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Category: Workstations

Cost of Insuring Your “Digital” Employees

We were discussing the price customers paid for their monthly maintenance of computers and the comparison was brought up about insurance costs. As a business owner with employees, it is necessary these days to offer health insurance as part of their compensation package. If the company has vehicles that are used for business, then the government mandates that they be covered by minimum amounts of insurance. These costs are then built into the price the business owner then charges their clients for products or services.

Insurance Statistics: 

  • According to Business.com, the average cost of health insurance for a single employee was $645 per month and $1,850 per month for a family.
  • According to NerdWallet.com, the average cost of car insurance was $179 per vehicle per month. 

Questions:

So what about the “digital” employees of the company, aka the computers and network equipment that make business possible. How much are business owners paying to “insure” these assets? What are businesses willing to pay to make sure that their computers and network don’t have a sick day? Does the cost of insuring them include preventative care? Who does the business call in case of an accident or breakdown in the middle of the day? Does the cost of insuring include on-site service or transport to a service center?

If your company wants to keep their digital employees healthy and insure them from accidents, then contact us for assistance.

Recover a Stuck Windows Service

Recently had an issue with a backup software that would get stuck in START_PENDING status at every startup. This caused it to be unable to be uninstalled, repaired, or forcefully removed and re-installed. Here is how we fixed it:

1. Find out the Service Name of the service by looking for it in the Services control panel:

2. Open command prompt as administrator

3. To get the PID type in – sc queryex [Service Name]

4. To kill the errant process type in – taskkill /f /pid [PID]

5. To remove the process type in – sc delete [Service Name]

One I had removed the process I restarted the server just to make sure then re-installed the software.

If your company needs help troubleshooting software issues, then contact us for assistance.

Benefits of Wi-Fi 6e 

VoIP Telephone System - Grants Pass, OR

Wi-Fi technology is ingrained into our everyday lives WE COLLECTIVELY STREAM more movies and TV shows, play more online games, and make more video calls than ever before, and all this activity puts a serious strain on our Wi-Fi networks. Wi-Fi 6e has various features to improve the efficiency and data of your wireless network and reduce latency. the latest Wi-Fi 6e standards offers a range of benefits, including faster and more reliable access. So, what is Wi-Fi 6e and what are some of the benefits?

Wi-Fi 6e explained 

Existing technologies operate on two frequencies 2.4 GHz and 5GHz which have become more congested over time; Wi-Fi 6e adds access to a third frequency, 6GHz. now wireless devices can also use the 6GHz band. And the 6GHz band opens up the opportunity for higher transfer speeds. On top of that, currently there are about four 160 MHz-wide channels with normal Wi-Fi this 6GHz band brings with it seven 160 MHz-wide channels, More available channels mean more available spectrum for Wi-Fi service “and less overlap between networks in crowded areas like apartment complexes or offices,”. with less overlap and congestion you are able to connect more devices with the same efficiency expectation. Additionally there have been security improvements with Wi-Fi 6E that puts the burden on the router, rather than you, to secure connections between your devices. WPA3 is mandatory for all Wi-Fi 6 certified devices, which provides the latest security and authentication protocols. 

Summary of Benefits 

  • Faster, more reliable connection
  • Transmits data faster with less interference. 
  • You don’t have to compete with traffic from other devices or networks.
  • Security improvements making it more secure and harder to hack 
  • Accommodates more connected devices

If your company is looking to upgrade the wireless coverage in your office, whole building, or entire business complex, then contact us to evaluate your WiFi needs.

RMM Automation: Credential Manager Empty After Reboot

As our business continues to focus on providing white labeled Tier 3 IT support services, RMM as a service, and co-managed IT services this blog will be highlighting tips for using Powershell to fix Credential Manager empty after reboot. There has been several users at a bunch of clients recently that have lost access to a network share due to saved passwords and we found Credential Manager empty after reboot. It was easy enough to re-add their password to Credential Manager, but it was not sticking around. This sounds like a job for automation, so we created a script to clear the errant Credential Manger files and create a new entry for the user to connect to file shares.

Variables

$user = username to add to Credential Manager of network share connection

$pass = password to add to same

Script Snippet

### Remove file folder associated with Credential Manager
Remove-Item -Path %localappdata%\Microsoft\Vault -Recurse

### Install Credential Manager Powershell Module
Import-Module -Name CredentialManager -Force

### Convert password to Secure String and create credential
$password = ConvertTo-SecureString -string $pass -AsPlainText -Force
$Credential = new-object -typename System.Management.Automation.PSCredential -argumentlist $user, $password

# Save the credential object directly without unwrapping it:
New-StoredCredential -Credentials $Credential -Target 'Share Credentials' -Persist Enterprise -Comment "Share Credentials for $($Credential.UserName)" > $null

This script will need to be run in the context of the user who needs the credential created. Please use caution with this script as it will empty Credential Manager completely for the user context run with. Also it is advised to run a full CHKDSK /R on the root (C:\ usually) directory to make sure that nothing else is corrupt on the drive.

If your company is a MSP or wants to become one and automation just seems out of reach, then contact us to run your RMM for you.

Zero Trust – Application Whitelisting

This is the eighth in a series about the concept of Zero Trust, which means in the IT sense that you trust nothing and always verify everything surrounding and connected to your network. Today’s discussion will be on Application Whitelisting. 

