SMB IT | Curtis Franklin » TAG: SMB Networking

May 08, 2008 | Comments: (0)

Load Balancing SMB IT

TAGS: SMB Applications, SMB Networking

On Tuesday, I had an interesting telephone interview with Kevin Mahon, CEO of KEMP Technologies. I have to admit that I don't usually think of load balancers as SMB product, but KEMP has been making a business in SMB load balancing for several years, now. In talking with Kevin, I started to understand a bit of why SMB IT folks look at load balancers, and why the balanced SMB isn't such a strange idea, after all.

First, Kevin says that there have been changes to the profile of "average" KEMP customers. In the group of first customers, most were very small companies with 2 – 3 servers, companies that were looking for a mechanism to provide high availability to the company's critical data. As time has gone on, SMBs have grown to require 10 – 15 servers. With the growth in server count comes growth in functional needs, and the load-balancing technology has moved from round-robin to resource sharing with weighted distribution based on server activity. Kevin also pointed to terminal server load balancing as an area that customers have expressed great interest in--an area that speaks to the needs for simplified desktop deployment and consistent performance (not to mention some significant security implications).

When I asked Keving about virtualization, he said that virtualization is coming to the SMB market because SMBs can see a lot of benefits from the technology. He said that KEMP already  has a couple of customers that have begun deploying virtualized servers and resources. He said that, even with virtualization, he still sees the load balancer used in its principle role of providing high availability and SSL. High availability is a clear need regardless of the size of the companies in the market space. Beyond the availability, Kein said that performance isn't the key, with customers instead focusing on they fact that they want to maximize the utilization of the resources they have. When I asked about the differences between SMBs and enterprise customers, Kevin told me that enterprises want to maximize their connectivity -- get them most out of the pipes that connect them to the Internet. The basic issue for SMB is the same, but the size of the resource changes – cable modems or T1 versus the T3 and up of the enterprise.

It was a fascinating conversation, one more in a series of discussions with vendor execs in which I'm hearing that SMB IT is the same as enterprise IT in everything but scale -- SMB owners want the same sort of functionality and quality in their IT services that enterprise CIOs take for granted.  From security to virtualization, to taking advantage of software as a service, SMB organizations are demanding serious IT -- and getting it.

Speaking of that last point, I was in a long meeting with a vendor today -- you'll hear about it next week when I fill you in on some new products and talk about a review that's now under way in the Test Center.

Posted by Curt Franklin on May 8, 2008 09:01 PM

April 28, 2008 | Comments: (0)

Interop News: Netgear brings new products for SMB

TAGS: SMB Networking

The show floor doesn't open until tomorrow, but the press releases are already starting to come in. Netgear had a flurry of them this morning, with the upshot being that the company is pushing into SMB in an ever more serious way. Part of the press material talked about changes to their channel program and the general emphasis on small businesses, but some of the products they announced look quite interesting.

First comes the new ReadyNAS boxes in a variety of sizes. The one that excited me is the 6-bay unit that can provide up to 6 TB of storage on the network. SMBs have started seeing the same sort of problems enterprises have had for years, as hard disk capacity has raced ahead of backup technologies. A 6TB NAS can provide realistic across-the-network backup, as well as a rich storage resource for large database files or rich media content.

Next, Netgear has announced the WNDAP330, an 802.11n dual-band access point. If you've been following the development of 802.11n, you know that dual-band access points are the key to getting the promised performance benefits of the new technology. I've been counseling people to wait until dual-band APs are available -- here's one, and I'm looking forward to giving it a try in the Test Center.

