SME GUIDE 2011TECHSMART MAGAZINE

w w w . t e c h s m a r t . c o . z a

®smart

August 2011 1st edition

The IT future:What SMEs must know

SME GUIDE 2011TECHSMART MAGAZINE

w w w . t e c h s m a r t . c o . z a

August 2011 | 1st edition

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Rolling out all the latest tech news, reviews and interviews.

CONTENTS

7 Hardware

17 Software

27 Communications

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Find your answers hereThere seems to be such a lot happening in the world of tech, that even here in the TechSmartoffice, we find it very difficult to keep track. For companies, these fast-paced changes, themajority brought about by speedy broadband access, are extremely difficult to navigate. Theproblem is, of course, that a wrong decision now can severely influence business in future. Forexample, a question that rings in many companies’ boardroom is whether it’s wise to move to thecloud, or simply stick with legacy equipment?

This is the first edition of TechSmart’s SME Guide and we hope that in these pages you’ll be ableto find answers to some of your big IT questions. We’ve covered issues relating to hardware,software and of course telecommunications, with leaders from Telkom, HP, Internet Solutions andDimension Data piecing together a clear understanding of what the future might hold for SMEs.

Hope you find what you are looking for inside,Mike Joubert (michael@techsmart.co.za)

9 Interview: Manoj Bhoola, HP SA11 HP’s “Just Right IT” portfolio for

small businesses12 Netshield SA company profile13 New Lenovo X1 thin-and-light15 ASUS Eee Pad Transformer16 Win a UPS with Eaton

18 Interview: Bradley Bunch,Dimension Data

20 Dimension Data PartnerProgramme

23 Kaspersky: Africa is a growingcybercrime hub

24 Symantec launches NortonMobile Security

25 ShadowProtect 4 Server/ Smallbusiness Server software

25 New VMware vSphere StorageAppliance

28 Interview: Dr Brian Armstrong,Telkom

31 XDSL’s new future-proof datacentre now open for business

32 Interview: Hillel Shrock, InternetSolutions

FROM THE EDITOR’S NOTEBOOK

Editor TechSmart & TechSmart.co.zaMike Joubert > 083-290-2889michael@techsmart.co.zaBusiness manager George Groblergeorge@smartpublishing.co.zaPrint media managerSuzanne Rallsuzanne@smartpublishing.co.zaSales Manager Chantell Nell-Marais > 082-780-4696 chantell@smartpublishing.co.zaAdvertising (Agencies)Carmel Ann Singh > 079-515-8708carmel@smartpublishing.co.zaDesigner Brett WilsonAccounts & subscriptionsRonel Keet > 012-362-2732accounts@techsmart.co.zaDistributionRenier van Vuuren > 073-166-1515renier@smartpublishing.co.za

Copyright © 2011. All rights reserved. No material,text or photo graphs may be reproduced, copied orin any other way transmitted without the writtenconsent of the publisher. Opinions expressed arenot necessarily those of the publisher or of theeditor. We recognise all trademarks and logos asthe sole property of their respective owners.TechSmart shall not be liable for any errors or forany actions in reliance thereon. All prices werecorrect at time of going to print.

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Iaas is still an emergingmodel, but is likely to

become a popular option forSMEs within thenext five years.

Falling prices bring big-business techwithin reach for SMEs

HARDWARE

Trends around the world point towards small businesses investing in servers and storage at anearlier point in their development than they used to in the past. One reason for this is the

explosion in the amount of data they manage and their growing dependence on resource-hungryapplications.

IDC research on 2011 SME IT spending indicates that where small businesses used to buytheir first servers when they hit 50 employees, they are now doing so with as little as ten peopleon the payroll.

Luckily, buying the company’s first dedicated server and storage device to cater for the growthof a business is not the crippling expense it once was. With entry-level servers and storage subsystems available for under R10 000, one can start small and add to infrastructure as dataand user base grows.

First serverThe point at which it makes sense to put a first server in place will depend largely on the nature ofthe business. However, with servers becoming so affordable, many companies find it makessense to use a server to share documents and printers between their employees. It is a more efficient way of working together than peer-to-peer networking. Most of the major vendors, including Apple, Fujitsu, HP, Lenovo, Dell, Mecer and Acer, offer a range of servers designed forthe needs of smaller businesses. Options range from a compact and energy-efficient device notmuch different to a PC, through to a bigger unit that has multiple processors as well as redundanthard drives and power supplies.

Storage space is also rapidly becoming an issue for SMEs as the amount of data they need tostore piles up. Depending on the business, one may need to be able to efficiently store allscanned paper documents, customer records, emails and even some big video files or images.Given how important this data is to business, backing it up to compact discs and leaving it scattered across multiple PCs and notebooks isn’t good enough anymore. It is difficult to manageand share data in this environment and to ensure availability of back-up copies of everything thatis important.

Increasingly, SMEs can now look towards low-cost storage area network (SAN) and networkattached storage (NAS) solutions that have been designed specifically for smaller organisations.The advantages of using these solutions may include better control over your data, automation oftasks such as back-ups, and better information security through features for example encryption.Of course, much of the cost of running hardware infrastructure comes from the fact that youeither need to pay a reseller to support and maintain it or have someone in your company withthe skills to tend to your servers and storage. This is one of the main reasons that iaas isbecoming a compelling proposition for smaller companies.

Infrastructure-as-a-serviceIaas involves provisioning of hardware functions such as storage space and processing power asa cloud-based service. Some advantages of buying hardware services in this manner includelower costs because of sharing infrastructure hosted at a service provider’s data centre with othercompanies. In addition, companies can quickly access new processing power when needed forthe Christmas rush or financial year-end, without buying new hardware that would not be neededon an average day. For this, companies pay each month for the capacity used.

Iaas is still an emerging model, but is likely to become a popular option for SMEs within thenext five years. Cloud-based data back-up services such as Carbonite (www.carbonite.com),Mozy (www.mozy.com) and MWEB’s Store-It cloud storage service, are already gaining groundamong SMEs.

Thanks to the falling prices of computing hardware and the growing maturity of infrastructure-as-a-service (iaas) offerings, SMEs have access to powerful IT hardware to drive their businesses at an increasingly affordable cost. Lance Harrisfinds out more.

TechSmart (TS): What are the requirements from the SouthAfrican market that you do not necessarily see from theinternational side?Manoj Bhoola (MB): One of the challenges that we see isaround the pressure to reduce cost. Customers are looking atthe IT environment to drop their budgets quite aggressively.

TS: And in the market in general?MB: There are three trends. The first is around businesseschanging their models. The second trend is theconsumerisation of IT, where people believe that technologyshould be replaceable with the click of a mouse. If I amunhappy with my supplier, I should not be tied down and Ishould be able to change it easily. The third is around theworkforce changing. In the past, the way to do business wasto build a very methodical strategy and follow it. Today’s “netgeneration” are the people that have grown up withtechnology and they want instant gratification. So we needto make sure that our systems are geared for that new wayof thinking amongst corporates.

This leads into what HP is actually doing to manage those new trends. We’ve come up with astrategy that we call Instant On, where the Server, Storage and the Networking are instantlyavailable when you need it. This will also give an organisation the ability to swop and change easily.An example of this is HP’s BladeSystem matrix product, where we have taken a blade chassisenclosure and with innovation like no other vendor included technologies of Servers, Storage andNetworking as ONE unit working as a single solution. So now you have a very dynamic environmentwhere, it works and performs as a single piece of technology. At month end when a payrollapplication needs to be done, you initiate the process and the Servers farm realises the impact ofthis routine and will virtualise more servers if required. Similarly Storage and Networking will optimiseitself to provide a single efficient platform for the application. Once the process is complete, thevirtual Servers, Storage and Network will return to its initial state. All this is done by very integratedmanagement software. With this model, one can now implement a pay per use model.

The big question I get is, isn’t that cloud computing? And in a way, yes it is, it is a privatecloud. The system will now virtualise three different technologies to manage one process. Thisprocess can be implemented to manage a single customer or many customers on a single pieceof hardware. If you think about cloud computing, our Blade Matrix is ready for this new wave ofcomputing.

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We’ve come up with astrategy that we call

Instant On, where the Server,Storage and the Networkingare instantlyavailable.

INTERVIEW: MANOJ BHOOLA,ENTERPRISE SERVERS,STORAGE AND NETWORKING

COUNTRY MANAGER,HP SOUTH AFRICA

TechSmart sat down to talk some serious business with Manoj Bhoola,Servers, Storage and Networking country manager at HP South Africa. Hetold us more about the impact oftoday’s “net generation” on tomorrow’sway of doing business.

TS: How does this relate to SMEs?MB: In South Africa there are SMEs that do not want to deal with the complexity of IT, so we areseeing more and more outsourcing opportunities, where the entire IT offering is run by a partneror a vendor. Two years ago HP acquired outsourcing giants EDS, as HP wanted to move into thecloud space where a data centre in every country is key. South Africa now has a twin data centrethrough this acquisition and are ready to deploy cloud services for our customers.

