Network Help for Small Businesses

Meanwhile, all server, workstation, and laptop computers sold in the last few years already have the ability to run in 64-bit mode. As a Microsoft Partner with years of experience helping businesses carry out network-wide upgrades, Progent can help you understand the costs and benefits of moving to 64-bit processing, design an efficient migration strategy that minimizes operational disruptions, and provide affordable, expert remote support to assist you in upgrading your existing computers and software.

The advantages of 64-bit computing go beyond gigantic spreadsheets. Software is more stable, system performance improves, memory capacity expands, security can be more extensive, and more servers can be consolidated through virtualization. These advantages equate to more uptime, increased productivity, better data protection, and lower equipment costs. Yet for most small businesses, 64-bit computing is still a great untapped resource.

Sticking with 32-bit software and under utilizing 64-bit hardware seems to make no business sense, but in fact there are serious obstacles to migrating to 64-bit computing that have prompted companies to hold back. There is no seamless path for replacing a 32-bit operating system with a 64-bit equivalent. The upgrade requires a clean installation, which means reinstalling existing applications, backing up and restoring data, and installing new 64-bit drivers. In some cases, it can be difficult or impossible to find 64-bit drivers for older peripherals. To avoid business disruption and minimize technical risk, a 64-bit migration demands careful planning and extensive experience.

Advantages of Moving Up to 64-bit Processing
The benefits of 64-bit over 32-bit processing may seem subtle and hard to quantify, yet they are significant. The memory partitioning schemes utilized by 32-bit OS platforms are essentially a technical band-aid that limits stability. Memory-starved applications are often not allowed to access available RAM because the O/S is unable to assign it effectively. This results in programs shutting down or executing fitfully even though a machine appears to have plenty of unused memory. In addition, 64-bit operating systems allow much more addressable RAM than 32-bit systems and crunch twice as much information per CPU cycle. You can also switch from one RAM-hungry program to another more quickly while running in a 64-bit environment. Basically, 64-bit processing makes environments more stable, more expandable, and faster, which in turn makes companies more productive.

Microsoft's 64-bit Processing Initiative
Microsoft's “x64” technology supports the 64-bit CPUs found in most computers currently installed in business networks. (Microsoft's 64-bit "Itanium" initiative is limited to special high-end Intel/AMD CPUs and is designed for environments that require massive multi-processing.) Before the release of Microsoft Office 2010, the majority of Microsoft client applications such as 2007 Office and Visual Studio 2005 were available solely in 32-bit editions, which can still be used on x64 Windows. The latest family of Microsoft Office 2010 offers significant improvements. As an example, Excel 2010 is offered in a 64-bit edition that permits you to build spreadsheets with huge databases that are not restricted by the 2-gigabyte file size that hampers 32-bit versions of Microsoft Office Excel.

Microsoft offers native x64 versions of many Microsoft Server System products, including Microsoft Windows Server 2008, Microsoft SQL Server 2008 and 2005, Exchange Server 2010 and 2007, Commerce Server 2007, BizTalk Server, as well as System Center Operations Manager. Windows Server 64-bit versions are priced identically to 32-bit editions, so in most circumstances it costs nothing extra for 64-bit server software or hardware.

For desktop PCs, Microsoft offers Windows 7 and Windows 8 in same-cost 64-bit versions that offer high dependability, scalability, and throughput. Like all upgrades from 32- to 64-bit operating systems, the upgrade can't be carried out without effort. Every workstation and server requires a clean installation that entails reconfiguring application software, saving and recovering data, and configuring 64-bit device drivers. In fact, for most in-place workstations, and for every PC powered by Microsoft Windows XP, the 32 or 64-bit version of Microsoft Windows 7 or Windows 8 requires you to perform a "from scratch" install. This being the case, there has never been a better opportunity to upgrade to 64-bit processing on the desktop, since it will require scarcely any extra effort.

How Progent Can Assist You to Upgrade to 64-bit Computing
Besides assisting you to evaluate the practical benefits, expenses, and technical variables associated with upgrading to 64-bit processing, Progent's Microsoft-certified consultants can help you plan, document, implement, administer, and repair a network-wide move to 64-bit server and desktop operating systems and business applications. Progent can help you test your 64-bit environment to verify that it handles all of the important 32-bit applications that you want to keep plus the latest 64-bit versions of applications you wish to install. If moving to Microsoft Windows 7, Windows 8.1, or Windows 10 is included in your x64 migration plan, Progent's certified Windows 7 engineers, Windows 8.1 migration consultants, and Windows 10 evaluation and migration experts can help you to determine which desktop hardware and applications can or should be preserved, and plan a migration procedure that is minimally disturbing to your network productivity.

Other ways Progent's consultants can assist your business to migrate to x64 processing include:

• Progent's experience delivering remote computer support services can save you time and expense over the course of your x64 upgrade, and Progent's experience working with internal support staffs and delivering technical knowledge transfer to them can increase the efficiency of your network support staff.

• Progent's certified Cisco CCIE network engineers can verify that your network infrastructure is configured to support your x64 computing environment, that it is easy to track, administer, and troubleshoot, and that it offers a high degree of security and reliability.

• Progent's disaster recovery engineers can assist you in developing and testing a disaster recovery plan that includes your x64 servers. Progent's Microsoft certified Microsoft System Center SCDPM engineering experts can assist you to configure System Center System Center Data Protection Manager to provide near-continuous remote backup with the advantage of fast data restoration.

• Progent's CISSP and GIAC network security engineers can help you create a company-wide security plan that deploys some of the powerful protection mechanisms incorporated into x64 server platforms. Progent can also provide network security vulnerability checking to assess or confirm your company's adherence to industry or government security standards.

• Progent's virtualization experts can show you how to use 64-bit virtual server solutions to save money on equipment, simplify administration, improve robustness, cut hosting costs, and speed up recovery time in the event of a catastrophic breakdown.

• Progent's live online instruction can help bring both your IT support team and your desktop workers up to speed quickly and affordably by delivering remote virtual training specialized for your network environment and operational processes.