System Center Service Manager 2010
When speaking on Infrastructure Optimization many companies deploy System Center Operations Manager (SCOM) and believe that they have a complete solution. In Operations Manager alerts can be configured to apply a task or workflow as a response to the alert. In many cases this is simply an email that is sent to a pre-defined group to provide notification that an issue exists. Let’s take this one step further...

The art of VPN, without the VPN
Like most American males, there was a period of my youth when I was drawn to Martial Arts films and televisions shows. (Ok, so maybe I still am) I remember watching everything from the ridiculously dubbed movies made overseas to the very popular, and Americanized TV show “Kung Fu”. To this day there is one scene that remains particularly etched in my mind. It was a scene in “Enter the Dragon”, Bruce Lee’s last feature film prior to his untimely death. Mr. Lee is on a ship and is approached by another fighter and is asked what his fighting style is...


Microsoft System Center Configuration Manager 2007
Earlier this month InfraScience was on site with one of our customers who run Microsoft System Center Configuration Manager 2007 (or ConfigMgr for short).  The engineer that handles their software update operations each month asked if we would look at something strange in his ConfigMgr console.  Normally he sees nearly 5000 machines requiring the latest Microsoft OS security updates for Windows XP, but this month he only saw 1/10 of the..


Merging Snapshots with Hyper - V R2
Microsoft's release of Hyper-V was a totally rewrite of the previous version of Microsoft's virtualization solution called Virtual Server. There is a really cool feature within Hyper-V called Snapshots (also called Checkpoints in System Center Virtual Machine Manager (SCVMM)...

It's Not All in the Name
Over the years, my now 8-year-old son has mispronounced certain words when learning them. For example, wanting a glass of “lemolade” in the summer or referring to that black, furry animal with a white stripe down its back as a “stunk.” Then there’s the time he said I was a “big mean person.” Okay, maybe that one was exactly what he had in mind. Anyway, he may not have always gotten the names right, but I knew what he meant.  Read more....

Active Directory and Rights Management
Companies today go to great lengths to protect their digital information. Information Owners deploy numerous technologies with the intent of safeguarding data. These include: Identification and Authorization mechanisms, Firewalls, Encryption, and Intrusion Detection systems just to name a few...

Windows 7 Enterprise
Windows 7 has been out for 6 months. According to Microsoft, Windows 7 Enterprise is the most advanced Windows operating system for business PCs, designed to meet the evolving needs of the users..


Getting Ready for Exchange 2010 - Making sure that your enterprise is prepared.
So, you're all excited about the new features in Exchange 2010, but disappointed that it isn't released yet?  You've looked at the documentation available, and were frustrated, but unsurprised, to find that it was still a work in progress? 


New Features in Exchange 2010
Exchange 2010 is coming.  Hard to believe, but it's been three years since the last release of Microsoft's flagship.  As usual, there's a new release of Office (Office 2010) to be released several months after Exchange 2010.  So, why would you want to move to Exchange 2010?


Unified Communications (Office Communications Server R2)
Office Communications Server R2 was officially released Feb 2009.  So what's new with R2?
Office Communications Server 2007 R2 fills in the gaps of enterprise voice requirements from the initial release, bringing more power to software based telecommunications.  Microsoft's initial release...


Project Management
Today with the economic climate surrounding industry, companies are faced with a dilemma when developing products or delivering services as to how to the keep the project on track, on schedule, and within budget....


Driving Cost Out Of Your Infrastructure
In the current economic crisis, businesses around the globe are faced with numerous challenges.  Layoffs, budget cuts and return on investment discussions are the talk of the day....