Managed services provider brings clients the benefit of securely accessing files and collaborating from anywhere

ProviDyn, a provider of IT support, strategy and services for small and medium-sized businesses and nonprofit organizations, today announced ProviDyn Sync, secure, cloud based file storage that will allow its clients to access files at home, in the office or on any mobile device, including iOS and Android devices.

Collaboration is increasingly important in today’s mobile workforce, along with accessing and syncing documents between devices such as laptops, desktops, tablets and smartphones. While there are consumer cloud products available, they are hosted publicly, meaning that everyone shares the same encryption key, which can be a big problem for a business. If that encryption key is compromised, all of businesses’ documents, their clients’ documents and any of the user’s personal documents are vulnerable. With ProviDyn Sync, clients are provided with an encryption key that is exclusive to their business and documents, and not shared with anyone.

Along with the convenience, collaboration and added data protection, ProviDyn Sync offers:

Universal file access; sync across stationary and mobile devices: Eliminates dependency on FTPs, VPNs, or file servers.

448-bit Blowfish encryption on-device and in-transit: Offers the highest level of security for any cloud platform, ensuring that sensitive documents (contracts, designs, client history) are safe from hacking and breaches.

Private encryption key management: Eliminates the need to worry about data loss.

Remote wipes of endpoints and mobile devices: Allows clients to perform remote wipes of desktops for clients, former employees and rogue employees.

Custom deleted file retention periods: Enables clients to conveniently extend or shorten deleted file retention periods and never lose a file again.

Granular user-access and security controls: Allows for policies to be set for individuals within a company, including which employees can share files, can delete files and revisions, can access certain files, and what types of files they can upload.

Revised file backup: Stores file revisions, which allows employees to collaborate without worry.

Managed file sharing for internal/external parties: Allows for sharing files with external parties through ProviDyn Sync and through unique web addresses. ProviDyn Sync also allows companies to monitor the files shared within the company and externally.

Multiple folder backup (Documents, Desktop, Pictures, etc.): Syncs all different file types, including the ability to backup entire folders and the files within them.

“Many of our clients start out with one of the more popular consumer options for file access, sharing and syncing, but soon realize these products are not secure or robust enough to meet their needs,” said Hamish Davidson, president and CEO of ProviDyn. “We are looking forward to bringing the benefits of cloud based file storage with the added security and features required for businesses to run more efficiently.”

About ProviDyn
ProviDyn provides technology expertise, services and support to help small and mid-sized organizations sustain growth and strengthen performance. Backed by technology experts, ProviDyn helps organizations gain the full benefits of existing technology, make strategic investments in implementing new technology and maintain an infrastructure that is secure, reliable and flexible. ProviDyn offers managed services, mobile computing, IT strategy, virtualization, cloud computing, business continuity, network security and IP telephony. To learn more about how ProviDyn is Driving Business Through Technology and helping companies reduce costs, improve efficiency and maximize productivity, visit http://www.providyn.com/ or follow us on LinkedIn.

Marketing Research Firm With Employees Across the Nation Expands Partnership with ProviDyn

ProviDyn, a provider of IT support, strategy and services for small and medium-sized businesses and nonprofit organizations, announced today that The Connell Group has extended its existing managed services contract by turning to ProviDyn for strategic direction in configuration and setup of new offices in New Jersey and X. The Connell Group is a growth-stage market research consultancy dedicated to bridging the gap between market research and brand strategy.

Since 2008, The Connell Group has relied on ProviDyn to meet its day-to-day IT services and support needs and migrated to the managed service provider’s private cloud in 2011. With employees spanning multiples states and new offices opening in New Jersey and Chicago, The Connell Group enlisted ProviDyn to procure equipment, review building plans, expand phone systems and ensure proper cabling and wiring. ProviDyn recommended and selected Internet providers and also configured and deployed the firm’s network infrastructure, firewall and switches, which easily integrated into their existing private cloud environment.

