Virtual or Physical? Data Storage Configurations Using SQL Server

By Terry Engelstad MCP, MCSE, CCNA, MCDBA, MCTS, MCITP AIS Network Operations Manager On a data storage configuration project involving Microsoft SQL Server, a colleague asked me: We need 700GB of storage, which must be expandable by 10X. We will be using Metalogix to externalize the 700GB of content. Metalogix puts markers in SQL pointing … Read more

Why Use SharePoint? Microsoft’s User Adoption Resources

By Laurie Head AIS Network Vice President Looking for some good use cases for SharePoint or for some user adoption resources? Last year, Microsoft launched their “That’s Why I Use SharePoint” site with some super resources to promote SharePoint user adoption. It’s not just our clients.  SharePoint 2010 is making life a little easier everywhere. Just … Read more

Cloud Usage Surging for Small and Midsize Businesses

By Laurie Head AIS Network Vice President Move over enterprise.  The cloud is where it’s at for small business too. New research, announced today by Microsoft, predicts a significant increase in paid cloud services among small and midsize businesses (SMBs) over the next five years. Conducted by Edge Strategies, the research includes survey responses from … Read more

SharePoint and SQL Server: Give It Memory

By Terry Engelstad MCP, MCSE, CCNA, MCDBA, MCTS, MCITP AIS Network Operations Manager If you are not familiar with how SQL Server works, you should know that it does, in fact, use memory for caching of data.  If you don’t give it enough memory, then it won’t cache enough data.  If you don’t cache enough … Read more

Cloud Computing Is Spurring Worldwide Job Creation

By Laurie Head AIS Network Vice President The cloud will have an enormous impact on job creation. It’s a disruptive technology that will transform the world as we know it. It will drive down IT costs, foster innovation and create millions of new employment opportunities around the world. Yep, that’s pretty much what we were … Read more

SQL Server 2012: What’s New?

By Laurie Head AIS Network Vice President What is SQL Server 2012? When will it be here? What’s new in it? SQL Server 2012 is a major new release from Microsoft, and it’s due for general availability on April 1. At that time, three versions are expected: Enterprise, Business Intelligence and Standard. The company is … Read more

SharePoint 15, SharePoint 2012, SharePoint 2013? Whatever. When will it be released?

We love SharePoint 2010 but we are still keen to know, “When is the next edition of SharePoint scheduled for release?” It’s still unknown whether the next edition of SharePoint is destined to be called SharePoint 15, SharePoint 2012, SharePoint 2013, or something entirely different. I am guessing it will be “SharePoint 2013,” given that … Read more

What Is Microsoft Office 365? What Is SharePoint Online? (Part 2 of 2)

What Is Microsoft Office 365?

To review: In June 2011, Microsoft released Office 365, essentially bundled online software hosted in the cloud. Office 365 replaced Microsoft’s Business Productivity Online Services (BPOS) and bundled the latest upgrades of its SharePoint, Exchange, and Lync Server solutions.  So, when you hear “SharePoint Online,” that means SharePoint as it is presented in Office 365, … Read more

What Is Microsoft Office 365? What Is SharePoint Online? (Part 1 of 2)

What Is Microsoft Office 365?

What is Microsoft Office 365? In June 2011, Microsoft released Office 365, essentially bundled online software hosted in the cloud. Office 365 replaced Microsoft’s Business Productivity Online Services (BPOS) and bundled the latest upgrades of its SharePoint, Exchange, and Lync Server solutions. So, when you hear “SharePoint Online,” that means SharePoint as it is presented … Read more

Outsourced Hosting: SharePoint in the Cloud

By Michael Emrich – Associate, Marketing & Sales. Undoubtedly, cloud computing is the future. According to the “2010 IMB Tech Trends Survey” published in October 2010, 91% of 2,000 IT professionals surveyed across 87 countries expect that cloud computing will overtake on-premise computing as the primary means that organizations acquire IT over the next five … Read more