Application Whitelisting

Application Whitelisting is a process of determining which software programs the company absolutely needs to do business, marking them as safe, and blocking any other program that tries to run on company computers. This methodology has the distinct advantage of blocking almost all forms of malware on computers. Pairing this with a good next-gen antivirus creates an impenetrable wall against malware threats. It also prevents users from accidentally or intentionally running something that should not be on company computers. Here are some questions to ask:

  • Do you know all software on your computers?
  • Do your users spend time on company computers listening to music?
  • Have any of your users ever downloaded software without asking?
  • Do you have a computer use policy? How is that enforced?

If your company is wanting to lock down what is running on company computers, then contact us for assistance.

Zero Trust – Software Patching

This is the seventh in a series about the concept of Zero Trust, which means in the IT sense that you trust nothing and always verify everything surrounding and connected to your network. Today’s discussion will be on software patching. 

Software Patching

Software patching is a neccesity because no person who writes code is perfect and hackers are actively looking for these mistakes. The hackers find the mistakes and then develop ways of using these to exploit the software, computer, or whatever else they can gain access to. The only way to combat both the mistakes and the exploits is to discover them before the hackers do and patch the hole in the software. This patch can however lead to unforseen consequences to the software, so a plan for testing and deployment of patches is needed to avoid unexpected downtime to businesses.Here are some questions to ask:

  • Do you know all of the hardware and software on your network?
  • Do you check for hardware, operating system, and other software regularly?
  • How do you check for updates, patches, or upgrades to software?
  • How do you install these patches? Is it automated?
  • Are these patches tested before installation?
  • What happens if a patch causes problems?
  • Do you have a log of all installed updates?
  • Are any systems or software on your network no longer supported for updates?

If your company is going to use full disk encryption or has compliance requirements that you need consulting for, then contact us for assistance.

Surviving a Flood

Had a client walk into their office to find it flooded with an inch and a half of water on the ground and it got me thinking about what could be done to mitigate the risks associated with this sort of “Act of God” at the office.

Can’t Stop the Flood

It goes without saying that there is no way to realistically prevent a flood besides the usual preventative building maintenance that most businesses are not in control of anyways. It makes sense then to choose an office space where the owner is into proactive repairs on the building, even if it costs a little extra per month. It would also be good to talk to your business insurance provider to make sure that such Acts of God are covered. Clean-up and recovery though usually covered by the building owner can get expensive if your contract doesn’t cover it. 

Prepare for the Worst

Practically speaking it may not be possible to keep computers out of the water in a flood. At this particular client we did have the computers up on blocks just in case of this very thing. All network equipment should also be in a safe place, ideally in a locked cabinet high off the ground.

Recovery can happen

If the worst does happen, the first thing to do is shut off the electricity to the building. After that take careful inventory of all that is plugged in and remove it from electrical outlets. If equipment is wet, keep it unplugged for a couple days in a dry environment to make sure it is free from moisture. Once sure it is dry, plug in the equipment and test whether it will come back online. If anything was submerged in water, it is best to plan on replacing it as most water has minerals in it that will stick to components in the computer and could cause and electrical short.

If your company is not ready for the worst, then contact us for assistance.

Zero Trust – Endpoint Security

Endpoint Security - Clackamas, OR

This is the sixth in a series about the concept of Zero Trust, which means in the IT sense that you trust nothing and always verify everything surrounding and connected to your network. Today’s discussion will be on endpoint security. 

Endpoint Security

Endpoint security is a fancy term used to describe how the computers on the network are protected. This used to be done by antivirus but due to the complexity of the attacks hackers are using to compromise networks these days, the definition has expanded greatly. This now includes things like Enhanced Detection & Response software, Security Operations Centers, DNS Filtering, employee train and more. Here are some questions that you should be asking yourself:

  • Are your endpoints protected by antivirus or enhanced detection & response?
  • Is website traffic being monitored? Restricted?
  • Are your employees being trained in cyber security?
  • Are computer logs being monitored for malicious activity?
  • Would unusual or suspicious activity on a computer be noticed? Alerted on?
  • Do you have security permissions set on all file shares?
  • Do you have least privileged access configured on those shares?
  • Do you keep track of what software is installed on all workstations?
  • Do you block access to unauthorized software?
  • Are files encrypted on servers and workstations?
  • Are your mobile devices managed? Can you wipe them remotely?
  • Are USB ports blocking removeable storage devices?
  • Are endpoints set to automatically log-out?

If your company is going to use full disk encryption or has compliance requirements that you need consulting for, then contact us for assistance.

Zero Trust – Trusted Vendors

This is the second in a series about the concept of Zero Trust, which means in the IT sense that you trust nothing and always verify everything surrounding and connected to your network. Today’s discussion will be on the vendors you purchase network equipment from. 

Trusted Vendors

Trusted vendors are those who supply workstations, servers, routers, switches, power protection, software, and anything else connected to your network. Here are some questions that you should be asking yourself:

  • Do you know who makes your network equipment, servers, computers, and software?
  • Do you know the way to contact their support and have current account access information?
  • Do you have current warranties / support contracts on hardware and software?
  • Is the hardware able to perform at the level needed?
  • Are you purchasing software from those who meets industry standards?
  • If a subscription, how much are you paying and are you on the correct plan for your needs?
  • When is the last time you upgraded your software and hardware?
  • Have you budgeted for the next upgrade?

Take time to think about these questions and decide where changes can be made to better protect your IT investments, or contact us to do the thinking for you.

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