TS: Are all companies raring to go?MB: As many companies are not sure if this route will save them IT costs, HP offers customers acloud workshop where we investigate whether this computing technology will reduce their ITcosts. Depending on the ROI, HP will then recommend moving to a Cloud Strategy or remainwith their current Capex methodology of purchasing technology. We often see a huge costreduction in moving to a cloud strategy.

TS: What’s the second step?MB: After the workshop and recommendations are done, the next step is to look at their businessapplication and modernise them if required. Looking at all their applications will enhance their ROIand hence reduce IT costs further.

TS: Should SMEs look at virtualisation?MB: Virtualisation is massive. Everyone is doing it. I suggest that every company that has a datacentre investigate their strategy as we have seen companies rationalise their server farms andmake a saving of between 20 to 30% of their server costs.

TS: What are the other cost saving elements SMEs can apply?MB: Apart from virtualisation, they should start looking at making their data centres more efficient.An easy way of doing this is to deploy a server, storage and networking technology from a singlevendor. With this strategy price negotiations are easier. Ask questions about open systems hencereducing vendor lock-down.

TS: What’s happening in the printer market?MB: A lot of companies are moving to the “Pay per Use” model where companies can realisehuge cost savings. A large organisation in South Africa is currently saving up to 35% on theirprinting costs, and that includes paper, ink and maintenance. This is realised as they have aManaged Print Services contract where they pay for only the pages they print. We alsolaunched ePrint which has really taken off in a big way. With this technology your printerconnects to the net and you can download applications needed to print specific formats.

TS: Do you have a release date for the HP Slate WebOS tablet in SA?MB: It was released in the UK in July and South Africa normally lags behind by about six totwelve months. When we do launch them, you will be happy with the features and the waitwill be worth-while. Palm phones will also be launching in this country very soon. One of thebig plusses of those devices, is that it will be working very closely with our tablets. Youliterally put them together and you can sync them. The integration between them is going tobe much better than anything you would have seen until now.

TS: Tell us more about the HP ProLiant MicroServer you recently launched.MB: The feedback we got from the small business customer is that they needed a server tosimplify things. Many tell us that they run their applications on powerful desktops or evennotebooks. The challenge they have is that these desktops and notebooks are notdesigned for huge storage and network traffic. So we launched the HP ProLiantMicroServer, providing file and print sharing, and it’s also the ideal system for backups. It isalso the only server in the market that can run off a solar panel.

What SMEs should look for when buying servers:1. Look at which vendor has the highest percentage of market share. Because of its

market share, HP can negotiate prices down with their suppliers, providing bettercosts per CPU.

2. Look at your partner/reseller and question their skill level. Make sure you go to areputable reseller and look for HP certifications.

3. Look at the specs you are being given. Make sure you use the HP kit that has beentested and put together by HP.

4. Look at the power usage of the servers, keeping in mind the “green” side oftechnology.

5. Stay away from a pricing war, keeping in mind that a low margin might mean lesssupport or service in the long run.

6. Beware of Grey Marketers. Ensure that the kit was procured via an authorisedchannel in South Africa and not sourced via grey routes. The Consumer ProtectionAct clearly states that the vendor does not have to provide services if the productwas imported via a grey channel.

About HPStanford University classmates Bill Hewletttand Dave Packard founded HP in 1939. Thecompany’s first product, built in a Palo Altogarage, was an audio oscillator – an electronictest instrument used by sound engineers. Oneof HP’s first customers was Walt DisneyStudios, which purchased eight oscillators todevelop and test an innovative sound systemfor the movie Fantasia.

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The HP “Just Right IT” portfolio makes it easy for micro and small businesses to get the right IT capabilities required at just the right

time and the right price so that they can focus on serving their customers better.

“With small to medium sized businesses still concerned and cautiousabout the economic situation they continue to focus on looking for newways to simplify operations and grow their business, says AndrewMcNiven, HP South Africa’s industry standard servers product manager.“HP, with the help of its channel partners, offers an extended technologyportfolio with realistic financing options that enable the SMB to managedata expansions, improve employee productivity and retain, as well asattract, clients.”

HP solutions increase productivity and simplify the management ofbusiness operations within micro and small businesses with increasing IT needs and constrainedbudgets.

HP line-upLeading the line-up of Just Right IT offerings is the HP ProLiant MicroServer. This quiet, energy-efficient server combines affordability, performance and data protection for business with up toten employees. It assists in effectively centralising information and accessing files faster, enablingemployees to share information with ease whilst ensuring the business and customer data is secure.

The HP Officejet Pro 8500A e-All-in-One series and HP Officejet 7500A Wide Format e-All-in-One include HP ePrint and print apps, allowing users to send print jobs from any mobile deviceand directly access content from the web without a PC.

From a cost perspective the Officejet Pro 8500A delivers professional colour at up to 50%lower cost per page than lasers, while the Officejet 7500A offers the lowest cost per page in itsclass.

Data availability and protection is of paramount importance to any business. SMBs need tosecure business data as well as maintain accessibility to information. HP data availability andprotection solutions, such as the HP StorageWorks P2000 G3 Modular Smart Array (MSA),increases performance and storage flexibility. The HP Data Protector Express 5.0 Software is designed specifically for the general user with improved business continuity and a simplified userinterface for managing backup and recovery.

Communications and connectivity is integral to your business and wireless. Voice and datanetworks can be complex and difficult to manage, but with HP’s voice-over-IP and wireless offerings, SMBs can connect up to 64 simultaneous mobile users to a network at significantspeeds thanks to the HP V-M200 802.11n Access Point Series.

“The Just Right IT portfolio lets channel partners save their micro and small businesscustomers time and money by meeting the full range of technology needs – from printers andPCs to servers and networking – with one trusted partner,” concludes Niven.

For more information on HP’s “Just Right IT” portfolio contact Andrew McNiven on 011-785-1000.

HP solutions increaseproductivity and simplify

the management of businessoperations within microand small businesses.

YOURBUSINESS PARTNER

Expanding new business opportunities forchannel partners

HP’s “Just Right IT” portfolio includes new server, printer and PCproducts designed and priced toa deliver affordability and value tosmall businesses.

HP ProLiant MicroServer

HP Officejet Pro 8500A

HP V-M200 802.11n

HP’S “JUSTRIGHT IT”PORTFOLIOFOR SMALLBUSINESSES

NETSHIELD SOUTH AFRICA

Netshield (Pty) Ltd is an electronic engineering company that specialises in the research and development of products suitable forvarious markets. Established in 1994 as a small business developing customised products for the IT environment, the company has grown toa position where it is now proud to have a well-established product range.

Netshield’s initial focus was to develop, design and to provide “customised commercial products”which has now evolved into off-the-shelf solutions distributed throughout South Africa. These solutions consist of environmental management and monitoring equipment, specialised surge protection, renewable energy systems, media and protocol conversion and dedicated products forthe mining sector.

Netshield has four main business divisions: • The R&D Division – specialised engineers responsible for the research and development of a

product, including design, prototype and production. • The Technical Division – responsible for the procurement of components and the manufacturing,

testing and packaging of the finished product. • The Marketing Division – responsible for establishing brand and product awareness.• Monitoring and Facility Management Division.

The Netshield product range is divided into the following categories.

1. Environmental management (NVIROMON-1U and associated products)These products are used to monitor and control the conditions inside, for example, a server or medicine room, detecting whether it is too cold, too hot, too wet or if there are any unwantedgasses or fire. It also identifies power outages and allows one to have complete control on who enters the room, when and for what reason.

With the NVIROMON you will be able to see and hear if anything is out of the ordinary, thanks tothe option of a full security alarm system that can even capture images of people entering. Best ofall, it will alert you via SMS or SNMP if you are not close by.

The NVIROMON works well with the Netshield Monitor One SNMP manager software that enables one to have a bird’s eye view on all the data rooms in the network, irrespective of whichprovince or country they are located in. There are no licensing fees involved, only a once off purchase price. A demo version is available from the Netshield Website www.netshieldsa.com.

2. Surge protection and power managementIt’s a fact of life that PCs, computer related products, process control and communications equipment can be damaged by high-voltage surges and spikes. Although most often caused bylightning strikes, surges and spikes can also result from direct contact with power/lightning circuits,static build-up on cables and components, incorrectly wired systems and even electrostatic discharges from a person. The Netshield Lightning and Surge Protector range has been designed toprovide superior protection for computer equipment, home entertainment systems or any othervaluable electronic equipment in the home, SOHO or SME environment.

3. Media convertersThe Netshield media converter range consists of auto sensing 10/100/1000 Ethernet converters, either in table top or rack mountable varieties. Netshield can supply options of ST and SC connectors and whether the converter is needed in multimode or single mode, with distances varying from 550 m to 150 km. Chassis are available in 6-, 14- and 16-slot, multi-port convertersare also on offer.

