On-Premises Server
In these uncertain times, I like having my own server.
Much is being said today about the merits of cloud hosted services – but I like having the core information required to operate my company located on my own server. And truth is, my servers have provided reliable and secure service over 20 years’ time.
Basic IT services for a small company have traditionally included basic file sharing, e-mail, network security, perhaps a business application, and a backup solution – all running on one or two servers. This arrangement continues to serve small business well, providing secure, available service with good options for disaster recovery (DR) and business continuity (BC).
Before ordering up a new server to continue an established solution with a good track record, there is opportunity to check out current technologies, consider business requirements, and balance costs. Here are some areas to consider:
Security
Cyber-crime has become a universal threat – should my next server be designed to accommodate a likely successful attack?
Recovery
We know how to recover a physical server from backup – and also that three days down time is not out of the question once we are faced with hardware incompatibilities, especially with older hardware. Can the company still live with that potential downtime?
Virtualization
Server hardware has continued to improve year after year, such that an entry level server today far exceeds the requirements of a small business. Virtual server technology allows for many separate virtual servers (virtual machines, VM) to operate concurrently on a single host server, utilizing shared server resources and providing the same savings as achieved by cloud service providers.
Concepts behind virtualization can take time to get used to and appreciate – even for the technical mind. That is not reason to dismiss an understanding at a high level! In the point above, recovery, is the remark that hardware compatibility is a factor in restoring a server from backup. In a virtual server environment this situation changes, as there is now an operating system – the hypervisor – operating on the physical hardware, and making available virtual resources such as hard drives, network interface cards, CD/DVD readers, memory and processors. Coming from this, a virtual machine can operate on any host server, as the virtual drivers are the same for any of the virtual devices. It is the underlying hypervisor that must accommodate the physical hardware. This arrangement leads to many benefits, including recovery of virtual machines.
Backup and Replication
Said simply, a server, whether physical or virtual, exists as a storage volume – occupying the entirety of a physical disk in the case of a physical server, or of a large file in the case of a virtual server. The contents of that storage volume include the operating system and all data stored with the server. In either case, image backup of the server consists of making a copy of that volume, stored on backup storage media. That image backup can also be copied off-site, for use in the event of an on-premises disaster, or to removable storage media for secure storage (such as Iron Mountain), or even to another host server, available as a hot spare instance of the server.
Remote Management
Widespread adoption of virtual technology has allowed for greatly improved remote management, in turn bringing down costs significantly.
Service Level Agreement – SLA
A small business with on-premises equipment can maintain a high level of availability without breaking the bank. There are numerous tools and technologies available, and solutions may take advantage of characteristics of particular services. CTP tends to begin a conversation on this topic with a first attempt to define business requirements for availability. If the company server were down for a full business day, would this amount to an inconvenience, or would it put the business at risk. Depending upon the answer, a smaller or larger window might be considered, and perhaps refined by service. With this parameter defined, there are generally several ways of achieving that requirements, leading to a rational estimation of cost. That cost may lead to reconsideration of availability, and within a few iterations we come to a proposed solution. In some cases a company might elect to operate with two physical host servers, providing full redundancy. Other options include use of cloud services to provide DR options, or location of equipment in a different physical office of the company. The point here is that technology has brought about a variety of options and price points.
An on-premises solution is available and viable. Small businesses are typically taking advantage of the same virtual technology that powers cloud services, allowing for operation of multiple virtual servers on a single physical host server, and introducing both cost savings and improved flexibility that, in turn, brings about a high level of service availability and security.
CTP has been working with small business to implement on-premises, cloud-based and hybrid solutions. We are skilled at developing three key parameters – business technology requirements, service level agreement (SLA) and cost, and then iterating to bring these into balance. CTP comes from a multi-disciplinary background, with deep experience in many technologies, and has been very successful at developing solutions that meet requirements, sometimes in novel ways, and very often with significant savings. There are very good and compelling reasons to maintain an on-premises solution, perhaps leveraging hosted cloud services as well. CTP takes pleasure and satisfaction in working with companies to develop creative and well grounded solutions that bring together these many requirements an disciplines.
Frequently Asked Questions
The harvesting of account credentials by cyber-criminals, via phishing techniques and malware has become an important means by which corporate networks have been compromised. One important defense is to ensure that management credentials are never cached on endpoint computers, via implementation of Tiered Logon Protocol (TLP). This may be done by assigning network administrators several user accounts, each restricted to certain management roles ranging from user only privileges to a high level of management rights – tiered accounts. Use of these accounts is typically restricted – for example, logon by an administrator to an endpoint computer would be restricted to an account with user only rights.
Two-Factor Authentication requires an end-user provide a password and a code from a physical device. The term Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) has taken the place of two-factor authentication, simply because the technology deployed initially for two-factor authentication has evolved, such that the implementation has become much broader than the initial systems for two-factor authentication, while retaining the requirement of authenticating with both something memorized and something obtained from a physical device.
All computers connected to a network are able to communicate directly with each other. That network might be divided into two, with PCs connected to one and servers connected to the other – and now PCs can communicate directly with other PCs but will be unable to reach servers. The network can be viewed as two segments – one for PCs, one for servers. Each of the two network segments might be connected to a firewall, such that traffic between the segments can be inspected and controlled – now adding security. Corporate networks typically have many segments – perhaps including PCs, general servers, VoIP for IP phones, wireless, management cards of network devices, and so on. The tools available to a hacker with access to the PC network are greatly diminished once it becomes necessary to cross a firewall to access central resources.
An endpoint device is taken to be any device that is used by an end-user to connect to a network – a PC, Mac, laptop, netbook, and so on. An endpoint network segment is taken to be a local network to which only endpoint devices are connected. The endpoint network segment will be connected to a firewall, such that access to other networks can be inspected and secured. Company servers and services might be located on a secure server network.