“Ensuring the new offices run smoothly, have a solid infrastructure and are well integrated with our other locations is critical to our operations,” said Sean Connell, Principal of The Connell Group. “ProviDyn has consistently made reliable strategic recommendations and it put our minds at ease knowing they were handling the IT strategy and procurement for our new offices.”

“Often, companies don’t consider the various strategic IT decisions that go into opening a new office,” said Hamish Davidson, president and co-founder of ProviDyn. “Making the added effort upfront to properly configure the network and procure the right equipment can eliminate a lot of downtime and ensure smooth collaboration between offices.”

About ProviDyn
ProviDyn provides technology expertise, services and support to help small and mid-sized organizations sustain growth and strengthen performance. Backed by technology experts, ProviDyn helps organizations gain the full benefits of existing technology, make strategic investments in implementing new technology and maintain an infrastructure that is secure, reliable and flexible. ProviDyn offers managed services, mobile computing, IT strategy, virtualization, cloud computing, business continuity, network security and IP telephony. To learn more about how ProviDyn is Driving Business Through Technology and helping companies reduce costs, improve efficiency and maximize productivity, visit http://www.providyn.com/ or follow us on LinkedIn.

About The Connell Group
The Connell Group is a market research consultancy focused on closely connecting research design to the business agenda of our clients. We do this by combining the expertise of brand marketers with the data-driven perspective of market researchers. Founded in 2000, The Connell Group consults with a host of companies ranging from Fortune 100 to start-ups. Headquartered in New Jersey, we have offices in Atlanta, San Francisco, and Chicago, and we provide global services throughout the United States, Europe, Latin America, and Asia.

We at MSP Today are learning a lot about storage in the cloud, and one lesson is there are a heck-of-a-lot of vendors!

That means providers have to find a way to stand out from the crowd, otherwise their business will go nowhere.

For ProviDyn, the distinction is keeping one customer’s data away from that of another, a feature offered by the new ProviDyn Sync file storage system.

There are nearly as many approaches to cloud storage as there are vendors.

One study, breaks the market down into three main types, hardware, software and services. Then the researchers looked at products, such as data transfer, backup, primary storage, and gateways. And then there are four main deployment models, community cloud, private cloud, public cloud and hybrid.

ProviDyn falls into the service provider category and offers storage that end users can get at, a form of primary storage that can also be used to store copies of files.

The system, like many of its file storage rivals, allows access from any number of devices, PCs, tablets and smartphones. And it offers, the company claims, peace of mind.

“Collaboration is increasingly important in today’s mobile workforce, along with accessing and syncing documents between devices such as laptops, desktops, tablets and smartphones.While there are consumer cloud products available, they are hosted publicly, meaning that everyone shares the same encryption key, which can be a big problem for a business,” the company said. “If that encryption key is compromised, all of businesses’ documents, their clients’ documents and any of the user’s personal documents are vulnerable. With ProviDyn Sync, clients are provided with an encryption key that is exclusive to their business and documents, and not shared with anyone.”

Other ProviDyn Sync features include:

• Private encryption key management
• Wiping of mobile devices and other endpoints remotely
• Granular user-access
• And managed file sharing allowing external parties to share your data.

Customers tend to trade up as they use the system, the company says. “Many of our clients start out with one of the more popular consumer options for file access, sharing and syncing, but soon realize these products are not secure or robust enough to meet their needs,” said Hamish Davidson, president and CEO of ProviDyn. “We are looking forward to bringing the benefits of cloud based file storage with the added security and features required for businesses to run more efficiently.”

Telecommunication has changed drastically in the past decade. The main proponent of this change has been Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) which has allowed for traditional phone systems to converted to a digital system that has positively impacted the business environment. One of the main benefits VoIP brings businesses is a sheer number of features that don't normally cost extra.

Here are five VoIP features offered by many providers that small to medium businesses will benefit from.