Finally, the company has announced 3 new smart switches with either 24 or 48 ports, and a variety of different features including static routing and QoS. The interesting thing to me is that all the new switches are Gig switches. Some of the analyst firms (OK, Gartner...) have been telling everyone who will listen that you don't need to have a Gig link going to a standard office desktop computer -- 100 Mbps is more than fast enough. As a result, a number of vendors have told me that they've seen sales of Gig ports fall while sales of 10/100 ports have been trending up. The prices for the components have been changing, though, so I think you're going to start seeing more and more companies selling Gig ports as the only option on their switches. Netgear is showing Gig strength here, and I think it's a good thing for small businesses. Bandwidth is one of those things, like CPU speed and RAM, where you really should buy everything you can afford and maybe just a little more. Go for the Gig -- I'm convinced you'll end up happier that way.

There's more to come -- I'm talking to folks and getting press releases, and the real action doesn't start until tomorrow.

Posted by Curt Franklin on April 28, 2008 01:22 PM

April 27, 2008 | Comments: (0)

Looking at Interop

TAGS: SMB Networking, SMB business

When I look at the press releases and phone calls that have come my way ahead of the Interop show, two phrases leap out: Unified Communications, and Network Access Control (NAC). It's not that there won't be anything else here at the show, but both of these areas seem to be gaining a lot of momentum heading into the rest of 2008.

Unified communications have been "the next big thing" for several years now. After several years of great promise and little implementation, it's easy to get jaded about new announcements compared to what's actually going to happen. This time, though, I think we may actually be getting close. The first big step in my move to this opinion was Microsoft's Office Communications Server. I'm not willing to say that it's the ultimate communication package (it's not), but it is positioned to help a lot of companies move in the direction of unified communications. Like the oft-referenced rising tide, it is helping to float a lot of UC boats in the market, and many of those boats have pulled into Interop. I'll plan to have more on UC announcements as the show goes on.

The other buzz phrase for the show is NAC. Now, it's important to note that we're not just talking about Cisco's brand of network access control. This year, it seems like every vendor has some flavor of access control that they're talking about. Some of them are focusing on ensuring that devices attaching to the network meet organizational policy requirements (the gist of the Cisco approach), while others are tying device policy enforcement with user account control for a single-device approach to making sure your network is secure. This kind of NAC is coming on fast, and is the sort of thing that's going to be of interest to small businesses. Security is one of the principal areas in which we're seeing vendors admit that small businesses have the same type (if not scale) of need seen by larger enterprises.

I'll be blogging from Interop through Wednesday -- if you want to keep up with the posts, keep checking back here or go to Twitter and follow iw_smb_it. It will let you know whenever there's a new SMB IT blog post, or if I just something truly cool at the show.

Posted by Curt Franklin on April 27, 2008 03:13 PM

February 26, 2008 | Comments: (0)

A Green Network

TAGS: SMB Networking

If you're not convinced that the choices made by businesses can make a difference in financial and environmental results, you should be checking out Ted Samson's Sustainable IT blog on a regular basis. This week, he's taken a look at D-Link's new green networking products. It's easy to make light of the impact a managed switch can have, but as with so much in the small business world, the changes add up.

For me, the best part of many "green" networking products is that they've eliminated the fan. It's a result of the peculiar work I do (and my small office space), but loud equipment can drive me batty. Quiet equipment is wonderful -- the silence makes it that much easier to hear customers calling in those big orders.

Posted by Curt Franklin on February 26, 2008 09:28 PM

October 25, 2007 | Comments: (0)

A Bit of a Ruckus

TAGS: SMB Networking

I've been setting up wireless networks for quite some time. I am, you see, quite a fan of most things wireless. Moving from place to place with a laptop computer convinces me, somehow, that I'm a free and happy soul who just happens to have this delightful job to do. It also convinces me that I get fewer cramps when I've been working for many hours. Anyway, wireless networking is a good thing, and I've set up a lot of different networks, but I still don't enjoy wrestling with many of the APs out there. I especially don't enjoy wrestling with some of the wireless LAN control systems which seem to be built on the premise that a wireless network serving an area (and population) less than that of, oh, Bulgaria, just isn't worth messing with. My small office doesn't qualify in either dimension.

