Technology News and Progent IT Solutions

Microsoft began shipping the next edition of Windows Small Business Server (SBS 2008) and Essential Business Server (EBS 2008). Microsoft's products bring the power of Microsoft’s high-end server platforms to smaller companies in a cost-effective bundle. Targeted for businesses with up to 75 users, Microsoft SBS is a cohesive server solution engineered to enable companies make their data more secure and their workers more efficient.

MS SBS 2008 is available in standard and premier editions. The basic package features Microsoft Windows 2008 Server, Microsoft Exchange Server 2007, SharePoint 3.0, and Windows Server Update Services. The premier edition also includes MS SQL Server 2008.

Essential Business Server 2008 is designed for organizations with up to 75 workstations and gives network staff greater control over their information system by reducing complications and automating many tasks. With support for Windows Mobile phones, SBS 2008 and EBS 2008 can significantly help boost productivity by facilitating connectivity to business e-mail, scheduling, contacts and information to workers who are away from their desks. To see Microsoft's news release, visit Microsoft Ships Windows Small Business Server 2008 and Windows Essential Business Server 2008.

How Progent's Certified Professionals Can Assist You to Benefit from Microsoft Windows SBS
The most productive configuration of Windows Small Business Server calls for a network consulting firm with hands-on expertise and an extensive knowledge-base in planning and implementing data-driven end-to-end business IT solutions. The background of Progent's Microsoft-certified technical team, with an average of over a decade of working in Microsoft technology, assures you success in designing, deploying and administering Small Business Server applications that are thoroughly integrated with the Microsoft product family of system and application servers.

Progent's consulting experts can help your company to deploy the major pieces of the MS Windows SBS and Microsoft Windows EBS 2008 bundles and can also provide a variety of other low-cost services to improve the productivity, dependability, protection, speed, and manageability of IT networks based on SBS 2008 or Essential Business Server 2008:

Microsoft Windows Server 2008 Integration
Progent provides a variety of Microsoft Windows Server 2008 planning and maintenance services that can help small businesses to benefit from Windows Server 2008. Progent's Microsoft Gold certified consultants can help your company to evaluate the areas where Microsoft Windows Server 2008 could enhance the productivity of your information network in order to rationalize an upgrade. Progent can show you how to pilot Microsoft Windows Server 2008 so that you can determine its reliability, throughput, and operability handling your workloads. Progent can help with developing a deployment strategy, assess and enhance existing network environment, develop backup and recovery procedures, evaluate security mechanisms and policies, help in installing actual and virtual servers, design fault-tolerant strategies including server clustering, train your internal network administration team, and deploy automated 24x7 monitoring operations to ensure system security and performance.

Microsoft Exchange Server Design, Configuration, Troubleshooting, and Hosting Support
Progent's expert consultants can help you design and deploy an efficient Microsoft Exchange 2007 migration strategy that minimizes productivity disruption, reduces long-term service demands, and makes your Exchange 2007 Server easy to administer. Progent's Microsoft Exchange 2007 support, troubleshooting, and consulting offerings include assistance with the integration of third-party add-ons to Microsoft Exchange Server 2007 and the creation of unified messaging implementations based on Microsoft Exchange Server 2007. Progent's Exchange Server Hosting Services offer an enterprise-class data center with backed-up electrical and environmental control systems, 24x7 site security and operations center, and failover access to tier-1 Internet service companies. Hosted Microsoft Exchange servers are configured as virtualized servers for service continuity, easy expandability, and rapid recovery. Progent's services feature complete incorporation with your network, connectivity with handheld communication products, continual monitoring of efficiency and network security, spam and virus filtering, security update and service pack control, Help Desk Call Center support, per-day backup, and full messaging management services.

Microsoft SharePoint Server 2007 Integration Services
Progent can provide assistance for designing, configuring, and maintaining successful Microsoft Office SharePoint Server solutions that will dramatically enhance important areas of your information system such as collaboration, intranet portal, enterprise search, forms-based business processes, delivery of actionable intelligence, and content control. Progent's Microsoft Gold certified engineers can help your company to assess the business case for deploying SharePoint Server, deliver setup and installation support, help your business to configure Microsoft SQL Server 2008 as a back-end database, enhance your network architecture, set up your off-the-shelf and custom application software to operate with SharePoint Server 2007, develop a company-wide security plan that incorporates web portal solutions, and provide online and in-person troubleshooting and Help Desk Call Center support.

Microsoft SQL Server 2008 Consulting Services
Progent's SQL Server consultants can make sure you configures Microsoft SQL 2008 efficiently, and that your SQL Server database solution is integrated thoroughly with your application software. Progent can provide continuous network monitoring to make sure your corporate network is working efficiently, and Progent's remote Help Desk Call Center is ready to provide quick resolutions for SQL database issues. Progent's certified computer security engineers can assess your company-wide security processes and mechanisms and recommend enhancements for better protection. Progent's developers can assist you to create or customize line-of-business applications or web sites utilize information managed by SQL Server 2008.

Desktop Support Services
Progent's Microsoft Gold certified desktop support consultants can deliver a wide array of cost-effective consulting and support services to help you company to install, configure, repair, and administer desktop PCs and laptops based on Windows. Progent can offer on-premises or online help for individual computers or notebooks or help your business to plan and carry out a network-wide migration to the latest release of Windows. Progent can also install Microsoft Office or Microsoft Dynamics programs on your workstations so they communicate efficiently with other Microsoft programs, software from third-party vendors, SQL databases, and line-of-business services throughout your network. Progent can also provide engineers and technicians to assist you to plan for and complete an office relocation or merger organized to produce the least possible disruption of your business.

Security Inventory Packages
Progent has put together two ultra-affordable service bundles designed to allow small businesses to receive a professional network security assessment from a GIAC and CISA-premier security engineer. With Progent's External Network Security Inventory Checkup, a security engineer administers an extensive examination of your IT infrastructure from outside your firewall to determine potential weaknesses in the security profile you present to the public. With Progent's Internal Security Inventory Scan, a security expert executes a network scan from an authorized computer inside your firewall to determine vulnerabilities to internal attacks. The two security inventory services are configured and run from a protected external location. The process is managed by a consultant who has earned top security accreditations who produces a document that summarizes and interprets the data captured by the scan and suggests cost-effective remediation if appropriate.

Virtual Instruction for Desktop Programs
Progent offers online virtual training for popular desktop applications and environments such as Office Excel, Word, Publisher, Outlook, Acrobat Writer, Adobe Photoshop, Crystal Reports, and Windows XP and Vista. Live online training provides all the advantages of conventional in-person sessions, such as immediate communication between clients and trainers, but eliminates the costs of travel and the hassle of trying to synchronize the availability of multiple trainees. Offered to individuals or classes of any size, live online instruction permits the trainer to conduct the seminar from an online facility and the clients can be dispersed across a campus or all over the country. Live online learning deploys powerful learning mechanisms such as broadcast white boards, real-time questions, and shared applications. Sessions can be brief and targeted for specific topics or extended in time and broader in scope. Instructors and students can go through problems individually or as a group.

Urgent Online Technical Support
Progent’s National Support Center provides nationwide remote help for Windows and Cisco-based small business IT networks. Progent's Microsoft and Cisco-Certified service engineers provide telephone support and online secure network connection to troubleshoot and resolve network problems rapidly and economically. The scope of technical expertise available from Progent's staff of nationwide support professionals allows Progent to escalate even the toughest problems to competent specialists as needed.

For more details about Progent's support for MS Windows SBS, call 1-800-993-9400 or go to Contact Progent.