Month: November 2019

Data Magic Computer Services Brings Long-Term Client to Biz TV Texas: “All In with Bryan Weatherford” Interview

Not Many Dallas IT Companies Have Long-Term Clients Ready and Willing to Speak on Live TV About Their Experience… But Data Magic Computer Services Does.

Dallas IT Expert Shane Kimbrel Joins Bryan Weatherford

Many IT companies have a few clients here and there that are happy enough to write a two or three sentence testimonial. Data Magic Computer Services, on the other hand, has raving fans willing to go on live TV and talk about their experience. Shane Kimbrel, President at Data Magic Computer Services, was joined by Todd Shallcross from Fittings Unlimited – a long-term client of over 25 years, to speak about their experience working together on Biz TV Texas: “All In with Bryan Weatherford.” Let’s take a look at how the interview went…

What Does Fittings Unlimited Do and How Did You End Up Working with Data Magic Computer Services?

Todd Shallcross: We’re an importer of hydraulic adapters and fittings. We import and sell them through distribution only. We have 6 branches: Salt Lake City, Houston, Cleveland, Atlanta, Ontario (Canada), and here in Arlington. When we started working with them 25 years ago, technology was quite a bit different. The speed at which technology has changed is infinite. Back then, we had a family that started out as our technical support.

It was easy enough to handle your own hardware and software. But now, with the way things are and the power we need to run our programs, we need a higher level of support. In the past, we were hacked. We were working with Data Magic Computer Services for monitoring and they knew it happened before we even did, so we brought them on full-time. They knew how to prevent it and we’ve been taking preventative measures ever since.

What Are the Top 2 Factors You Like Best About Working with Data Magic Computer Services?

Todd Shallcross: The security and the knowledge. They have a great team. We have one of his people on site who takes care of us on a regular basis. He’s with us 4 out of 5 days a week! If someone forgets a login or has a question, he’s there. This year, we had to update our PCs to get ready for Windows 7 end of life.

So You Figured Out Early On That You’re an Expert in Your Field and You Need an Expert in Technology?

Todd Shallcross: What’s more important: Worrying about your technology or putting it in someone else’s hands so you don’t even have to worry about it? I know if there’s an issue, it’s taken care of. Half of the time, I don’t even know something happened and I just get an email saying “this ticket is closed.” It’s really comforting having a company like his do the job they do.

Shane Kimbrel: They’re great people to work with and I think this is a great example of “client vs. customer.” We’re truly a partnership – they’re not using us for one piece of the puzzle, they’ve taken our relationship to the next level. We meet on a quarterly basis to review goals, we’re talking about all kinds of things – problems, questions, etc.

Everyone needs information technology, regardless of what they’re selling. Do you focus on one industry or are there others?

Shane Kimbrel: We work with manufacturing, as well as distribution and construction. Those three make up more than half of our business. We’d talk to anyone who is having technology troubles though!

There Are Many Dallas IT Companies to Choose From – Why Not Choose the One That’s Already Known for Long-Term Partnerships That Make a Difference? Call (469) 635-5500 to Get Started.

Technology Security Should Include Physical and Cyber Strategies

Do you have the right balance between physical security and cybersecurity for your business? You need to know about the shifting priorities for operations security experts.  

Protecting the physical security of your business is a relatively well-known strategy that could involve everything from security guards at the front desk to video surveillance, automated entry points and biometric access to secure areas. The same cannot be said of cybersecurity, which includes a constantly-changing threat landscape and what seems like an endless array of vendors pitching products to solve a small subsection of your digital security issues. Putting these different solutions together could feel more like a jigsaw puzzle than a strategy, making it difficult to feel as though you’re making any progress.

The Jumbled Web of Cybersecurity Technology

If something happens and your business is affected by a data breach or malware attack, you could easily be set back months — or even years — in your quest for cybersecurity. Fortunately, cybersecurity is becoming more of a focus at the leadership level of organizations, bringing awareness and dollars to the fight against hackers as businesses are seeing nearly a 70% increase in security breaches over the past five years. Businesses that are successful in reducing the possibility of an attack are those that work with an external cybersecurity team to gain access to enterprise-scale solutions that work together seamlessly to provide a full 360 degrees of protection for the business.