All of this is why I was quite happy to get my hands on wireless equipment from Ruckus. You'll be seeing a full review over in the Test Center, but let me give you a few SMB-oriented tidbits. Ruckus supplied me with their ZoneDirector appliance and four APs (802.11 b/g) to test. It took perhaps 15 minutes to set up a secure network using two of the APs -- adding another was a matter of five minutes. When I wanted to create a separate guest network running on the same APs, that was the work of ten minutes. A few more minutes of fiddling, and the the log-in web site guests were directed to had my terms of use and logo displayed on the screen.

This is a very easy system to set up and use. There are a couple of rather minor quirks involving the multiple networks that can be set up on the APs, but for most small businesses, Ruckus is well worth looking into.

As I said, there will be a complete review in the near future, but this seemed like the sort of information small businesses would want sooner, rather than later.

Posted by Curt Franklin on October 25, 2007 09:18 PM

April 04, 2007 | Comments: (0)

SMB Tech News Today; 4/4

TAGS: SMB Applications, SMB Networking, SMB Tech & The Law, SMB Tech News Today

* The FBI's ongoing hunt for virtual crime. Seems the explosive growth in virtual worlds is prompting the FBI to check into gambling on Second Life. Maybe they'll check into illicit wagering on hobbit-tossing contests in World of Warcraft, too. (Source: CNET)

* Cisco oozing into Linksys brand. Seems Cisco is looking for new ways into the small biz market, so expect resellers to offer new 'synergies' between Linksys and Cisco-branded products aimed at SMBs real soon. (Source: InfoWorld)

* Microsoft expressing its love for Expressions. Seems the Redmondites originally decided to keep its Expressions Web dev tool from its mainstream developer community. And it further seems that the developers in that community expressed massive irateness at this obviously benighted move. So Microsoft has shifted back into the light and will offer Expressions to its MSDN developer community. Durn tootin'. (Source: ZDNet)

* Google debuts Mac tools. I should have reviewed this. Damn! Almost two years after releasing Google Desktop for Windows, the Googlers have just released the Google Desktop for the Mac. These guys do the hands-on I should have done. (Source: Ars Technica)

Posted by Oliver Rist on April 4, 2007 04:40 AM

September 20, 2006 | Comments: (0)

Interop Notes 1: Availl and WAFS

TAGS: SMB Networking

Whilst wandering the show floor here at Interop NY, I've bumped into a few things, but I'm going to milk them for multiple posts. First, there's WAFS. Wide Area File System in case you're wondering what the acronym stands for. It's supposed to be an industry standard by now, but hasn't evolved fast enough to make that a reality. In fact, there's pretty much no specific technology as long as you achieve one or more of WAFS' goals.

So for now, we're talking proprietary. But if you're okay with sticking to one vendor for your file system (pretty safe compared to other parts of your network), Availl's version of WAFS is pretty impressive.

The idea behind WAFS is to do full file replication across servers at multiple locations, regardless of WAN speed or security hurdles. For the most part, Availl seems to have made that work...with some caveats.

First, it's software only and restricted to managing NTFS files systems. Install the Availl central server (which acts as a traffic cop and license monitor) and you can manage any number of files for $2,500 per server. A mite pricey, but even for small businesses, this has benefits.

First, it doesn't care about bandwidth, firewalls, VPNs, whatever. As long as the target server has an Availl agent installed and can see the central server, you're good. Second, it incoroporates enough version control to get by even out of the box. If user A opens the file WEENIE.DOC in London and User B tries to open the same file at the same time or a few microseconds later, the traffic will determine who got there first and show the file as read-only to the second dude. Meantime, the system will keep all your files in sync across all your NTFS file stores.

Plus, it can do it as full multi-directional (meaning all files are accessible to users at all locations and changes updated across all targets) or as uni-directional, also known as "backup." Databases are supported, but only SQL-based data stores. I'd watch that claim, however, as I've never had luck syncing or backing up databases using software or services that didn't specifically support the database I was working on.