4. Telco products This range consists of products such as: • bridges and routing devices (G703/E1 devices)• data communication products (V11/X21 converters, Async to sync, RS232/RS485)• modem eliminators• structured telecommunication products• multiplexers

5. Fibre patch leads and compatible interface modulesThis range of fibre patch leads, cables, SFP and GBic interface modules are compatible with Cisco,3com and HP modules.

6. Renewable energyNetshield is dedicated to provide the design, supply, installation and management of renewable energy solutions, such as wind- and solar power, to generate electricity. In addition to offering renewable energy solutions, they also focus on being able to reduce the total amount of energybeing consumed, thus providing a holistic view around energy use and generation.

7. Mining equipmentNetshield has expertise in providing full and complete solutions to the mining industry, by designingand manufacturing a growing range of products for the mining industry. Solutions include:• mining safety and health monitoring equipment • mining process control• mining lighting • mining asset management

Tel: +27 (0) 86-111-4428 | Email: marien@netshieldsa.com | Web: www.netshieldsa.com

With a major thrust intoAfrica, backed by the

shareholding of Comztek, aleading IT systems and communications distributor, the Netshield range hasgrown substantially.

NVIROMON-1U environmentalmanagement

Surge protection and power management

Media converters

Renewable energy solutions

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Fans of the ThinkPad range of notebookswill be excited by the launch of Lenovo’snew ThinkPad X1, seeing that it’s thethinnest notebook in the range, but stillpacked with performance.

Measuring 17 mm and weighing a very manageable1.72 kg, the X1might not be

the most lightweight thin-and-light available.That said it’s packed with protectiongoodness that the ThinkPad range hasbecome known for, including an interior rollcage and a magnesium chassis. Notebookusers who have ever suffered a crackedscreen (and the repair bill that goes alongwith it), will be happy to learn about theappearance of Corning Gorilla Glass, usuallyfound on smartphones such as the iPhone 4,that provides extra protection and durabilityfor the 13" screen (1366 x 768, 350 NITS).

2nd generation Intel insideWhile all this is nice and good, it’s the appearance of Intel’s second generation Corei processors takes the cake. No more ultra-low voltage (ULV) processors that arecommonly found in thin-and-light units,instead Lenovo stocked the X1 with the sameprocessors found in regular sized notebooks, ranging from the Sandy Bridge Core i3through to the extremely powerful Core i7.

Also included is Dolby Home Theatre v4,an HDMI port and Intel Wireless Display technology, so users can connect or stream1080p wirelessly to a TV or projector. Furthermore a number of port requirementsare taken care off thanks to the inclusion ofUSB 3.0, eSATA, Mini- Display and an SDcard reader.

Go quick withRapidChargeThe X1 boots in 20 secondsthanks to the inclusion ofa Solid State Drive inthe package (sizes differ, with 128GB most probablyhitting thesweet-spot interms of costvs. size), while anotheruseful feature is the X10’s ability torecharge 80% of the battery in just 30 minutes. Called RapidCharge, this technologyrecharges batteries two-and-a-half timesfaster than previous ThinkPad models.Lenovo states battery life for the unit at 5.2hours with a regular battery, and an excellentten hours with the addition of the optional“slice” battery.

The Lenovo X1 should be available withan asking price starting at R9000 for thelower configurations.

NEW LENOVO X1 THIN-AND-LIGHTSecond generation Intel goodness in thin body launched in SA

RapidCharge technology recharges

the battery two-and-a-halftimes faster than previousThinkPad models.

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Looking to delve into the world of tabletPCs but with the flexibility that Google’s Android operating system brings along?Look no further than Asus’ Eee Pad Transformer.

Analysis company, Gartner, predicted close to70 million tablet PC to be sold in 2011.

Taiwanese company ASUS’ recently launched EeePad Transformer is fast becoming one of the best-selling Android tablets in this expanding market.

Featuring an expandable keyboard docking station and combined battery life of up to 16 hours,the Transformer is running Google’s designed-for-tablets Android 3.0 Honeycomb operating system.Combining Honeycomb with ASUS’ intuitive Waveshareuser interface and the most powerful hardware featuresavailable, makes the Transformer an exciting portable device, supporting both office work and social communication.

Powerful mini-cinema entertainment on-the-goPowered by the award-winning NVIDIA Tegra 2 dual-core processor, the Transformer browses the web at blazing speeds,providing a snappier response time and better performance when multi- tasking. An IPS Panel, made from durable and scratch- resistant glass, isviewable at angles up to 178°, producing a crisper and more accurate colourrange by up to 50% when compared to other tablets in the market. Built-inSRS Sound technology provides a dynamic 3D stereo audio experience,with maximum bass response and a wide sound field from the discrete speakers housed in the 12.98 mm thick frame that weighs only 680 g.Both the 5MP rear- and 1.2MP front-facing cameras can shoot and recordvideo, which can be played back in video on HDTVs via a mini HDMI outputport, making it a true mobile entertainment device.

Transform from pad to notebook mode with keyboard dockingstationThe Transformer sets itself apart from other tablets on the market by featuring an optional dockingstation. This provides access to a full QWERTY keyboard along with unique Android Function keys, turning the tablet Transformer into a full-fledged notebook. Preloaded on the Transformer is PolarisOffice 3.0, a professional Mobile Office Solution which enables users to edit various types of officedocuments including documents (.doc), spreadsheets (.xls) and presentation (.ppt) files, making theTransformer very attractive for professional use. A touchpad, 3.5 mm audio jack, two USB ports aswell as a built-in SD card reader for easy file sharing and storage expandability, makes the Transformer a versatile media hub. In addition, the ultra-convenient ASUS WebStorage with oneyear of unlimited storage space, provides worry-free cloud computing. The docking station also extends the Transformer’s 9.5 hours of battery life up to 16 hours, so users can use it all day forwork and play.

Android 3.0 Honeycomb OS with ASUS Waveshare UIGoogle’s Android Honeycomb is a revolutionary operating system specially designed and optimisedfor tablets, and enables users a full web experience for on-the-go web browsing, communicatingand casual computing. Supporting Adobe Flash 10.2 and the ever growing Android Market, entertainment is a finger swipe away. The convenient ASUS Launcher also allows users to easilylaunch software, manage content, access online services and connect devices with a few simpletaps, while ASUS’ Waveshare Interface hosts a variety of unique applications such as MyNet, MyLibrary, MyCloud and more. MyNet easily streams digital media wirelessly within home networkdevices, so HD videos or music can be played on devices such as an HDTV or desktop PCs for aneven better experience from the Transformer. MyLibrary consolidates downloaded books,magazines and newspapers in to one easy to browse profile while MyCloud is a total cloud solution,providing access to digital content such as music, videos and files from the cloud anywhere,anytime. Users can even use MyCloud to remotely access and control any PC or Mac system andaccess applications or files to extend the versatility of the Eee Pad Transformer experience.

The ASUS Eee Pad Transformer is available from ASUSTek South Africa on 011-783-5450.

For TechSmart’s full review visit http://bit.ly/asustransform

Quick Specs• Android 3.0 Honeycomb • 10.1" screen, 1280 x 800 resolution• Nvidia 1 GHz dual-core Tegra 2, 1 GB RAM• 680 g, 271 x 171 x 12.98 mm• 16 GB / 32 GB

LAUNCHES THE EEE PAD TRANSFORMERAn innovative tablet with an expandable keyboard dock

The award-winningNVIDIA Tegra 2 dual-

core processor providessnappier response time and better performancewhen multi- tasking.

A UPS providesinstantaneous

protection from powerinterruptions and is the firstline of defense againstsurges and poweroutages.

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Win a UPSwith Eaton

and ensure acontinuous

power supply.

Although South Africa is currently experiencing fewer power cuts, companies should stillensure that they have a continuous power supply solution. By establishing an infrastructurethat allows business continuation despite power cuts, power surges and blackouts as a resultof lightning storms or base station malfunction, Eaton helps business owners minimise thenegative effects on their operations.

An uninterruptible power system (UPS) provides instantaneous protection from powerinterruptions and is the first line of defense against surges and power outages. By providing a

continuous supply of power to all devices connected to the UPS, you are able to avoidmalfunction, damage and downtime that can result from the inevitable power cuts and surges.

Power management company, Eaton, has a range of uninterruptible power supplies ideal forhome and small-office-home-office (SOHO) use. It will keep your PC and equipment protectedand powered up, at the very least, for long enough to save your work and shut down. If you haveanything from one to three PCs in your home or office, Eaton’s Ellipse MAX 850 USB offers bothcost-effective and reliable protection.

Ellipse MAX UPS units not only provide a battery backed up supply to keep equipmentoperating when there is a power cut, but also provide protection against damaging surges. EllipseMAX UPS units also protect telephone broadband and Ethernet connections, ensuring yourbusiness can run at full capacity when disaster strikes. Above all, Eaton’s Ellipse Max 850 UPS iseasy to use and maintain.

For more information about any Eaton UPS units, visit www.eaton.com, or call Eaton ElectricalGroup on 011-564-9300.

