An IT Support Blog from London

Read the latest IT news, tips and insights from IT Support pros at HTL Support

What is ITAD? A Guide to Responsible IT Asset Disposition

What is ITAD

As the world moves further along the digital age, enterprises need to include in their long-term planning the impact of acquiring tons and tons of electronics and how they are going to dispose of these later on. This is essential for every organisation because consumers today have become more mindful of the ethical practices of businesses, particularly those that relate to society and the environment. If you’re a company that endeavors to make corporate social responsibility (CSR) part of your business practices, then you need a solid plan for retiring IT equipment.

In 2019 alone, a whopping 53.6 million tons of e-waste were generated worldwide and only 17% of that got recycled. That was 3 years ago and the numbers just keep rising every year. If we are to combat the environmental effects that technology waste brings about, every enterprise should have a well-thought-out ITAD plan. But first, what is ITAD?

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Understanding and Preparing for End-of-Service Life (EOSL)

End of Software Life

With the speed with which technology evolves these days, IT hardware is phased out much faster than organisations would prefer. Servers, routers, and console managers—all part of a data center’s infrastructure, need to be working efficiently at all times to ensure continued business operations.

No equipment is expected to last forever, though. Regardless of how good the quality of your equipment is, how diligently you’ve maintained it with IT support London services (for UK-based enterprises), or how well it fits with the rest of your network, there will come a time when your device will reach this stage of its IT lifecycle—the End-of-Service Life (EOSL).

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What is Dark Data? Learn Its Uses and Challenges

Dark Data

To the uninitiated, the term dark data may evoke images of mysterious stores of data tucked away in an obscure location—hopefully, distant enough from your company’s hard drives so that they are no threat to online security. The reality however, is that there’s nothing ominous at all about dark data, it’s closer to you than you think, and more importantly, it can even bring value to your business when used right.

In this article, we define what dark data is and where it comes from, discuss ways to harness the value that it holds, and understand the challenges that may come with its management.

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3595 Hits

OEM vs TPM: Choosing the Right Support for Your Business

OEM vs TPM

IT infrastructure, technology hardware, and data centers are playing a huge role in the current business landscape, and now form part of the key capital investments that companies allocate substantial budgets for. As such, businesses are looking to maximise on their techn investments and wish to extend the life of their hardware pieces for as long as possible.

When it comes to servicing and maintaining data center products and IT equipment, businesses have 3 choices: stick to maintenance contracts of the Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM), partner with Third Party Maintenance (TPM) providers, or adopt a combination of both. In this post, we learn more about the difference between OEM and TPM, and evaluate which option could offer better IT support London services for data center equipment.

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How to Provide Efficient Business-As-Usual IT Support

Business as Usual IT Support

Business as usual. A term that denotes the humdrum of everyday life, and in the case of businesses, of a usual workload. Despite the connotation of an unexciting, rather mundane routine, if corporate leaders and office managers would really think about it; processes, systems, and the workplace doing business as usual is an ideal state because this means that operations are running smoothly.

More often than not however, business operations require a lot of time and resources, and it’s difficult to ensure that things are working seamlessly at all times. In the UK for instance, inhouse IT staff and IT support London teams are relied on to carry out everyday technology-related tasks that allow operations to continue without disruptions.

Now post-pandemic, as the world moves on adjusting to what is now the new normal—a state where enterprises are highly-reliant on technology, the demands on the IT organisation have become even heavier.

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4 Emerging Technologies That Could Define the Future of Work

Future of Work

With COVID currently making a huge impact on how we work, it should be safe to say the future of work is bound to deviate from what we thought was the original course prior to the pandemic. Already now, after 2 years of combining remote work with traditional work practices, companies are starting to accept the fact that remote work is here to stay. This in turn has driven increased adoption of remote work-enabling technologies such as VDI DaaS, and cloud computing.

While globally disruptive events like this pandemic can certainly influence work practices, there are also emerging technologies that can have a similar effect. Here are four of them.

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The Threat Landscape in 2022 — 5 Security Challenges to Look Out For

Threat Landscape

Another year is ahead of us and yet IT security threats are in no way letting up. Instead, the next months will continue to be challenging as data protection remains a major concern for enterprises. The rapid adoption of all things digital has also exponentially increased the threat surface through which cyber criminals can attack.

But which present the biggest cyber security dangers for this year? Will there be new threats or will the old ones simply evolve to pose greater difficulties? In this blog post, we take a closer look at the top 5 challenges that security experts believe could put business organisations at biggest risk this year.

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2743 Hits

The True Costs of IT Infrastructure - And How to Reduce It

True Costs of IT Infrastructure

The costs of IT infrastructure and operations are undergoing a dramatic change. Before, practically all IT costs revolved around hardware and software purchases, maintenance, and upgrades. Today, however, with the rise in cyber threats, the advent of cloud computing, and the emergence of new business-impacting factors (e.g. the current pandemic), companies are faced with additional costs which, if not managed properly, can seriously impact other areas of the business.

Gartner projects that IT spending will reach an astounding $4.5 trillion in 2022, the highest year-over-year jump in more than 10 years. Let’s have a look at the key areas where IT costs are expected to come from and what you can do to reduce them.

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5 Expert Tips to Make Remote Working Productive and Boost Performance

Remote Working Productive

 

Remote working has been both a boon and a bane for many organisations and employees. A boon because it has allowed work to carry on even as a global health crisis continues; and a bane because it has given rise to employees’ struggles with time management and work prioritisation when doing their jobs outside of the physical work space.

That said, however, the availability of technology, tools, and remote IT support have been instrumental in making remote working the best option to keep employees in service and businesses, well, in business. The numbers indicate as much.

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2399 Hits

7 Best Practices in Managing Your IT Support Ticket System

IT Support Ticket System

An IT support ticket system is a key backbone of IT services. It determines the flow of customer service, from when your customer reaches out with their concern or request until you address or solve it. Without effective ticket handling processes, you get unnecessarily long downtimes that cut down on productivity and decrease client satisfaction. The more issues left unresolved, the more it can cost your business.

It’s well worth noting that clients may also refer to internal customers—employees who have issues with their devices or IT-related tasks. Resolving their concerns allows them to get back to work sooner and do their core functions. It is thus crucial to realise that reliable IT support services can improve efficiency in the day-to-day operations, give you an edge over competitors, and propel your company to greater heights.

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