1. Voicemail/call forwarding Many smaller businesses simply can't be open 24 hours. This means that there will be time where you or your employees are unable to answer the phone. Most industry leading VoIP providers offer the ability to convert phone messages into emails, which could be a great help to your business.

A good VoIP solution will also provide you with a voicemail system and a feature called Find me/Follow me. This is a call forwarding feature that allows users to receive calls regardless of their location or phone number. This makes it easier for you and your managers to be reachable when they are outside of the office, especially if calls can be forwarded to their mobile phone.

2. DND DND, or Do Not Disturb is an important feature for those who work with clients on a regular basis. When you are talking to a client, the last thing you want is to be interrupted by a phone call as it can make you look unprofessional.

Many VoIP systems actually offer advanced DND features like the ability to send calls to voicemail, or transfer to another colleague who may be able to answer the call at the press of a button.

3. Conferencing You can pretty much guarantee that you will need to eventually make a conference call. Some managers and owners may even make this type of calls on a regular basis. The best VoIP systems go further than just supporting conference calls, they also enable users to send files, chat messages, collaborate on calendars, share presentations and even desktops. This is often called Unified Communications by many vendors.

4. Auto Attendant This feature gives your business a bigger footprint by allowing you to setup multiple numbers in local areas, and have a menu system like many large companies. This means you can setup a system where a caller can easily get into contact with different departments, or even a live operator.

Some users don't like this feature because they see it as an impediment to immediate customer service - think of the last time you had to navigate a menu system over your phone? It really comes down to the preference of your company.

5. Call Recording If your company operates in an industry that is regulated, you may need to record calls. Or, you may want to record calls to track customer satisfaction and questions. Regardless of your need, a good VoIP system will allow the user to easily record calls, often at the click of a mouse, and store them in an audio format that can be easily replayed later.

These are just five of many features offered by many VoIP providers. If you are looking for a new telecommunications solution, contact us today to see how we can help.

In this constantly changing world that seems to be focused on tech, communication needs to be instant and direct. Allowing this, email has become one of the most important business tools. Because almost everyone has an email account now, it's not uncommon to see inboxes with hundreds of new emails, many of which are left unread. There are things you can do to better manage your email.

Here are five tips on how you can better manage your inbox.

1. Address last Most people start an email by typing in the address of the recipient(s). While there is nothing wrong with this practice, it can lead to emails being sent before they are finished, which could mean more emails in your inbox asking for clarifications or you having to send a correction email.

To stop this, try writing the body of the email first and when you have finished, put the addresses of the recipients.

2. Merge social with email Sometimes it can be hard to know who you are writing or replying to in your email. Using an app like Rapportive, which brings social information into Gmail can help. This app puts a bar to the right-side of an email with information about the sender, including their social profiles, recent tweets and even links to their LinkedIn profile. You can look up your recipients and connect with them directly from the email.

3. Use links, not attachments With the increasing number of cloud storage and productivity apps like Microsoft SkyDrive and Google Drive which allow you to share files by sending people links, there's no need to attach files to an email. This is incredibly useful if you find yourself sending document versions back and forth on a regular basis and struggle to keep everything up to date.

These services use one version of the document that users you share it with have access to. Everyone sees the same document, which will cut down on the number of emails and confusion when it comes to version control of important documents.

4. Don't use email for everything Email is so quick and easy that we tend to rely on it for everything. However, there are certain situations when email is not the best form of communication. For example, if you have a tough problem, need to reprimand an employee, etc. it would not be a good idea to do so in email, it's just too impersonal.

As a rule of thumb: If there's any chance of human emotions entering into a response or being affected by an email, it may be a better idea to communicate face-to-face.

5. Cook all your bacn at once Bacn (pronounced Bacon) is solicited email; email you want, just not right now. Social media updates, newsletters, website update notifications, etc. are all forms of bacn. Checking these takes time and can be a distraction if you have work to get done. It would be a good idea to schedule a set amount of time where you focus on reading, deleting or archiving these emails.