Maintaining Secure Data Access

Businesses today run on data, and that means providing convenient and secure access to even the most confidential information. Controlling who is accessing this information and ensuring that those individuals are both permitted to view the particular data points and are viewing it securely — that can be a bigger task than you realize. Everything from the WiFi network that your employees are using to connect to business systems to whether they are browsing websites that are a known threat can inadvertently open system vulnerabilities without your knowledge. Active monitoring and aggressive cybersecurity measures are considered two of the best strategies for helping reduce the risk of attack and financial loss for your business. Even a “simple” DDoS attack could cost a small business upwards of $120,000, making it extremely difficult to recover after this type of incident.

Technology Security Specialists In Dallas/Fort Worth

Finding the right balance between physical and cybersecurity isn’t easy, but it starts with a full understanding of the current threat landscape. At Data Magic Computer Services, our team stays up-to-date on the latest challenges to your business security from both physical and digital realms. We work with Coppell, TX businesses of all sizes to reduce risks, increase productivity and ensure that you are always getting the full value of your information technology. Contact the professionals at Data Magic Computer Services today at 469-635-5500 or fill out our quick online form to schedule a free initial consultation with our experts.

How Your Manufacturing Firm Can Take Advantage Of The Cloud

Manufacturing firms are continuously under pressure to develop new products and get them to market quickly. With both local and offshore competition, the pressure on your company will continue to increase. Many manufacturers today are overcoming these challenges by working in the cloud.

To remain competitive, you must innovate with technology. If you want to stay ahead of the game, you’ll need the best technology support available, and this can be challenging. Using the cloud can help. It’s changing how we all do business.

By taking advantage of the awesome power of the cloud, your manufacturing firm will lower its costs, keep up with customer expectations, and help your employees get more done in less time. This will improve your bottom line, and help you stay ahead of the competition.

Why Should You Work In The Cloud?

If you’ve been thinking about moving to the cloud, there are lots of good reasons to do so. Working in the cloud lets you assign and monitor tasks, get metrics from your applications, and manage your configurations in single, easy-to-understand screens.

Using a centralized cloud-based location means less time going back and forth with your managers to find out what’s going on. Below are our top 3 additional reasons to move to the cloud.

1. Get The Flexibility Your Manufacturing Firm Needs

Change is a constant, and all companies, including manufacturing companies, must be able to adapt to change. Static, on-premise IT solutions and infrastructures can hold you back. The Cloud supports flexibility in a number of ways.

• It’s scalable: The Cloud makes it easy to scale up or down if you have slow or busy seasons, and most manufacturers do. You can scale cloud services up if you take on a new customer. This is especially useful for manufacturers that operate on a seasonal cycle.
• It’s agile: Working in the cloud provides agility for your staff. They can easily adjust to new conditions. With traditional on-premise IT solutions, this process is slower and more complex. The Cloud allows for faster application deployments, data backups, and computing power.
• It’s mobile: Before the cloud, if you wanted to get work done, you had to go to your office and use your desktop computer. This made it impossible to retrieve your digital files if you were stuck at home or traveling. Today, if you need to view a file or work on a project, you simply go online using the device of your choice and work in the cloud.

2. Lower Your Overall Costs

With the cloud, you can reduce costs and get the most value from your IT assets. When you outsource the management of your IT infrastructure to an IT service provider via the cloud, your operational, maintenance and administration costs are reduced.

The need for you to employ staff to maintain, administer and update hardware and software is eliminated. Plus, you’ll be free from the worry of IT headaches. And, with cloud services, you can save on investments in software, hardware, and IT infrastructure solutions. All of this can be “rented” via the cloud.

You’ll reduce your capital outlay and free up cash for other initiatives. Plus, when you use cloud services, you can benefit from user-based billing where you only pay for what you need and nothing more.