Win a UPS for your businessTo win one of two Eaton Ellipse MAX 850 UPS units, email competition@techsmart.co.za withEATON in the subject line, and answer the following question: “What is the acronym UPS shortfor?” Please also include your name, company and designation. Competition closes 31September 2011.

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For smaller businessesthe potential benefits

of cloud computingare numerous.

SOFTWARE

SMEs can benefit witha move to the cloud

In cloud-based computing, users access business applications across the internet as an onlineservice, rather than buying licences and installing software on their own servers and PCs. The

concept is gaining traction as more and more SMEs look for ways to drive down their technologycosts. A recent study conducted by Microsoft among SMEs in South Africa and 15 other countries,found that four out of every ten small businesses expect to be paying for at least one cloud serviceby 2014. In South Africa, 88% of those with more than 50 employees expect to be paying for nearlyfive cloud services within three years.

Cloud-based servicesThere is a good chance that users already use some cloud-based services, even if that is notknown by that terminology. For example, Google’s Gmail service manages email, while GoogleDocs can be used for collaborative document creation. Many companies also rely on Dropbox(dropbox.com) to back-up and synchronise files between different devices or to share them with ateam. Some other examples of cloud-based software solutions that companies might be familiarwith are the SalesForce customer relationship management solution (salesforce.com), the Base-camp project management tool (basecamphq.com), the Zoho business software suite (zoho.com)and the Backpack collaboration software (backpackit.com).

From accounting packages and messaging, through to contact management tools and billingsoftware, a growing range of the tools used in day-to-day business are available as cloud solutions.

Competition is heating up as traditional software vendors such as Microsoft become more serious about taking their products to the cloud. Microsoft is receiving raving reviews for its cloud-based Office 365 set of apps, which include Microsoft Office, Microsoft SharePoint Online,Microsoft Exchange Online as well as Microsoft Lync Online. The product is not yet available inSouth Africa, leaving Zoho and Google Apps as the options for cloud-based productivity softwarefor now.

Benefits for SMEsFor smaller businesses the potential benefits of cloud computing are numerous. Working on thecloud may be cheaper than buying software licences and installing them on existing infrastructure,since there’s no need to worry about running and maintaining servers. That means companies canspend less money on hardware and IT labour each month. There’s also less stress about securitypatches or software updates since the service provider will take care of them.

In addition to the cost-savings, SMEs may enjoy better levels of uptime and security from cloudcomputing than they would from running their own applications. This because a service provider willhave the human resources and technical infrastructure to run a far more reliable and secure servicethan possible with one IT guy and an IT budget of a few thousand rand a month.

With a dispersed or highly mobile team, cloud computing can make it easier to access andshare information, since co-workers can simply access data or documents across the web usingnearly any device with a web browser and any internet connection.

Another benefit is in the flexibility that cloud computing offers. With cloud-based solutions, onecan easily add or remove users to the system as needs change. Configuration is usually quick and simple, with no need to worry about whether server or storage capacity is required to grow the business.

DrawbacksBut cloud computing is not without its drawbacks. It involves trusting a third-party service provider tokeep data safe and private. That means businesses need to ensure the cloud provider is a financiallysolid company with a sound infrastructure. Businesses should carefully check the service level agreement from any cloud provider to ensure that it guarantees the levels of uptime your companyneeds. Furthermore, bandwidth costs associated with moving a lot of data to the cloud each monthcan be high, while good connectivity is a must, since business depends on fast, always on internet.

Cloud computing is likely to soon change the way that SMEs use and pay for software, if it hasn’t started to do so already. This approach to software usage isbecoming an increasingly viable option for smaller businesses in South Africa asbandwidth costs continue to fall. Lance Harris investigates.

What is all the fuss about?There is little doubt that the technology landscape, and communicationin particular has changed dramatically over the last five years. “Therehas been a tremendous push for technology to enable faster and richerengagements. But as more and more mechanisms are introduced tobring people together: instant messaging, email, visual communicationsand so on, the diversity also creates a more complex and confusing environment than ever before. In some cases all this ‘choice’ can actually be counter- productive,” says Bunch.

“UC&C has emerged as a means of effectively harnessing the potential of communications and channelling it more appropriately towards achieving critical business objectives, such as productivity,agility and competitiveness.”

How does it work?UC&C in simple terms is an evolving set of technologies that automates and unifies communications between people and devices to create a common context and experience. It enables an individual to send a message on one medium and receive the same communication onanother medium. This may sound very straight forward, but the impact is significant. Take this scenario: You need a colleague’s input on some figures you require for an urgent proposal, you callhis landline and he is not there. You call his cellphone and leave a voicemail. In desperation yousend an email, repeating yet again your urgent need for assistance. And then you wait. And fire offa series of frustrated SMSs in the process. How much time have you wasted? And how will your colleague contact you when his meeting is concluded? Will he follow the same circuitous route asyou just have, wasting more time and energy to respond to a relatively simple request?

Now what happens when 50, 100, or 500 people are doing this same thing, over and overagain? UC&C optimises business processes and enhances human communications by reducinglatency, managing flows, and eliminating device and media dependencies.

When operating in a UC environment, presence can determine your contact’s current statusand the most effective means of contact. Your initial call is routed directly to your colleague’s mobile phone, where the voicemail message you have left can be accessed via e-mail orcellphone, where an SMS could alert him to your need even if in a meeting. It will use yourpresence information to facilitate a faster response – perhaps immediately through text chat orvideo call if you are immediately available. Or, if you have had to dash off to that next meeting, anon real-time message that can be accessed through a variety of media as soon as you are able.

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About Dimension Data Founded in 1983, Dimension Data plc is anICT services and solutions provider that usesits technology expertise, global service deliverycapability, and entrepreneurial spirit to accelerate the business ambitions of itsclients. Dimension Data is a member of theNTT Group. www.dimensiondata.com

Unified communications and collaborations (UC&C) has emerged as a key business enablement trend. But what exactly is it and how is this technology, reserved until now for corporate juggernauts, starting to benefit the small to medium size enterprise? We speak toBradley Bunch, general manager for Microsoft Solutions Dimension Data South Africa, abouthow UC&C is fitting itself to the needs of the SME.

Unified communication

introduces collaborationpower tools

that helpsmaller

enterprisesthink big.

Great value adds to any businessUC&C tools have the potential to add considerable value to SMEs and their employees starting firstof all with some really impressive business functionality. “Communication and collaboration are thelifeblood of any business, and the flow of information and ideas is what keeps the engine running.Excellent presence, rich engagements across multiple channels and meaningful contact lists thatallow deep referencing into existing databases for context are all things that add to enhanced collaboration and productivity. Better productivity equates to better and faster return on all invested resources,” explains Bunch.

From a people aspect, UC&C is helping organisations to create an attractive and desirable working environment, including the ability to migrate this work space to a completely remote location with little loss of functionality. In the South African context where imminent toll levies onmain arterial routes, rocketing fuel costs and rising pressure on business to lower carbon footprintsis a reality, enabling a workforce that can work from home is becoming very attractive.

“There is also a lot more emphasis on the importance of work-life balance and the quality of theworking experience, UC&C and its ‘how ever, where ever’ availability offers employees the meansto appropriately leverage the tools at their disposal to enhance their quality of life, spend less timeaway from home and generally be more constructive with their time,” says Bunch. “Not only willpeople be more productive and less fatigued, but it puts the company in the position where it canattract and retain the best quality skills based on the appeal of its working environments. This issomething that a smaller business may use effectively as a draw card for talent.

From a cost benefit perspective, savings may seem negligible at first, but given the opportunity,UC&C tools will offer significant compound savings in terms of travel expenses, unnecessaryor missed communications such as cellphone calls, as well as operational costsassociated with running facilities for 100% of your staff complement 100% of the time.On top of this is also the cost savings associated with improved productivity, as everyextra billable hour created will eventually add up,” say Bunch.

Helping SMEs capitalise on global trendsFor the small to medium-size enterprise, who are inherently more agile and more flexible in its processes,UC&C can be a great business enabler as it aids organisations in embracing many of the key trends driving IT, and business today.

Bunch uses mobility as a prime example. “The modern workforce is no longer just a hive of office-bound workers. A proliferation of mobile devices andhuge advancement in connectivity has created a workforce that is fully functional where ever they happento be. In a smaller business where multi-skilling is thename of the game and people tend to wear multiple‘hats’ the need to be on point 24/7 and make everyminute count becomes that much more crucial.”

Consumerisation of IT is another huge trend hittingbusiness. “People want to bring their own preferred devices to the workplace and are more than willing tocontribute financially to acquire the technology that theywant to work with. Tablets and smartphones are both excellent examples,” says Bunch. “UC&C provides avaluable platform for integration, and since it is deviceagnostic, renders the end point irrelevant. Control meetsconvenience and everyone wins. This is a big plus for the small business as it means that in manycases, a portion of IT spend can be transferred to HR as part of the cost to employ.”