We'll see more WAFS coming from other vendors soon. Cisco was supposed to be building an appliance, but I lost track of where that is. And smaller vendors like Yellow Box said they were going to incorporate it as soon as a Linux version was stable enough. No idea when that might be.

Meantime, a more proprietary solution like Availl's probably costs a bit more, but the numbers aren't nuts and the bennies look worth it.

Posted by Oliver Rist on September 20, 2006 01:06 PM

July 26, 2006 | Comments: (0)

Review: SmartLine's DeviceLock

TAGS: SMB Networking

I know I promised this a while ago, but life is filled with little disappointments. Meanwhile, I've had an extra week to play with SmartLine's DeviceLock application, and so far, I don't see any real holes.

I pitched DeviceLock a week or so ago in an Emerging Enterprise podcast episode. At the time, it was in response to yet another yahoo downloading reams of customer data onto a portable device and the losing said device. "Control thy portable data outlets," I said and DeviceLock was one of the tools I offered to accomplish this feat.

As the name implies, DeviceLock allows admins to restrict access to a number of portable outlets, including USB ports, CD-ROM drives, floppy drives, WiFi adapters, etc. Even better, it integrates with Active Directory, and can be accessed via SMS or just using an MMC snap-in control.

The AD part is the only minor failing as far as I can see. I had no luck getting DeviceLock to manage the Linux workstations on the test network, which means you're only going to be able to control Windows workstations.

Once installed, DeviceLock scans the network discovering not only all attached Windows computers, but also all their portable exit points. Good idea to do this when all the PCs are on, by the way. It saw the names of the Linux PCs, but that's all I could do for them.

After that, you can control access to any of these resources (meaning a PC or just that PC's USB ports, floppy drive, CD-ROM drive, whatever) by user, user group, time of day or even device type. Device type means that DeviceLock knows whether your user just plugged a USB mouse or a USB thumbdrive into the port and will react accordingly. On top of that, it costs about $35 per client.

If you're looking to make sure that office workers don't walk out with a few gigs of confidential data on a thumb drive, this is a great way to do it.

DeviceLock
SmartLine
Price: $35 per client
Verdict: If you're worried about data walking out on portable devices, don't think, just get it.

Posted by Oliver Rist on July 26, 2006 08:51 PM

April 21, 2006 | Comments: (0)

Tips for Wiring Your Office

TAGS: SMB Networking

SMBs tend to grow (or shrink, but let's not dwell on that). A side effect of that characteristic is the need to move around. Bigger offices, smaller offices, moving in, moving out.

That means wiring. Yes, I'm still a big proponent of wiring over wireless as the best general connection medium for the typical SMB. Check out my next Emerging Enterprise podcast if you want to hear me talk about why.

Meanwhile, if wiring a new office is on your horizon, make sure to incorporate these tips:

1. Talk to your architect and/or interior designer. If you've got someone laying out a floor plan for your office, make sure that your wiring plan corresponds. This is especially important for shared areas like conference rooms or meeting nooks as well as cubicle colonies that might require ceiling-to-floor wiring schemes.

2. Double up on ports. For each PC, try and add at least two data ports--three is better. Voice over IP is one important reason why. Flexibility is another. If the office layout suddenly changes and what was once a cubicle now becomes a mini printer room, you've got enough ports to make the transition easily. Accomodating guests, multpiple PCs per worker, new networkable peripherals we haven't thought of yet...the list goes on. Once the walls are open, laying the cable and punching it down is relatively cheap. Having to back track is what gets expensive, so err on the side of empty ports rather than winding up with too few.

3. Stick with Cat5e. Sure Cat6 is available, but I've yet to see a Cat6 cable that was so much better than a Cat5e wire that a network application would only run over Cat6. Cat5e is still the best combination of price vs. network applicability, capable of gigabit data, voice and anything else a general SMB will need.

