We provide technology based solutions to business. Our methods are current, yet refined by our 18 years of service to the industry. We welcome a dialog with you so we can begin to prove the competence our clients have come to know and trust.

Are you ready for the mobile revolution?

January 6th, 2012

Ready or not the mobile revolution is here and exploding.  Between 2010 and 2015, it is expected that the percentage of smartphone users in the US will increase from 26 to 58 percent.  That’s a projection of more than 148 million American smartphone users in 2015!  The tablet market (iPads, Droid tablets, Kindles, Nooks, etc.) is expected to move even faster, acheiving a compound annual growth rate of over 80 percent during the same time frame. 

Mobile devices have transformed the way we live, work and play.  What is your business doing to accomodate these devices?   Have you discussed strategies and adopted new technologies to better service your customers?  Have you thought about security and policies?  What are you doing to safeguard your computer network from external and internal threats? 

Please contact First Service for mobile integration, network security and strategic planning.

Services: ,
What We Did Here: Communicate Better, Manage Risk, Operate Efficiently, Plan Strategically

Hurricane Irene Report Card?

August 30th, 2011

hurricane_ireneHow did your IT infrastructure handle the outages and other threats from Irene?  Were you worried about your data during the storm?

A few years ago one industry vendor promoted the concept of a “self-healing network”.  Certainly the healing of a person is one of life’s miracles, but how could a computer network heal?

Actually we agree a network that takes care of itself, even through a hurricane outage, is a result we can deliver now.  It also doesn’t require additional investment.  All that is required is proper planning and implementation of the appropriate resources for your needs, in conjunction with the same network management solutions we use on a calm spring day.

Services:
What We Did Here: Manage Risk, Plan Strategically

Technology You Cannot Afford to Miss at a Price You Can Easily Afford

April 20th, 2011

cisco_sm_businessHave you been wanting to replace your old phone system but thought it was too expensive or time-consuming?

Would your employees be more productive and respond to customers faster if their key communications (voice, data, and wireless information) were all connected?

Do you want a communications network that is both easy to manage and easy to expand, based on your business’ growth?

Cisco Small Business Unified Communications 300 Series (UC300) is an affordable, all-in-one solution that delivers reliable, business-class performance. 

Contact First Service for details.  We are a Cisco certified partner for Cisco Unified Communications, Cisco IP Telephony & Cisco VoIP.

Services: , ,
What We Did Here: Communicate Better, Contain Costs, Operate Efficiently

2011 – Let’s Back Up!

February 9th, 2011

imagesCAF894A7Everyone’s data storage has grown exponentially over the last few years.  There are duplicate pdf’s in team members mail folders, plus the originals.   It’s not fun to delete old emails and folders.  Are you utilizing video?

Budget woes made it tempting to plug a USB drive to the server.  Maybe you have bought a NAS or a SAN for more space.  What about backup for all that new data?  Have you invested equally in backup as your storage has expanded?  Almost universally RIGHT NOW we see the answer is NO – backup is not keeping pace with expanding storage.

We urge you to maintain a backup infastructure that is truly recoverable within a time frame that is acceptable to you.  It’s never the squeaky wheel. so it’s easy to neglect.   Call us to help map out your recovery plan.

What We Did Here: Manage Risk, Operate Efficiently, Plan Strategically

What is “Cloud Computing”, besides the latest buzzword?

November 5th, 2010

cloud_computingOne industry analyst said recently that cloud computing is defined as whatever the other person is selling. That’s actually somewhat true because cloud computing is a RESULT that combines several established technologies.

New technologies don’t appear suddenly, but instead evolve to a collection of industry leaders and best practices. So before you jump into the marketing allure of “the cloud”, you might discover you are essentially there now! Most of our clients installed partial cloud implementations years, even decades, ago.

Our practical definition is: Applications (computer programs like accounting or mail) delivered over a network connection (internal private network or public internet), requiring no proprietary endpoint (PC, terminal, phone) that can be easily scaled at the host (servers). Typically it’s as simple as programs accessible from your browser.