So, how do I apply this to my smaller business?There is a perception that UC&C is a big price tag technology reserved for big business, but this isdefinitely no longer the case. “Microsoft has always made a point of working towards commoditising technology sets to make them more accessible and affordable. This is exactly thecase with Microsoft Lync Server, Microsoft’s dedicated UC server which brings high-end functionality like video and instant messaging within reach of the mid-size business,” explainsBunch. “It’s also been designed for easy integration into popular, pre-existing Microsoft infrastructures, so it’s the ideal fit for those with an existing investment in the Microsoft Stack,” headds.

“What’s more, UC&C is a technology that lends itself to a cloud-based delivery. Many of its management elements, which the smaller business may feel reluctant to take on because of a lackof skills or fear of the complexity involved can be outsources and deployed as a fully managed service. The smaller organisation gains the same positive impact, cost-effectively, with very little administrative headache.

“Let’s face it, South Africa has an entrepreneurial culture and today’s SME has the potential tobe tomorrow’s business giant. For integrators such as ourselves, we are eager to assist this segment adopt any kind of technology that will enable them to achieve these ambitions for their organisation. UC&C, and Lync in particular is just the right kind of power tool that will help oursmaller businesses think big,” concludes Bunch.

UC&C has emerged asa means of effectively

harnessing the potential of communications andchannelling it more appropriately towardsachieving critical business objectives.

About Dimension Data Microsoft Solutions As a result of its powerful competencies in thisspace, Dimension Data Microsoft Solutions iscurrently Microsoft UC&C Partner of the Year.With more than a decade’s worth of compound experience on a global scale inguiding customers through what has been anextremely dynamic landscape, the team isopenly acknowledged as one of the premierbusiness integrators and enablers in the world.

Locally, Dimension Data MicrosoftSolutions have invested significantly in its Microsoft-based skills set with no less thanthree Microsoft Masters in the current team.With all this experience at hand, DimensionData is perfectly positioned to assist clients‘lync’ into what is promising to be a ‘can’t-live-without’ technology.

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To ensure the success of the communities in which it operates, Dimension Data, through itsPartner Programme, works closely with small businesses to deliver solutions and services.

The Dimension Data Partner Programme addresses the need for the ICT services company tomeet the requirements of its local and global clients while providing world class multi-vendorsolutions.

The Partner Programme enables small ICT businesses in the region to sell and support clientsusing Dimension Data services and solutions. Through these partnerships, Dimension Data isable to establish a strong network of support while empowering small businesses in the region. Dimension Data partners are the company’s most trusted and qualified resellers in the ITbusiness, authorised to consult, sell and support across all Dimension Data solution offerings.Dimension Data Preferred Partners guarantee the delivery of the best possible level of businessengagement to clients.

The Partner Programme enables Dimension Data to deliver its services and solutions in theMiddle East and Africa (MEA) region by working with the top ICT small businesses across theregion. Certified and promoted by Dimension Data, every partner offers in-depth knowledge andexperience, to ensure clients receive the best and most consistent service in the industry.

Benefits of the ProgrammeAs the region’s largest ICT company, Dimension Data draws on a wealth of local knowledge andglobal experience. The company ensures that partners are enabled to offer in-depth technology,industry and business expertise, a firm understanding of what is required for success, coupled withproven ability and industry skills to help clients meet their business objectives − a solid foundationon which they can build success. Partner Programme members gain access to top of the rangeDimension Data services and solutions to offer clients.

The Dimension Data Partner Programme has established a consolidated network of approvedpartners that can deliver multi-vendor capabilities in geographies where Dimension Data does nothave a direct presence.

Dimension Data maintains a collaborative relationship with partners to ensure a betterunderstanding of its business and an aligned delivery strategy. The company has developed aprocess where partners work with Dimension Data Supply Chain Services (SCS) to provide aseamless delivery of multi-vendor solutions across the MEA region.

The Dimension Data Partner Programme helps partners develop and deliver solutions throughconsistent and effective service delivery that extends across multiple geographies and technologies.

20

Dimension Data drawson a wealth of local

knowledge and globalexperience. The companyensures that partners areenabled to offer in-depthtechnology, industry and businessexpertise.

DimensionData PartnerProgramme

Dimension Dataprovides more

information abouthow companies

can become involved in its

Partner ProgrammeAs the ICT marketplace continues to evolve and mechanisms for service delivery differ fromeach country, companies cannot operate successfully in Africa without ensuring that the com-munities in which they do business benefit.

The solutions and services can be customised as per the client’s needs, as well as turnkey.Furthermore, the partner will have access to a team of highly qualified sales and technical resources.

Partners also have access to training, which allows skills transfer to small businesses by involvingthese organisations through all phases of the project, including pre-sales, implementation andmaintenance.

In addition, partners benefit from a range of in-house soft skill courses delivered through theDimension Data University (DDU). The knowledge gained helps Dimension Data partners furtherimprove their engagement with clients.

Partner CategoriesAll Dimension Data Partners are categorised based on a number of factors including, among otherthings, competency, contribution, size, experience, and accreditation. Each partner is given aproper process and plan on how to move from one category to the next. The higher the partner ison a category level, the more rewards the partner will benefit from. The categories as based oninternational standards and are in line with industry best practice.

Who qualifies?The Dimension Data Partner Programme is open to all small ICT businesses in the Middle East andAfrica (MEA) region. Each organisation will be subjected to due diligence to ensure legitimacy and toconform to legislation of the country. If you meet the minimum criteria, you could become aDimension Data Partner and share in some of our industry leading benefits within days.

Dimension Data offers a number of benefits to IT resellers who are on the Dimension DataPartner Programme. Dimension Data partners gain direct access to Dimension Data solutions andservices, which uniquely positions them to provide the best possible experience to the client. Real-time support and the best service delivery ensures that small businesses have the best competitivedeal for clients.

Partners work with Dimension Data and:• Be empowered to offer in-depth technology, industry and business expertise and skill − a solid

foundation on which to build success. • Access top-of-the-range Dimension Data services and solutions for your clients. • Work with Dimension Data Supply Chain Services (SCS) to provide a seamless delivery of multi-

vendor solutions.• Develop and deliver solutions through consistent and effective service delivery that extends

across multiple geographies and technologies.• Gain access to training, skills transfer and required industry certifications.• Access the Partner Portal for documentation, sales tools and required information.• Get measured on your performance and progress through the Partner Scorecard.

How to become a partnerDimension Data has a consistent process for identifying, accessing and engaging suitable partners,which gives it the capability to deliver solutions to agreed service levels.

This process includes three phases:• On-boarding• Accreditation and Activation• Operation

What can we expect to see from the Partner Programme in future?Dimension Data will be hosting the first Dimension Data Partner Summit event in 2012. This willprovide a platform to recognise partners as well as establishing a partner network that promotesDimension Data solution offerings to the broader market. Partners who attend will get invaluableadvice on how to expand sales and marketing skills, as well as deepen their business and technicalexpertise and networks. The Summit will also encourage partners to exhibit and showcase theirskills and capabilities to the market. It is the ideal opportunity to network with clients and peers, gaingreater exposure to Dimension Data’s solutions and services, and learn more about DimensionData’s operational processes like the PM process and delivery process.

Contact detailsProspective partners must contact:McDonald NhekeGeneral Manager: Partner ProgrammeTel: +27 (11) 575 3440Mobile: +27 (83) 6771773Fax: +27 (11) 576 3440mcdonald.nheke@dimensiondata.comhttp://www.dimensiondata.com

21

About Dimension Data Founded in 1983, Dimension Data plc is anICT services and solutions provider that usesits technology expertise, global service deliverycapability, and entrepreneurial spirit to accelerate the business ambitions of itsclients. Dimension Data is a member of theNTT Group. www.dimensiondata.com

23

AFRICA IS A GROWING CYBERCRIME HUB

According to the February 2011 figures from the RSA Anti-Fraud Command Centre, South Africa was, after America and Britain, the

country experiencing the greatest volume of phishing attempts. In addition,according to the figures, over the past three years more than R1bn is estimated to have been lost in South Africa alone owing to cyber crime – astartling statistic!

With this in mind, it can be said that Africa is fast becoming a hot cybercrime destination resulting in the need for businesses operating withinthe continent to be cautious and take the necessary measures for effectivenetwork security.

More Africans now have internetIf we consider the rapid landing of the undersea cables and as a result, data is becoming more of acommodity, an increasing number of Africans are now able to access the internet at anytime andanywhere. According to World Wide Worx, by 2013* there will be a forecasted 10 million internetusers in South Africa, which not only highlights potential growth in an unsaturated market, but certainly the potential for further cybercriminal activity in just this country – never mind the rest of theAfrican continent.

Emails are often the main form of this activity, through spam, and if we consider the stats, Africancompanies should be warned. According to statistics**, in the first half of 2011, 14 893 cybersecurity incidents had been reported, of which 3 477 where related to fraud. Of these figures, 1 280were phishing attacks that targeted banks in East and Southern Africa.

What’s more, according to Kaspersky Lab research, in Africa, Egypt accounts for 31% of victimsaffected by malware. Algeria sits at 12%, Morocco at 9% and South Africa at 7%.

