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About Robert Tessanne

Red Level's Cloud & Data Center Vice President

Five Key Considerations for Choosing a Disaster Recovery Solution

Not all DR/DRASS solutions are created equal-and some details make all the difference. The idea behind disaster recovery seems simple enough- to enable your business to be up and running as quickly as possible following a catastrophic event. As with most simple concepts, though, the devil is the details: What constitutes a disaster? What needs to be recovered? How quickly does it have to happen? Not surprisingly, the simple answers to these questions - "Anything bad, " "Everything, " and "immediately" - aren't usually the right ones. In fact, there aren't any universal right or wrong answers. The "right" answer for one business could be disastrously wrong for another. At Red Level, we've seen firsthand how too many businesses settle for general answers when considering DR or DRASS without giving enough careful consideration to their own unique needs. We've pinpointed five particular areas you should evaluate when selecting a DR or DRASS solution. ...

Robert Tessanne2023-02-16T16:01:57+00:00

The Clock Is Ticking on Windows Server 2003

So I am sure by now you’re tired of seeing blog posts – and scare tactics – created by Microsoft evangelists about Windows Server 2003 . I understand – but if so many companies weren’t still running these servers and holding onto them for dear life, bloggers like me could move on already. Honestly, when there are only 30 days until all support ends, it’s no joke if you haven’t even begun your migration away from 2003. As of June 14, there will be exactly thirty days until Microsoft pulls the plug. Over, finished, done. Regular support has been finished for a while now, but now paid extended support will also fall by the wayside. The minute that happens, you will be officially on your own with regard to this venerable platform. Windows Server 2003 has served us well: Following its launch on April 14, 2003, users started enjoying its expanded networking ...

Robert Tessanne2023-02-16T16:01:59+00:00

Thunderstruck? DRaaS Steps Up When Disaster Strikes

AC/DC said it best,—“You’ve been Thunderstruck:” your expensive DR plan has been pushed back into the next fiscal year, like it probably was for the previous 3 years. If you had only known about a more cost effective method to provide your organization with true DR, the company might have bought into it. Fortunately, there is such an option. You already know that disasters of various types can strike your business at any time. Fires, floods, lightning strikes, malware attacks and other calamities can and do happen. Thankfully, these aren’t frequent occurrences for most of us – but when they do take place, woe to the unprepared. In my last blog post, I discussed Backup as a Service (BaaS) and its ability to safeguard data and get problem-plagued companies up and running again within a reasonable time frame. BaaS is a great safeguard for companies that are able to ...

Robert Tessanne2023-02-16T16:01:59+00:00

Reality-Proofing Your Business: Backup As A Service

Remember last year’s floods that turned some of our Detroit-area freeways into actual lakes? The unexpected floods of 2014 submerged streets, cars, basements – and some businesses, particularly those that weren’t prepared for the possibility. Some have never recovered. Well, as the Eurythmics sang, here comes the rain again. Spring is in the air – and so is the possibility of more torrential rains. Unfortunately, most of us don’t receive a sign from above to build an ark and keep two of everything on it when deluges or other disasters are looming ahead. It’s not literally true that “anything can happen,” but it sometimes seems that way – especially when random chaotic events disrupt our routines and our lives. The 2014 floods were a wake-up call to many businesses who suddenly started looking into flood insurance. A lot of the savvy ones started thinking about offsite data backup solutions as ...

Robert Tessanne2023-02-16T16:02:00+00:00

This Is The End: Say Goodbye To Windows Server 2003 Extended Support

It’s true: Microsoft will stop supporting Windows Server 2003 this coming July. For a few years now, Microsoft has been saying goodbye to a generation of its most successful products, including Windows XP, Office 2003, and more. Microsoft is now getting ready to play The Doors’ epic goodbye song “The End” for their extremely successful Windows Server 2003 platform in just a few months. For twelve years, Server 2003 has served companies well. More than a decade of regular updates and fixes have made it a solid, reliable platform for tens of millions of applications running on millions of servers worldwide. This July, that comes to an end. Microsoft pulled the plug on regular support in 2010, but many companies have bought time – or limped along – by depending on paid extended support. That’s all over soon. Make no mistake: This is a big deal – an infinitely more ...

Robert Tessanne2023-02-16T16:02:01+00:00

What do you use for Storage?

Is Storage Important? When we have too much “stuff” in our lives or homes, we use storage. We use attic space, basements or storage units to store all of the additional items we want to keep but no longer have room for around our house. We pack things up in boxes, label our items and store them until we need to use them. But what do we use for our technical storage? There are many types of storage that one could recommend but the consumer who needs the storage first needs to identify their requirements. As part of our consultants/engineers daily tasks, we must work with our clients to gather the requirements for their storage needs. Some requirements are simple; will the storage be used for archival data? While others are complex; will they be used for a Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) deployment? There are times when storage arrays will be ...

Robert Tessanne2023-02-16T16:02:05+00:00

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