Some examples of cloud computing installed long ago that you might have are web access to your corporate mail server or your terminal server. Obviously there’s much more that can be done, but for now you can probably brag your business implemented cloud computing years ago. Congratulations on your foresight!

Services: ,
What We Did Here: Operate Efficiently, Plan Strategically

An Office in a Box

October 11th, 2010

 

 Cisco_UC_520_IP_PBX2

All the communications, data, and security capabilities your business needs in one neat package.

First Service is a Cisco Certified Partner specializing in Unified Communications.

Services: ,
What We Did Here: Communicate Better

High Impact Issue for IT – Virtualization

October 5th, 2010

vmware_professional_partner

 

 

In a September press release, Gartner Research said “Virtualization will continue as the highest-impact issue challenging infrastructure and operations through 2015, changing how you manage, how and what you buy, how you deploy, how you plan and how you charge.” 

Gartner estimates most of today’s servers are woefully underutilized because of the way they are configured.  Traditionally, servers have been set up specializing in one application (mail server, database server, web server, etc.).  This results in roughly 80 to 90 percent of the server’s computing capacity remaining unused at any given time.vmware

Retiring old single purpose servers and hosting virtual machines on a single host to handle these business applications not only helps save your company money.  You will see faster server deployment, dependable technology for you and your customers, reduced downtime, and disaster recovery.

First Service is a VMware Certified Professional Partner.  We have been successfully deploying and supporting virtual servers and virtualization projects for more than 2 years.   Let us help you plan your next IT project.

Services: ,
What We Did Here: Contain Costs, Manage Risk, Operate Efficiently, Plan Strategically

Cash for your Old Phone System

September 16th, 2010

cisco_logo  

Trade in your phone system from another manufacturer to buy a new Cisco phone system before January 29, 2011, and get a rebate up to $1,250. Receive another $10 for each additional phone you trade in.

newlandingphoto

You need an affordable communications system that will keep you in contact with your customers anywhere, anytime. Cisco Smart Business Communications System is an all-in-one networking and communications system that will change the way you reach, respond to, and retain customers. 

Cisco Smart Business Communications System features:

• Communications: integrated voice, data, and video
• Messaging: voicemail, email, instant messaging
• Basic call-center capabilities
• IP phones with outstanding high-definition voice quality
• Audio conferencing and video calling
• Integrated Firewall and Virtual Private Network (VPN) capabilities

Please contact First Service for details.  We are certified in Cisco Unified Communications, Cisco IP Telephony & Cisco VoIP.

Services: , ,
What We Did Here: Communicate Better, Operate Efficiently

Office 2007 or Office 2010?

March 5th, 2010

You don’t have to decide.  You don’t have to wait.Office-2010

Buy Microsoft Office 2007 today, get Office 2010 free.

Purchase, install, and activate a qualifying Office 2007 product between March 5th and September 30, 2010, and you’ll be eligible to download Office 2010 at no addtional cost. 

Please give First Service a call and we can advise you further on this special Microsoft offer.

Services: ,
What We Did Here: Communicate Better, Contain Costs, Plan Strategically

Virtualization and Network Storage

February 26th, 2010

vmware_virtualized_logoWe urge all clients with multiple servers to begin adoption of this network architecture upon their next server purchase.  Increased volumes of data take longer to backup and restore, while clients expect faster recovery times than in past years.  We are no longer able to provide the recovery times you expect of us without this technology.  Network storage allows data to be accessed from multiple servers and restored much faster.  Virtualization provides redundancy, load balancing, fewer servers, and improved performance.  The importance of this technology cannot be overemphasized for multi-server networks and we welcome the chance to educate you on its relevance to your organization.  The ROI is easy also.

Services: ,
What We Did Here: Manage Risk, Operate Efficiently, Plan Strategically

« Older Entries