And if spam and phishing attacks aren’t enough – social engineering is on the rise, with manycorporates allowing employees to use such sites on their business network.

Social networkingGlobally we have already seen numerous natural disasters occur in 2011 – all of which serve as anideal platform for cybercriminals to exploit internet users at work or at home, and social networkingsites, such as Twitter and Facebook, are only making this task much easier. Despite the tragedies associated with natural disasters and the deaths of high profile people, hackers thrive on these typesof events for cybercriminal activity for their own financial gain. Adding to this is the growth in usage ofmobile devices, which also poses a potential security risk. Having access to the internet and emailson the go is certainly very convenient for the everyday workman, but also for the smart cybercriminal.

The fact is that there is no such thing as an ethical cybercriminal, as they are constantly lookingfor more sophisticated ways to hack into corporate networks and entice internet users into giving uptheir personal information and this is evident in the number of attacks that are occurring every day.

As a result, this year and going forward, businesses and the consumer will be faced with thewidespread use of a new class of spyware programs, the aim of which can be defined quite simplyas: steal everything! They will gather any information that they can about users, right down to thecolour of their hair and eyes, and will examine every document stored on infected computers.

EspionageFurthermore, industrial and state espionage will become more pervasive, with less emphasis on precision attacks. Cybercriminals will start targeting a much broader range of organisations, nolonger concentrating solely on online banks and electronic payment systems. The principal aim ofmany new virus writers, and their clients, will be the acquisition of someone or something’s completeprofile, rather than making a quick buck by stealing credit card details or distributing spam.

It is possible that we will only see the beginnings of these kinds of attacks in Africa, with their fullforce only being felt in the years to come. However, it is already clear that the arrival of more internet,and subsequently this new generation of cybercriminals, means that those tasked with counteractingsuch cyber threats will need to raise their game considerably.

By Costin Raiu, Chief Security Expert, EEMEA, Global Research & Analytics Team at Kaspersky Lab

*World Wide Worx Research Group, IT Leaders Summit in Johannesburg 2010**Cyber crime in Africa, May 2011, http://contador-wanarua.wordpress.com/2011/05/22/cybercrime-in-africa/

If we consider the rapidlanding of the undersea

cables and as a result, data is becoming more of a commodity, an increasingnumber of Africans are nowable to access the internet at anytime and anywhere.

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Norton Mobile Security for AndroidAnytime, anywhere protection that guards your mobile device and keeps your personal information private.

You can now protect your mobile device and the information on it with Norton Mobile Security.If your mobile device is lost, stolen, or its SIM card removed, you can remotely disable your

mobile device to prevent thieves from using it or accessing your private information. You can evenremotely delete all of your personal information so cybercriminals can’t use it to steal your identityor money.

“We’ve taken the approach to developing a post-PC era Norton that includes introducing newmobile products, expanding our current products with mobile apps and combining our technology with mainstream consumer brands to protect more people in more places. The market reception has been highly positive and in the coming year we’ll continue creating partnerships and technologies that will bring a trusted name in PC security to mobile and Wi-Fi users all over the world,” comments Con Mallon, director of Mobile Product Management, Symantec Corporation.

Say goodbye to cybercriminalsand virusesNorton Mobile Security lets you remotely disable your phone,erase all of your personal information, and instantly locateyour phone, all with a simple text message.

If your phone is lost or stolen, you can locate it fast andnot worry about cybercriminals running up your bill or usingyour private information to steal your identity or hardearned money. It even automatically locks your phone if itsSIM card is removed, so if thieves try to use it with another SIM card they’re out of luck.

Tired of being harassed by unwanted calls andtexts? Norton Mobile Security helps protect your privacy - and your sanity - by letting you block callsand texts from specific phone numbers.

“As Android devices become increasingly popular,there is a greater chance they could be targeted by cybercriminals or more commonly, lost or stolen,” saysMallon. “We are delighted to now offer customers the abilityto secure their smart phones or tablets from physical and online crime with the powerful protection of Norton security.”

When it comes to viruses and other threats, your phone isjust as vulnerable to attack as your computer. Norton Mobile Securitydetects and eliminates mobile threats before they can infect your phone. It automatically scans all the files and app updates that you download. And it even gives youthe option of automatically scanning SD (Secure Digital) memory cards for threats when youplug them into your phone. Weekly updates help ensure you have the most up-to-date protection. And it only updates when you’re in your home service area, so you won’t have to payoutrageous roaming charges.

Easy to installNorton Mobile Security is a breeze to use. It installs with a few simple clicks. And we include astep-by-step tutorial that shows you how to use all of the features.

Contact information. Calendars. Text messages. Email. Usernames. Passwords. Your life is onyour phone. Keep both safe with Norton Mobile Security.

Norton Mobile Security is available at select retailers and the approximate recommended retailprice is R399.

With Norton Mobile Security, you can:• Prevent strangers from using your phone in case of loss or theft • Protect your privacy and the personal information on your phone • Detect and eliminate mobile threats before they infect your device

Operating system: Android: 2.x or later Device requirements: Android 2.0 with 1.8 MB of storage

Symantec’s Norton products protect consumers from cybercrime with technologieslike antivirus, anti-spyware and phishing protection - while also being light on systemresources. The company also provides services such as online backup, PC tuneup,and family online safety. Like Norton on Facebook at www.facebook.com/norton andfollow @NortonOnline on Twitter.

Norton Mobile Securitydetects and eliminates

mobile threats before they caninfect your phone.

SYMANTEC LAUNCHES NORTON MOBILE SECURITYAn overview of the new Norton Mobile Security for Android

25

The heart attack that goes along with your servers crashing is over, thanks to some innovativenew software that minimise your recovery time objective.

According to Cornel van der Westhuizen, new products development manager at IP Dimension,distributors of ShadowProtect in South Africa, almost 90% of SMBs and Enterprise organisations

in South Africa still make use of Windows NT based backup procedures or through productsavailable on the shelves in IT retail stores. “The problem is not in how the backups are performed, buthow long it takes to restore from those backups in case of hardware or software failure,” said Van derWesthuizen. “Organisations seem to forget that performing a full system backup only leaves you witha copy of the data; you still need to integrate the data after reinstalling the operating system in theevent of hardware or software failures and this is where the most time is lost”.

ShadowProtect Server and ShadowProtect Small Business Server provide fast and reliable disaster recovery, data protection and system migration to get servers online as quickly as possible.ShadowProtect Server includes bare metal recovery to the same system, dissimilar hardware or toand from virtual environments. The software also helps in protecting a company’s entire server environment, including the operating system, applications like Microsoft Exchange and SQL, anddata. It gives IT staff the tools needed to centrally manage point-in-time backup images and restorethem in a matter of minutes.

The easy-to-use management console allows you to simultaneously push install ShadowProtectto all your Windows servers from a central location and view the backup status of all protected Windows servers in an organisation. In addition, ShadowProtect Server provides you with VirtualBoottechnology — for failover to a virtual server — as well as a virtual converter to convert ShadowProtectbackup images into virtual machines. ShadowProtect ImageManager allows you to consolidatepoint-in-time backup images on a daily, weekly and monthly basis for simplified management. Automatic verification and re-verification tools ensure your backups are in a known good state whenserver recovery is necessary.

ShadowProtect licenses and support is now locally available from IP Dimension, an IT servicescompany based in Centurion, Pretoria. For more information, prices or demonstrations, contact Cornel van der Westhuizen on 012-665-4123, email him on cornel@ipdimension.net, or visitwww.ipdimension.net.

Fast and reliable disaster recovery, data protection and system migration for Windows servers.

The term “virtualisation” is being heard quite a lot these days, and one of the big players inthe field is of course VMware, a leader in virtualisation and cloud infrastructure.

VMware’s new vSphere Storage Appliance software brings the business continuity and automated resource management capabilities of VMware vSphere to small and medium-size

enterprises (SMEs) – without the cost and complexity of shared storage. According to an October 2010 Gartner survey of midmarket companies, by 2012, slightly

more than 75% of SMEs expect to have server virtualisation in wide use – with disaster recoveryrepresenting the largest areas of IT investment for SMEs over the next two years.

The new VMware vSphere Storage Appliance will transform server internal storage into sharedpools of storage, removing the shared storage hardware requirement and enabling more SMEs totake full advantage of the unique business continuity and automation capabilities of VMwarevSphere, including High Availability, vMotion, and Distributed Resource Scheduler.

In the last two years alone, VMware has tripled the number of customers in the SME segmentby introducing solutions and services aimed specifically at this market. These include:

• VMware vSphere Kits for SMEs: VMware vSphere Essentials and Essentials Plus Kits enablesmall offices to consolidate workloads, improve availability, and centrally manage their environments, with a low investment.

• VMware Go: VMware Go is a free, web-based IT management service delivering simplifiedasset tracking, inventory and security services for SMEs. VMware GO also guides users of anyexpertise level through the installation and configuration of VMware vSphere Hypervisor.