Alternatively, you can unsubscribe from these alerts or set up a new email account that is just for this type of emails.

There are thousands of things you can do to make your email easier to manage. What do you do? Let us know. If you are looking for even more ways to manage your inbox, contact us today.

Corporate Social Responsibility, or CSR for short, is the idea of integrating social and environmental ideas into your company, daily operations and interactions with all stakeholders. One of the more common CSR practices adopted by companies of all sizes is the idea of 'going green', or helping the environment. This is a great idea, not only does it make the Earth a better place, it makes your company look more caring; human even. The thing is, it can be hard to actually go green, but there are some apps that can help.

Here are four great apps that can help you and your employees make your company a little more green.

1. GoodGuide

GoodGuide is an app that can help you find out more about products. Utilizing a barcode scanner, it can provide you with information like where the product comes from, whether it's safe and if it's green.

With over 170,000 ranked products in the app's database, it's a great way to start learning about sustainable and environmentally friendly products. The only downside of this app is that it currently focuses on the US only, and there is no word as to when, or if, service will expand. You can download it to your Apple and Android device for free.

2. PaperKarma

While we are currently living in a digital age, we still get a lot of paper-based junk mail. This is incredibly wasteful, as most people just throw it away. PaperKarma is an app that aims to reduce or eliminate waste paper.

How it works is you take a picture of unwanted mail, the developers will then contact the distributor and ask that they stop sending mail to you. This app could go a long way in helping reduce the amount of paper your office uses, which will mean lower costs for you and less trees felled. It's really a win-win. You can download it to your iPhone or Android device for free.

3. iRecycle

An important part of any green initiative is recycling. The problem is, it can be hard to find out what, how and where to recycle. iRecycle is an app that aims to set this straight. It provides information on how to recycle almost everything and the nearest recycle points to you.

The app also provides you with recycling centric updates, news and tips to help encourage you to do more. It's available for Apple (iPhone and iPad) and Android devices for free.

4. greenMeter

If your company has a fleet of vehicles, you are probably always on the lookout for ways to make them more efficient. Whether it be switching tires used, driving at slower speeds to conserve gas or carpooling, finding a way to cut costs is important. greenMeter is an app that could help. What it does is use your iPhone's accelerometer and manually entered data to assess your vehicle's power and gas usage.

While driving, this app provides real-time feedback on how efficient your driving is and how much gas you are using. This will help you conserve fuel (as you can see when you are burning more than usual) which will reduce operating costs and negative environmental impact. It's available for the iPhone and costs USD$5.99.

These are just four apps that can help your company go green. What other CSR initiatives do you take in your company? Let us know! And if you would like more tips on how technology can help you reduce your environmental impact, let us know, we can help.

Email is among the most important tools at a manager's disposal; it's often the main form of communication with suppliers, employees, customers, etc. With the smartphone, you can now take your email with you and be in near constant contact. If you have an iPhone and use the Mail app, you may have noticed that email attachments are a bit different from other apps.

Below is a brief overview of how iPhone's Mail app's attachments work.

How to open an attachment If you get an email with an attachment, open the message and scroll down to the bottom of the message. You will see the name of the attachment along with the file type and size. If you tap on it, your phone should open it in a new window. You can then zoom in/out and scroll around.

Some attachments can be downloaded by tapping and holding on the attachment. After about a second, a pop-up menu will show, and you should be able to select to save it. Instead of saving the attachment, you can also choose to open it using other apps.

Why won't some attachments open? There may be a time where you get an email with an attachment that can't be opened. You will still be able to see it in the email, but you won't be able to tap on it. This is because the Mail app doesn't support all file and document types.

Don't worry if you can't open an attachment as chances are there's an app in the App store that will open it. The easiest thing to do is look at the file type of the attachment, which is usually indicated by a three letter code at the end of the file name. For example, a Word document will be FILENAME.doc or FILENAME.docx. A quick Internet search for something like, 'iPhone app that can open .ddd' will usually return results with an app that can open your file.