If you expect really high-performance needs--10 gigabit per second ethernet to some ultra-fast workstations, for example--then I'd skip over Cat6 and head straight for fiber. Yeah, it requires some specialized knowledge, but the guys who do this don't charge that much more than the guys who run other cable. And if you need it for performance reasons, it's generally the least part of that budget anyway. Oh, and I'd definitely double up on ports here--fiber tends to break and you definitely don't want to be re-running that later in life if you can help it. Much easier to have a few extra's already installed.

4. Spring for a wiring closet. Too many small businesses want to avoid the cost of a server/wiring closet to save yet a few more sheckels. They run wires along the floors and ceilings and drop noisy servers in some abandoned cubicle in the middle of the office. Spend the sheckels already.

First, you'll give some guy like me enough money to buy beer for the weekend, and that's always a good deed. Second, you're trying to impress potential clients with your professionalism. If they're walking through an office that has a multi-colored cable monster descending from the ceiling through some ceiling panel that got broken out, well that's just the office equivalent of having a car up on blocks in your front yard. Third, having a closet means security. No yokel employee can accidentally unplug or reset the servers, for example.

It's easy. Just find a closet or that office that's so small it's an insult to the employee, and run an extra piece of ventilation through it. This can include an AC fan, but what you really want is a way to get the hot air out of the closet and somewhere else--like the office's ventilation shaft or even just outside through a wall.

5. Now add patch panels. Make sure there's enough ports to support all the nodes in your office one-to-one. Patch panels are fairly cheap and they make re-orging the physical network much, much easier than just running a bunch of 50ft patch cables between the switch and the user. They also look FAR more professional if anyone should get a glimpse of them and they serve to allow the actual cables to stay where they belong--in the wall. Don't worry about punching them down, that's why you're giving the wiring guy beer money.

Beneath the patch panel, you drop your server half-rack. A half rack, like the 25U APC NetShelter pictured above, is my favorite SMB racking tool precisely because it fits in most utility closets--as long as you trick out the closet with a little extra air. Now you can place three or even four servers in the rack, a couple of switches, an APC SmartUPS, the firewall/VPN/WAN router, the WLAN switch and a KVM drawer. Poof! You've got an excellent mini-data center that's not only out of sight, it's also easy for guys like me to fix. Think about it.

6. Label, label, label. Don't go play golf on wiring day. Be there and make sure that every cable is labeled. And I don't just mean making sure that the number on the port at the user's cubicle correspond to the port number in the wiring closet's patch panel. That's a given.

You also need to label the cable itself at each end. Why? Because sys admins tend to move these around or run new cables, even put in new punch blocks. Marking cables means a much easier time when it comes time clean up your wiring closet--moving to new wires, disgarding old or broken cables, etc. Take a few minutes now and save yourself hours later. It also makes tearing down the network and moving it to a new site much easier because everything is numbered. Just add patch panels and in-wall wiring at the new site and everything from the old site can plug right in.

7. Think about where you want wireless. Plan for wireless, don't just drop access points around willy nilly. If you plan for access points during the physical wiring phase, you'll have an easier time taking advantage of power-over-etherent-compatible access points, like Netgear's or Trapeze's. With PoE access points, you just need an Ethernet port to plug the AP into--it draws both power and data via Ethernet, plus it's automatically part of your wired network, so hooking it to a WLAN switch for real security is easy. Sure, you can buy dual-radio access points that can bridge amongst themselves as well as act as APs, but that's way more configuration time and the APs cost significantly more. Hooking them to a wired port is not only easier, it gives you an added measure of control and reliability.

Bring in a wireless specialist and run frequency scan across the office. This tells you where the wireless weak points are. These xcan happen because the floor and ceiling around that part of the office are made of different stuff, or maybe because there's a microwave oven beyond the next wall, or for any number of other reasons. A wireless specialist can figure all this out in just a few hours. Now use that information to pick the best spots for wireless decide on the range of the access points and how they'll talk to the rest of the network.

Posted by Oliver Rist on April 21, 2006 12:32 PM