• VMware Go Pro: VMware Go Pro is a comprehensive cloud service that enables SMEs toconsolidate, manage, control and secure their physical and virtual IT infrastructures. Availabletoday by subscription,

• VMware vSphere Hypervisor: VMware vSphere Hypervisor is the easiest way to get startedwith virtualisation—and it’s free. Based on VMware ESXi, the hypervisor architecture that setsthe industry standard for reliability, performance and ecosystem support, VMware vSphereHypervisor allows customers to consolidate applications onto fewer servers and start savingmoney.

For more information on any of these products, contact VMware South Africa on 011-513-4800.

New solutions for a new cloud-based era, simplifies IT for SMEs.

By 2012, slightly morethan 75% of SMEs

expect to have servervirtualisation in wide use.

ShadowProtect Serverincludes bare metal

recovery to the same system, dissimilar hardware or to andfrom virtual environments.

SHADOWPROTECT 4 SERVER / SMALL BUSINESS SERVER

NEW VMWARE VSPHERE STORAGE APPLIANCE

27

With price competition heating up between the

country’s four major cellularnetworks, you can now buymobile data for as little astwo cents permegabyte.

Competition causes telecoms prices to tumble

COMMUNICATIONS

Fierce competition among South Africa’s cellular networks has helped to dramatically drive downthe prices of mobile broadband services during the course of the year. In the process, mobile

broadband has become an attractive and affordable alternative, or addition, to ADSL connectivity formany small businesses for the first time.

With price competition heating up between the country’s four major cellular networks, you cannow buy mobile data for as little as two cents per megabyte on the cheapest special from Telkom’s8ta. 8ta’s broadband package offers 10 GB of data per month for R199 on a two-year contract – farcheaper than renting an ADSL line with the same amount of bandwidth.

The catch is that the cheap rate applies only in areas where 8ta has its own towers. But in-bundledata rates of less than 20 cents per megabyte are now available from all four operators. To put that inperspective, mobile networks were charging as much as R50 per megabyte for internet connectivityin 2005.

Reasons for price dropChanges to South Africa’s telecoms laws and investments in new network infrastructure are the mainreasons that prices of mobile data are suddenly plummeting. These market changes have allowedgrowth-hungry Cell C and 8ta to challenge the dominant Vodacom and MTN with lower prices.

New telecoms regulations introduced a few years back cleared the way for cellular operatorsand other companies to build new network links between South African cities. Previously, they had to lease this infrastructure through Telkom or Broadband Infraco. This has enabled cellular operators to bring their costs down andpass the savings along to their subscribers. In addition, cellular operators have also benefitted from the commerciallaunch of new undersea cable systems that link South Africa to the rest of theworld. The prices of international bandwidth have fallen through the floor since Seacom inparticular launched. Telkom used to control the bulk of South Africa’s international bandwidththrough its stranglehold on the Sat-3/Safe cable system.

ADSL remains the sameThe mobile broadband price war follows a sharp decline in ADSL prices last year that saw MWEBunleash the country’s first truly affordable uncapped offerings on the market. Again, it was largelythanks to Seacom that internet service providers such as MWEB and Afrihost were able to slashprices so dramatically.

The cost of ADSL bandwidth has dropped from R70 per gigabyte five years ago to R30 or evenR15 on some specials. As a small business, you can now choose from a range of ‘capped’ and ’uncapped’ ADSL offerings that answer to a range of business needs and budgets. Since the ADSLprice war of 2010, ADSL pricing has stagnated. Bandwidth costs may fall again as new underseacable systems such as the West Africa Cable System go live. However, a disproportionate part of thecost of ADSL now lies in the access fee (the line rental) and this not likely to change soon.

Local loop unbundlingThe reason for this is that Telkom still controls the last-kilometre infrastructure – the copper cablethat links your business or home to the telephone exchange. Telkom still forces you to pay ananalogue voice line rental fee if you want to have an ADSL line, whether you want the voiceservice or not. Rolling out last-kilometer copper and fibre is expensive, meaning that Telkom will most likelycontrol this part of the fixed-line infrastructure for the foreseeable future. Icasa, the regulator of theSouth African telecoms industry, hopes to tackle this problem through a regulatory interventionknown as local loop unbundling (LLU).

The regulator hopes to draw up LLU regulations by the end of the year, though most in theindustry are sceptical that it will meet this deadline. LLU would give competitors direct access toTelkom’s last-kilometre network and bring competition to this vital part of the telecominfrastructure. However, LLU is a complex process and many service providers question whetherit comes too late to make a difference for telecoms users and Telkom’s competitors. High-speedwireless solutions such as HSPA+ and long-term evolution (LTE – which MTN is already piloting)are more likely to intensify last-kilometre competition to Telkom in the months to come.

A lot can happen in a year, and it seems not more so than when it comes to broadband pricing. Lance Harris looks at the reasons behind this very convenient drop in internet costs.

TechSmart (TS): Tell us more about the offerings Telkomhas available for SMEs?Brian Armstrong (BA): We have four main portfolios of products. Our traditional voice portfolio, our data portfolio,our IT services portfolio and our mobile portfolio. Obviouslyvoice is still a fundamental requirement of all businesses, including small businesses. In fact, that is where we have thegreatest penetration, with 400 000 small business customers.

On the data side there are a few areas. For a small business ADSL is a core product and we think there is a lotof growth still to be had in the ADSL space. What is interesting is that only about half of our voice customers actually have an ADSL line. However, this will grow as peoplebecome more and more dependent on being connected andhaving an online presence. We also launched our VPN Lightoffer which uses an ADSL connection to create a private network. We are seeing quite a lot of appetite for that, so thatis an important product for the future.

Our third is our cloud portfolio. This is our IT services where we offer small and medium business the “office in a box” solution. Here we bundle computing, support and services togetherwith connectivity, internet service providing and voice communications.

However, more interesting for the future is cloud. This allows small business to get applicationsand software, and indeed computer power or storage, as a service. So instead of having to buy aserver, you can actually buy a virtual server and pay for it on a pay-as-you-go per virtual machinebasis. This means you don’t have to own the hardware and you don’t have to keep it current orupgrade it. That comes with benefits, for instance, all the automatic back-up and data management are effectively provided as part of the service – no more hard drive crashes and nomore data lost.

The third portfolio also includes software as a service. Certain applications like payroll, evenyour financial system and email, can be provided on a pay-per-use basis. You don’t need a big investment for an upfront licence fee and you aren’t hassled with the fact that the software youare using is three versions out of date from the current one. We see these as particularly attractiveto small and medium businesses and the large end of the market as well.

The final portfolio is mobile. As you know we launched 8ta, our consumer mobile product lastyear. In the second half of the year we will be launching our business mobile product, and that willhave product features which should be very attractive to small businesses.

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There is no question that

the future ofvoice is IP.

INTERVIEW: DR BRIAN ARMSTRONG, SENIOR MANAGING

EXECUTIVE: ENTERPRISE

MARKETS,TELKOM

TechSmart talked to Dr BrianArmstrong, Telkom’s senior managingexecutive, Enterprise Markets, to findout more about what companies canexpect from SA’s telecom giant.

TS: Where are you seeing the SME market heading in South Africa?BA: The SME market has not traditionally been adoption leaders in IT, but they have becomemore pragmatic. They are focused on “how do I serve customers now in a very direct way”. Interms of ICT they are three to four years behind the corporate market, not in terms of modernisation, but in terms of practical employment. But because of that there will be a continued infusion of ICT into the small and medium business sector.

TS: Voice over IP (VoIP) started off with lots of hype, but received a lukewarm reception. Nowwe hear people starting to talk about VoIP again. BA: There is no question that the future of voice is IP. The only question is how long it will take toget there, the reasons why people want to move to VoIP are cost and productivity. Our researchshows that for 70% of all businesses the demand for IP is cost-based. But the reality is the traditional voice call, be it mobile or landline, is still convenient, relatively cheap and of high quality.There is not really a big cost benefit in moving over to IP-based services, and this has been oneof the things that have slowed things down. In the area of unified communications we are startingto see some of the productivity benefits that can come with VoIP. As these productivity benefits become more tangible, I think we will see more adoption of VoIP.

TS: Where do you think unified communications is heading, specifically relating to SMEs?BA: At the moment unified communications refers more to a fixed environment where you have anumber of features. My view is that we are still in the very early stages of adoption there becausethe benefits aren’t a habit yet and they need to be made easier. But some of our currentpackages offering these features are starting to become more popular with medium businesses,and they are slowly becoming dependent on these sorts of features. Long term you will have onenumber, fixed or mobile, intelligent routing, that you will find whoever you want, from whereveryou are, in the cheapest cost highest quality root, and you will have an integrated messagingenvironment and conferencing and collaboration will be considered de facto.

TS: What is the time frame on that?BA: Some of this stuff is already available, but for proper fixed line conversion we are talking twoyears. The dominant force driving unified communications in the short run is going to be theequipment vendors and system integrators. In the medium to long term it will be driven by serviceproviders, and the transition will happen when service providers can truly make it a completelycommoditised product.

