees can test systems and offer feedback to all of your providers.

With proper budgeting, scheduling, testing and training throughout the process, we can help you coordinate all the steps involved so that we can install your system and have all employees trained on their new hardware and software with minimal – if any – downtime.

It’s not too early to start the conversation. Call us – 973-433-6676 – or email us to set up an appointment to discuss your migration from Windows 7.

Refreshing Devices Re-Energizes Them – Up to a Point

Refreshing your computers, peripherals and devices requires you to take a long pause, but in the end, it still might leave you thirsting for better results. If you’re hanging onto old equipment, Tech Data reports a few facts that might make you change your mind.

First of all, the report says, some 46 million small and medium-size businesses rely on devices dating back to 2014. That’s approaching five years, and that can be a lifetime in technology. Second, repair costs for equipment four years old or more can be 1.5 times the cost of repairing newer technology. Finally, PCs older than four years can be less than half as productive – costing an average loss of productivity rate of $1,260, according to an internal study by Microsoft.

Microsoft, which is phasing out Windows 7 because of its increasing inefficiency (Windows 7 Support Ends in January 2020), certainly has an interest in seeing you buy new computers with their operating systems. But they also know that the more efficient and productive their customers are, the more likely they’ll continue to use Microsoft software.

So, with that last point out there, what are your considerations for refreshing or replacing a computer? If you’re running Windows 7, we see replacement as a no-brainer. One client engagement illustrates how extreme it can get. We were tasked with refreshing a 10-year-old computer to get it to run better, which we did at a cost of $200 or so – after we advised our client to replace it. Refreshing, in this case, meant reinstalling software and updating it as much as possible. A 10-year-old computer cannot run the latest versions of Windows or any application software, and you cannot install the latest, most secure browser software. If we had installed a new hard drive and added licensing fees and our setup time, it would have been about $570. A new computer would have been around $800 plus some setup time to properly install the operating system and applications and transfer some data files.

With that as background, let’s delve more into a cost-benefit analysis.

Performance: Older PCs, according to Tech Data, can only run approximately five applications simultaneously without performance degradation, while newer PCs can easily run eight or more, according to a 2016 study. On the other hand, new Windows 10 Pro devices with 7th and 8th generation Intel® vPro™ processors keep users more productive with up to 25 percent more time efficiency. They are also up to 28 percent faster for startup on average compared to Windows 7. Batteries can last up to three times longer on newer Windows devices.

Repairs: We mentioned early on that repairs can cost 1.5 times more for older computers than for newer computers. Some of that extra cost can come from more time to find parts. Generally speaking, older parts are scarcer and more expensive.

Security: We’ve harped on security, and here’s something to add: More than 50 percent of smaller businesses have suffered a data breach or cyberattack with the cost averaging more than $84,000 per breach. Older Windows devices are likelier to lack the latest hardware and software security features, putting data at risk. When you factor in the fact that small-business customers are prime targets for security breaches, you can be looking at costly recovery.   Upgrading to a computer that can run Windows 10 Pro will give you more built-in defenses and increased support for the lifetime of your device.

To translate all this into an action plan, we recommend refreshing and some component replacement for computers three years old or younger. For older computers, especially those running Windows 7, we recommend replacement. Business users will benefit from improved performance and security, and home users will benefit from better security. Call us – 973-433-6676 – or email us to discuss your refresh/replacement needs.