Once you download the app, try pressing and holding on the attachment in Mail and selecting Open in... from the pop-up menu. Look for the app you downloaded and tap on it.

How to add an attachment to emails You can add an attachment to an email by pressing and holding on the body section of a new email. A pop-up menu should come up, if you scroll left you should see the Select/Paste option. Tapping on this will allow you to select either a photo, video or message which you can attach to the email. Unfortunately, there isn't much else you can attach, so if you need to attach a document or other file type, you would be better off doing so on your computer.

If you would like to learn more about the iPhone and how it can help you, please contact us today.

Tablets, like their smaller smartphone cousins, are a hotly debated tech item. Some people love them while others refuse to use them. One thing that's certain is that they can be useful, if used correctly. The tablet of choice for many business owners is the iPad, largely because it's easy to use, and it can help improve productivity. One area where productivity isn't generally improved is typing, but luckily there is way around this.

Here's a tip on how you can improve typing on your iPad through the use of keyboard shortcuts.

What are they? Keyboard shortcuts are a built-in feature of iOS that allow you to type in a few letters and have your iPad input full sentences or words. This is similar to a Web browser's autocomplete feature which will fill in forms when you enter a few letters or even a word.

How it works Keyboard shortcuts require manual setup, you will have to set a phrase, sentence, word, etc. as well as the letters that will input the phrase. For example you can set the letters 'beml' to be a shortcut for your business email; when you type 'beml', your iPad will input your email address.

These shortcuts could be quite useful, especially if you find yourself continually entering the same word or sentence. This will make you more productive and, as long as you have the correct information, will ensure that there are no typos in important words or phrases. How to set it keyboard shortcuts Taking the business email example from above, here's how you can set keyboard shortcuts. Note: These instructions relate to iOS 6.1 (the latest version of the operating system.)

1. Open the Settings app (gray box with three cogs).
2. Select General followed by Keyboard.
3. Scroll down and select Add New Shortcut.
4. Enter the full word/phrase/sentence in the Phrase section. In this case you would enter your full email address.
5. Enter the shortcut letters that will be related to the Phrase. In this case you would enter beml.
6. Tap Save in the top-right of the window.

When entering shortcuts, it is a good idea to not use common letters or combinations that make up words. For example if you set a shortcut as 'mai', everytime you type 'mai', the phrase will be entered. To come up with a good shortcut, try using the first letter of the first word, a middle letter and the last. Or, you could enter three consonants or vowels in a row e.g., 'eee'.

How to edit keyboard shortcuts You may notice that when you navigate to the Keyboard section in the Settings app, there is a number of existing shortcuts. You can edit these by:

1. Opening the Settings app (gray box with three cogs).
2. Selecting General followed by Keyboard.
3. Tapping Edit and selecting the shortcut to edit from the Shortcuts box.
4. Editing the phrase and shortcut associated to it in the window that opens.
5. Pressing Save in the top-right of the window.

The next time you need to enter a phrase that you have setup a shortcut for, try entering the shortcut. This should make typing on the iPad a bit more efficient and save you time.

If you are looking to learn more about the iPad, or how using one can help improve your productivity at work, please contact us today.

When it comes to mobile devices like tablets and smartphones, there is an abundance of technical terms and jargon thrown around, often confusing average users. A common term seen on many blogs and mobile carriers’ websites in relation to tablets is tethering. If you have an Android tablet, do you know what tethering is?

Here is an overview of tethering. It focuses on Android tablets, but this process be applied to almost any Android device.

What exactly is tethering? You've probably seen this term mentioned in marketing collateral or contracts from your mobile provider, or heard users talk about it. In the most basic sense, tethering is sharing one device's Internet or data connection with another. The most common type of tethering you will see is someone using their smartphone's data connection to surf the Internet on their computer or tablet.