TS: How has the market reactedto software as a service?BA: It is early days yet, particularlyin small and medium business.What is interesting is that corporates have been doing what Icall private cloud for some time already, and they are starting to dovirtual cloud quite a lot now. According to analysts it is the number one issue for big CIO’saround the world.

What is interesting is there is avariant of cloud which we refer toas “Over the Top” and that is theGoogles of the world. There isquite a lot of early uptake ofGoogle-like services the likes ofGmail, Google storage and their competitors. And we are certainlyseeing the appetite. What we asTelkom will be able to offer differentto that, is a slightly more tailoredservice to South African small andmedium businesses. Which wouldgive some degree of comfort towhere the data actually is, and thesecurity around that data. But it should not be considered in isolation. It is about having the connectivity as well to enable the cloud service. It is about having the connectivity and the appropriate on-site IT support because that is where you still need someone on the premises.

TS: What about security concerns?BA: Our view is that if the biggest banks can do cloud storage, then small businesses can too. It issomething we take very seriously, bearing in mind the amount of sensitive customer informationTelkom holds in any case. We’ve got four million customers and their bank details, so it is somethingwe take very seriously. We haven’t yet been breached and we certainly intend to stay that way.

The dominant forcedriving unified

communications in the short runis going to be the equipmentvendors and system integrators.

29

About TelkomTelkom is Africa’s largest integrated communications company, providing integrated communications solutions to an entire range of customers. Telkom’s passion isto become world-class.

In this day and age of cloud computing and dependencyon instant, always-on communication, a company’s choice of

data centre does not only influence its current business, but alsohow its future might unfold. Data solutions provider, XDSL, hasrecently completed a future-proof data centre, providing best-in-class hosting strategies.

Located in Samrand, XDSL’s data centre is equipped with some ofthe best IT equipment currently available, ensuring both high quality

hosting and next generation compatibility. “We wanted to provideclients with not only the latest but also the best technology currentlyavailable,” says Martin van Dyk, director of XDSL. “For this reason thecentre was fitted from the start with top-of-the-range equipment, whichmeans there is no legacy to maintain and upgrade on a constantbasis,” he continued. The fact that high-speed fibre optic networks are

setting a new connectivity standard also played an important role in choice of equipment, withthis data centre ready for a bandwidth intensive future.

Xsigo onboardA good example of this, is XDSL’s use of Xsigo Systems’ equipment. Xsigo is widely regarded asan innovation leader in Server I/O, with their Xsigo Director server technology allowing XDSL tovirtualise the I/O to the server hardware doing the hosting. Shaun Jones, technical manager forNetXcom, distributors of Xsigo in South Africa, explains it as follows: “Network and Storageresources are configured as ‘Resource clouds’ in the Xsigo management. These ‘clouds’ can belinked to virtual NIC’s (vNic) and virtual HBA’s (vHBA) which can be presented to any of the hostservers cabled into Xsigo.”

Apart from cost savings for XDSL clients, another major benefit is almost instantaneous servercreation. A new Windows server can be deployed in mere minutes instead of the usual days,

while Linux and Windows can beprovisioned with the press of abutton. Customers can also sleepsoundly, since every part of theXsigo system is redundant, whilebottlenecks are a thing of thepast, since XDSL is able toconnect two 20 Gbps InifinBandchannels to each host server.Xsigo is also used by a number ofbig clients, such as the StarAlliance airlines group, VMware,New England Biolabs and Avaya.

TrustConnection Telecom is one of the businesses that makes use of XDSL’s data centre, with MD ofthe company, David Meintjes, very satisfied. “The data centre is professionally run, veryresponsive when it comes to assistance and well serviced with fibre,” Meintjies believes. XDSL isalso part of the ConvergeNet group of companies, providing the data centre with a solidfoundation and shared expertise.

Future-proof solutionVan Dyk says it best when he concludes: “Thanks to the implementation of the Xsigo directorsand XMS management systems, XDSL has future proofed our business and leapfroggedcompetitors with our technology.” For forward-thinking companies looking to future proof their ITservices, XDSL’s Samrand data centre is now open for business. For further information contactXDSL on 086-100-9375 or visit www.xdsl.co.za.

31

Data centre ready for fibre optic networks

Xsigo is widelyregarded as an

innovation leader in ServerI/O, with their Xsigo Directorserver technology allowingXDSL to virtualise the I/O tothe server hardwaredoing the hosting.

About XDSLXDSL is a Pretoria-based Internet ServiceProvider, and has been in the industry sincethe time that broadband first became availablein South Africa. The company specialises inconnectivity solutions, Voice over IP, hostingand managed services such as firewalls, VPNsand mail spooling.

XDSL‘S FUTURE-PROOF DATA CENTRE NOW OPEN FOR BUSINESS

32

TechSmart (TS): How does IS view the current market and how doyou see the future specifically relating to SMEs? Hillel Shrock (HS): One of the big shifts in the market is the sheervolume and critical richness of information that is reshaping how SMEsuse internet based services and what these enable. From anorganisational perspective, organisations of all shapes and sizes arereally rethinking how they use information, collaborate and shareinformation across online communities.

At an infrastructure level, there is an absolute demand for bandwidth,storage, online content, processing and memory capacity. From theclients’ business perspective, they want to be in a position where content is instantaneously available and completely searchable. Richmedia, including video, is increasingly a requirement. SMEs do have

different requirements in terms of the services and the management thereof, and for this reasonwe have evolved to deliver a different portfolio of services for this particular client segment.

TS: What about the cloud?HS: The cloud for us is not a new thing; we’ve built this business on the concept of sharing infrastructure and outsourcing through our data sectors. Cloud is a major trend, with more andmore information technology services being delivered via this model. It’s literally transforming theway in which businesses consume information and is really at the heart of many strategies inbusinesses. I think that applies very clearly to SMEs. Obviously there will be different types ofbusinesses that use different applications, but as a general concept, businesses are looking toconsume services through a shared cloud model, and there will be an adoption curve for that.

TS: But how soon?HS: There are so many varied views and forecasts of the adoption curve, but there is no doubtthat cloud services are being adopted in pockets quite rapidly. With the growth in applicationsavailable, and bandwidth, barriers to SMEs utilising cloud services are diminishing. To meet market demand, we are scaling our investments in data centres, last mile connectivity and bandwidth capacity, on a scale that far exceeds any historical growth.

TS: Tell us more about your broadband capacity. HS: We’ve made substantial investments in undersea cables and we are a consortium shareholder in a project called FibreCo, where we will be rolling out fibre capacity nationally. All ofthese elements will come together to answer that question of “how do we get our users more andmore capacity as content, online collaboration and commerce expand?” Our view is that thismarket segment has been stifled in terms of the capacity that has been available because of thecosts. But we are playing our role in changing that.

TS: Is unified communications something that you are involved in?HS: Absolutely. We have four business units – Cloud, Connectivity and Carrier, with the fourth unitcalled Communications. A key strategy for that unit is unified communications as a service. Mysense is that in the SME market, hosted unified communications can provide a meaningful valueproposition to SMEs. Although a full package of services will be developed over time, we alreadyprovide a number of the core components of these services, such as outsourced email, messaging, and telephony. We aim to improve productivity through a consistent experience, regardless of the channel or device being used.

TS: What adoption time frame are we looking at?HS: We always think adoption will happen a lot quicker than it actually does. I would say over thenext two to three years, and a little longer to become mainstream. It’s interesting that, in the past,big corporations led the adoption of new trends. But now it has been turned on its head and insome areas it’s actually the consumers and SMEs that are leading adoption.

We are scaling ourinvestments in data

centres, last mile connectivityand bandwidth capacity, on a scale that far exceedsany historicalgrowth.

INTERVIEW: HILLEL SHROCK, CHIEF MARKETING

OFFICER,INTERNET SOLUTIONS

About Internet SolutionsInternet Solutions (IS) prides itself on having stayedat the forefront of the telecommunications marketsince its inception in South Africa, in 1993. Thishas afforded the company the opportunity tospearhead communications innovation and pioneering within this ever changing, highly competitive environment. Today IS is a provider ofinternet protocol-based Connectivity, Communications, Cloud and Carrier Services in theAfrican market and for African clients into theglobal market. IS provides services to large publicand private sector organisations, medium sized organisations and smaller organisations and consumers through its value channel program.Using this toolbox of solutions IS tailor-makes andpackages services that simplify technology for itsclients, ensuring the company continuously enables and evolves communications.

Unified communications, broadband capacity and the cloud – TechSmarttalked to Hillel Shrock, chief marketingofficer at Internet Solutions, to find outmore about SMEs’ place in a connectedfuture.

Book now for the 2012 TechSmart SME Guide (May 2012).

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Contact

Carmel SinghCell: 079-515-8708Email: carmel@smartpublishing.co.za

Suzanne RallTel: 012-362-2732Email: suzanne@smartpublishing.co.za

Chantell Nell-MaraisCell: 082-780-4696Email: chantell@smartpublishing.co.za

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