3. Improve Collaboration, Efficiency & Productivity

• Collaboration: Leading manufacturers use cloud technologies to enable easy collaboration that keeps everyone informed and working. Your teams can work on the same project from different locations. Documents and files are updated in real-time.
• Efficiency: With the cloud, your company will benefit from a shorter time-to-market because your people and processes are simply more efficient. You’ll save time and money.You will eliminate duplication of efforts to increase overall efficiency. Changes to documents can be made in real-time, so your employees won’t need to upload, download or email versions to one another. It’s a great way to avoid having different people do the same job over and over.
• Productivity: Enterprise Resource Planning in the cloud makes a lot of sense. With cloud-based ERP systems and other applications, your staff will experience higher rates of productivity. They can optimize their time when accessing, retrieving and processing information to carry out operations more efficiently. Productive, happy employees just make for a better workplace.You can manage all projects from one dashboard. Working in the cloud lets you assign and monitor tasks, get metrics from your applications, and manage your configurations from single, easy-to-understand screens.
• Eliminate downtime: Your managed IT provider can manage, monitor and maintain a cloud-based infrastructure much easier. They will often see an issue and resolve it before it causes any trouble. This means fewer interruptions to your business operations and less downtime. With uninterrupted continuity of your manufacturing operations, you’ll add to your long-term profits.

4. Don’t Forget About Cloud Security

As with any new technology, if you’re going to fully harness the advantages it offers, you have to also make sure it’s not putting you at risk. Moving all your data to the cloud does offer you greater convenience and access as a user, but if unsecured, unauthorized parties could gain access as well.

That’s why you have to take steps to protect your data in the cloud. Multi-factor Authentication (MFA) is a superior way to keep your cloud data secure. MFA requires the user to utilize two methods to confirm that they are the rightful account owner. There are three categories of information that can be used in this process:

• Something you have: Includes a mobile phone, app, or generated code
• Something you know: A family member’s name, city of birth, pin, or phrase
• Something you are: Includes fingerprints and facial recognition

By securing your cloud data, you can enjoy the flexibility, cost-effect, and efficiency of the cloud without putting your business at risk.

Windows 10 Upgrades In Dallas/Fort Worth

Are you stressed out wondering if your business will be lacking adequate security without an upgrade to Windows 10? It’s a valid concern — here’s how to tell if you’re ready.  

Has Your IT Company Planned Your Windows 10 Upgrades?

All good things must come to an end. With Microsoft products, that end generally comes ten years after a product is introduced. If you’re still running Windows 7 on your business computers, you’re about to find out what happens when product support ends on January 14, 2020. Here’s a hint: it’s definitely not a “good thing” to be running a Windows product that is completely out of the support window. Not only are you running the risk of hackers finding a way into software that is no longer receiving critical updates, but you’re also lacking any kind of backup support from the Microsoft team. While this looming deadline has businesses and home users scrambling to upgrade, there are still up to 28% of the PC population that is stuck in the Windows 7 world. Here’s how to avoid becoming a statistic when the end-of-life term runs out for Windows 7.

Are Your PCs Compatible With Windows 10?

The first step in walking through your upgrade from Windows 7 is determining if the hardware you have is physically able to run the newer Windows 10 software. Key system requirements for Windows 10 include:

• 1 GHz or faster compatible processor or SoC (System on a Chip)
• 1 GB RAM for a 32-bit system, or 2 GB RAM for a 64-bit system
• The hard drive must be 32GB or larger
• A DirectX 9 or greater graphics card
• Minimum display size of 800×600

In addition to these basic requirements, the PC must also be able to connect to the internet to accept updates as well as to take advantage of certain features.

Tackling the Upgrade

While it is possible to upgrade multiple computers one-by-one, it can be quite a daunting task. There are multiple steps that you must complete before completing the upgrade, starting with having access to a valid product key. There are also some added complexities around the version of Windows that you’re currently running and which version you can upgrade to, and Windows 7 Enterprise users are only able to upgrade to Windows 10 Enterprise Edition. With this edition, many of the self-service options such as the media creation tool are disabled, adding layers of complexity to your upgrade process. Microsoft has done an admirable job laying out the basic instructions for upgrading basic Windows 7 editions to Windows 10, but it’s difficult to anticipate any problems that might occur as part of your upgrade.

At DataMagic Computer Services, we don’t want to see anyone stuck in the dark ages with software that is no longer covered by critical security updates. Contact our Dallas IT experts today at (469) 635-5500 to see how we can work our magic to get your systems upgraded before the January 14, 2020 deadline for a Windows 7 upgrade. As the #1 Microsoft support partner in Dallas and surrounding areas, we believe in making technology work seamlessly across the organization, so your teams can focus on growing your business and allow the technology to fade into the background.