When it comes to tethering on Android devices, there are three main options:

• Portable Wi-Fi hotspot - Turns your device into a Wi-Fi router, allowing it to share its data connection with up to five other devices.
• Bluetooth - Shares the device's data connection with one device over Bluetooth.
• USB - Shares the device's data connection with one device, usually a computer.

A word of warning: As you share connections, the speed of the data will be diminished. Some devices are also data hungry, and if you have a set amount of data each month, you will likely use it up. If you go over the amount, you may be in for a bit of a shock when you see your next bill.

Can I tether on my tablet? Technically all Android tablets and devices can share their connection as long as they can connect to mobile data. The ability to tether actually hinges on the provider of the data connection - some allow it, others don't while some will apply extra charges. Before you try to tether any device, you should check with your device's data/mobile provider to ensure tethering is allowed. As a rule of thumb: If you are already paying for a data connection with a set amount of bandwidth (e.g., 2GB a month), tethering is likely ok.

Because many Android tablets don't have a mobile data connection, most users will likely share their smartphone's connection with their tablet. If you have a smartphone with a data plan, tethering will depend on your phone as the tablet just sees an Internet connection.

How do I share my data connection? If you have a smartphone with a data connection and would like to share it with your tablet, you have a couple of options:

For iPhone/iPad (with a data connection) users

1. Open Settings on your phone.
2. Tap on General followed by Network.
3. Select Personal Hotspot followed by Wi-Fi Password.
4. Set the Wi-Fi password and select Done.
5. Slide the button beside Personal Hotspot from Off to On.
6. On your Android device, open the Wi-Fi settings and look for the network with the iPhone's name. Tap on it and enter the password you set above. It should connect within a few seconds.

For Android users

1. Open your phone's Settings app.
2. Press More under Wireless & Networks (Android 4.2)
3. Tap on Tethering & portable hotspot.
4. Select Set up Wi-Fi hotspot and enter a network name under Network SSID.
5. Enter a password under the Password section and press Save.
6. Select Portable Wi-Fi hotspot and the device will create a wireless network.
7. On your tablet, open the Wi-Fi settings and look for the name you have set in the Network SSID field above. By default it's Android AP.

It would be a good idea to use a password when setting up tethering to ensure that no one will be able to connect to your network without your permission.

If you are looking for more ways to get your Android tablet online or wondering how a tablet can help you, contact us today.

Winston Churchill once said, "To improve is to change; to be perfect is to change often." This saying is something almost every company in the tech industry takes to heart. There are very few products that stay the same, software included. Because of this rapid pace of change, there will come a time when older software is no longer supported. Microsoft has made a recent announcement that businesses should be aware of.

For businesses running Office 2003 or Microsoft XP SP3, you need to be aware that Microsoft has announced that they will stop supporting these products on April 8, 2014. This could have far reaching consequences for businesses that use these platforms.

What does this mean for my business? When a company like Microsoft says they will 'stop supporting' what they mean is that they will usually stop providing updates, paid support, security updates and maybe even online based support.

The biggest problem with a move like this hinges on security. If a hacker finds a security exploit on an older system that a developer has stopped supporting, your systems could be open to attack. Beyond that, if you have paid for support, you will no longer have it if the software stops working. These two reasons alone will eventually lead to higher IT costs.

When it comes to programs like Office and XP, there is another downside to this withdrawal of support: It is highly likely that future versions of the software will be incompatible with what you are running. This means you likely won't be able to open newer versions of Office documents, which could create problems especially if you have clients who use newer versions; you won't be able to read/edit the documents. What can we do? The easiest thing to do is to upgrade your software. This may be easier said than done, especially if you have a tighter budget. Luckily, you have more or less one year to upgrade, and in this modern age you have more than one way to update. Possibly the best is to work with an IT partner who can help develop a solution that will fit your business and budget.

If you're still using Office 2003 or XP SP3 in your office, contact us today to see how we can help.