Have you ever felt frustrated listening to your IT team talk? Felt like you were drowning in their jargon? You’re not alone! In fact, we hear business owners complain all the time. They are frustrated with their IT team’s seeming inability to get passed the geek speak. One of the reasons why our clients love working with Meeting Tree Computer is that we don’t do geek speak. We speak their language and want them to call us out on it when we don’t.
In this blog post we’ll let you in on some of the “secret” IT language. That way, the next time you talk to your IT guy/gal at the water cooler you can show off your knowledge and have a general understanding of what is being said.
Let’s start by discussing the two different types of outsourced IT support that are available to you.
Types of Outsourced IT Support and How They Can Help Your Business:
Even though you might have someone in house to help resolve IT issues for you and your team that doesn’t mean that you wouldn’t benefit from some additional help at times. Afterall, your guy/gal is only one man/woman. Knowing all that is involved in successful IT support, it doesn’t surprise us that many IT technicians we talk to tell us that that there are time when they feel overwhelmed Too overwhelmed to be able to handle both daily support issues and back end projects (read: security) at times. Unfortunately, the back end tends to get the short end of the stick. Also, who is supporting your team on days when they are sick or have off? This is where outsourced support can be of enormous help.
There are two types of support out there:
Managed Service Provider (MSP): MSPs deliver services like application, network, security, infrastructure along with regular support and active administration on the premises for customers. By handing these services over to an MSP provider, your business can offload the burden of network monitoring, preventative maintenance, and security to a third party, thereby creating more time to focus on more essential tasks of running your business (and day to day IT support issues for your in-house IT staff). And, a little unknown secret, instead of paying an hourly fee, a managed IT service provider charges you on a flat-rate monthly basis, just like a subscription, making it easy to budget for. I’m sure this is music to the ears of your CFO. You can learn more about managed IT providers here.
Managed Services is a great option for you if:
- You want experienced technicians around the clock
- Your CFO prefers budgeting vs. estimating expenses
- You want to have a guaranteed/ don’t want to worry about system uptime
- You want to save money
- You want stability for your IT infrastructure
Time and Materials (Break-Fix): Where Managed Service is focused on preventing issues from happening, the break/fix method is known as a Reactive service model. Just as the name suggests; the only time your service provider offers support to your business is when there is a malfunction within your IT infrastructure. When that happens, you will have to contact your service provider and then they will fix the problem. Preventative maintenance, security, behind-the-scenes monitoring, and CIO services are not part of the services that these providers offer. With this method, your hired IT team charges you by the hour, giving them (unfortunately) no real incentive to quickly resolve your problems.
Break/Fix is a great option for you if:
- You are okay with downtime when issues arise
- You are okay not being able to budget for IT expenses
- You can wait for when a technician is available to help you
- Security is not a priority for your business
- You are looking to complete a larger IT project and need an extra set of hands
Common IT Terms That Will Make You Sound Like a Rock Star
Here are 26 common IT terms what will help you the next time you’re up against geek speak:
Access Point: A device, base station, or receiver that allows the communication between a wired network and a wireless computer or device. Click here to learn tips for staying safe on a public WiFi access point.
Bandwidth: A measurement of the amount of data that can be transmitted over a network, or telecommunication system at any time. If a network has a higher bandwidth, then a larger volume of data can be transmitted.
Business Continuity: The importance of being able to ensure to customers, vendors, regulators, suppliers, and other entities that your critical business functions will be available at all times. Activities such as system backups, help desk, project management, and other daily tasks help guarantee uptime, consistency, and recoverability.
Cache: A region of memory within a computer where temporary data is stored for faster access in the future.
Cloud Computing: A generalized term that is used to describe software and services that use the internet to store, manage and process data.
There are 3 different cloud models that you should know about:
- Public Cloud: An IT cloud model where the infrastructure and computing services are hosted by third-party providers. The services are shared with multiple organizations using the public internet to connect. The public cloud makes computing resources available to be purchased by anyone. For example, Internet services like online backup services (Apple iCloud, Dropbox, and Google Drive) are considered Public Cloud Services.
- Private Cloud: This option allows you to have more control over your data. Private cloud is a term for proprietary computing architecture that provides hosted services solely meant for support and operations of the/one end-user. This is also known as a corporate cloud or an internal cloud. A private cloud uses the same features that are offered in a shared cloud without the worries of security and issues about regulatory compliance. By allowing greater control and visibility into the infrastructure, you can place more trust in the security of your data.
- Hybrid: This option uses a mixture of private and public cloud computing and allows your business to move between the two based on your computing needs. Hybrid Cloud combines in-house IT infrastructure with other (public/private) cloud products and services. It has become so common that most of us don’t give it a second thought: For example. while your sales team might access your customer database on a private in-house server, your accounting department might use QuickBooks online to process payments and payroll. Nothing to it.
Learn more about the benefits of cloud computing here.
Compliance: Regulations provide organizations with acceptable standards for the development of strong cybersecurity programs. The past 10 years have seen an enormous increase in regulations that address best practices and standards that dictate what type of data must be protected and the acceptable measures to achieve that goal.
Depending on the vertical and/or the state that your business operates in all of us are mandated to implement specific measures to secure critical and personal data. For medical offices these measures are required under the HIPAA law(s). Finance and insurance agencies are mandated by GLBA/NYDFS and all of us operating in NY state are regulated by the SHIELD Act.
CPU: (Central Processing Unit) The fancy definition: “Part of a computer that oversees and executes all calculations and operations in line with the instructions it is being given by the software running on the computer” Think of the CPU as the brains of the computer. It is the CPU’s job to perform all the tasks and calculations necessary to make the computer work
Cybersecurity: A set of techniques and best practices for protecting your digital infrastructure/ electronic data from being compromised by threat actors and unauthorized users. This unauthorized access does not only come from outside your business, but insider threats (and risks) should be considered as well.
Click here to learn more about driving your business forward with cybersecurity.
Data Back-Up: Data backup is the act of copying critical data to a secondary storage device (external hard drive, server) or location. Having a backup solution in place helps you to quickly recover your data if an issue occurs and the original data unexpectedly gets compromised or lost.
Two backup solutions that you should know and consider for the security of your business data: onsite and offsite backup:
Onsite backup, like an external hard drive, or onsite server, allows you to quickly recover data and works wonders if you accidentally delete a document. However, implementing local backups alone can make you vulnerable to disaster. Imagine that a fire destroys your entire office and damages not only your computers but your backup servers as well. All your good intentions will have gone up in smoke, leaving you with nothing to recover from.
Offsite data backups redirects data elsewhere adding extra precautions and security. Consider the 3,2,1 back up rule as a best practice 3: Create one primary backup and two copies of your data. 2: Save your backups to two different types of media. 1: Keep at least one backup file offsite.
You can learn more about data backup and why it is important here.
Disaster Recovery: The process, procedures, and policies that are related to preparing for the recovery of technology infrastructure and the continuation of business operations should disaster strike. We wrote more about how you can avoid disaster recovery mistakes here.
DNS: (Domain Name System). A system that automatically translates internet addresses (such as www.facebook.com) to the numeric machine addresses (IP address) that computers use.
Domain Name: The fancy definition: “A form of identification that defines a realm of control or authority within the internet”. Think of it as the website equivalent to a street address (In “www.amazon.com”, amazon.com is the domain name).
Firewall: Just like a moat around a castle, a firewall offers security and protection to your IT infrastructure. It is a security device -hardware or software- that helps protect your network by filtering out bad traffic and blocking outsiders from gaining unauthorized access to the private data on your computer network.
IoT: (Internet of Things) describes the network of physical objects that have software, sensors, or other technology installed to exchange and connect data with other systems and devices across the internet. Some top examples include connected appliances, smart home appliances, wearable health monitors, cars, airplanes, phones, and POS systems.
IP address: (Internet Protocol address) is a unique address that identifies a device on the internet or a local network. Every device that is connected to the internet has a specific and unique number to identify them. Ex. 192.168.100.2
IT Assessment: As with any assessment, an IT assessment reviews IT-related issues. It is meant to identify the strengths and weaknesses of your IT infrastructure. This assessment can be done in-house, but often requires specific expertise offered only by third-party vendors. After completion the results will be presented in a detailed report and will include suggestions for improvement.
NOC: (Network Operations Center) is a centralized place from which enterprise IT administrators monitor and supervise computer and telecommunication networks.
RAM: Computer random access memory (RAM) is one of the most important components in determining your system’s performance. RAM gives applications a place to store and access data on a short-term basis. It stores the information your computer is actively using so that it can be accessed quickly. It is however different from computer storage in that the information stored in the RAM component of your computer clears when the computer is shut down. Whereas information saved on your hard drive will never disappear.
RDP: (Remote Desktop) A Windows feature that allows you to have access to a Windows machine (XP and later) from a different computer in an offsite location. For example, it can create a connection from your personal computer to the computer on your desk in the office so you can work from the comfort of your home with full access to the information you need to get your job done.
Router: A device that is used to connect two or more Local Area Networks (LANs). A LAN is a local area computer network that interconnects computers within a limited area such as a residence, school, laboratory, university campus, or office building. Routers facilitate the transfer of data in a network.
Switch: A switch is used to network many computers together. Think of it as fancy power strips, but instead of plugs, it uses ports to connect computers, DSL modems, other switches, or cables. Some higher-end switches have over 50 ports and are often mounted on racks in a server room.
Virtualization: The term virtualization can be hard to grasp, that’s because there is nothing to physically grasp! Virtualization is a software-based, virtual representation of something, such as an operating system (OS), a server, a storage device, or network resources.
VoIP: (Voice over Internet Protocol) is a type of phone service that uses the internet as a transmission medium to carry out phone calls. It includes features such as call recording and voicemail to email or text and is generally much cheaper to operate than the traditional landline-based phone systems.
VPN: We all know that online privacy and 100% security no longer exist but both are especially absent when connecting to the internet through public WiFi or a hotspot. By using a VPN, you not only encrypt your internet connection, making all activity unreadable without access to an encryption key, but you can also hide the public and vulnerable IP address that you are connecting from, adding an extra layer of security and anonymity.
And that’s it. With these key technology terms, you can confidently join any IT-related conversation and present yourself as a rock star. We hope this has been helpful.
Still, have unanswered questions or concerns about your business technology or security? Contact our highly responsive IT team. We answer the phone “live’, ALWAYS and we promise to never use geek speak or make you uncomfortable with what might be unfamiliar technical jargon. If you ever catch us using any fancy words, make sure to call us out on it. Give us a call at (845) 237-2117 and hold us to our promise.
