Those who own small businesses, plan to start a business or those folks that want to grow their small business sometimes face some challenges that they didn’t anticipate, especially when computers are concerned.
As you may know small business tend to grow into medium or large sized ones and from these humble beginnings small business sometimes don’t plan to growth in their computer technology. The usual issue is not planning or budgeting for computer servers.
I know of several business right here in Contra Costa County that believe the best technology solution is to add another computer for that new employee. That solution is okay in the short run, but remember small businesses grow and as they grow the need for a server grows with them.
Most solutions involve simple networking arrangements that is, add another computer to the network and share files. That works okay for family owned business however it opens up problems and issues once regular non-family employees are hired. One issue that comes to mind are finances. Do you really want employees to see your financial information, credit card charges, tax returns and the like?

Enter the file server. Start with a standard PC with Window 10 then store common files on it and do not assign an employee to it. That is, do not assign a user to it; otherwise, it is just another networked user, and not a server. You will still have a file security problem though because the software is inadequate for security and this solution is not very fast. By the way, a NAS (Network Attached Storage) device will better serve as a file sharing device. Same idea but able to handle file requests better.
Upgrade to a real server. This device is different from a PC in the structure of the software, hardware and purpose. Usually the server hardware is the pedestal (tower) type or its bigger brother rack-mounted. This type of server has “server software” that secures data and restricts users to their roll in your organization. For example, one may not want the office staff to know about how marketing is doing or how much an employee is making. In addition, server software keeps out unwanted hackers (if properly maintained), provides remote usage for employees working at home or off-site.
Real servers have a multitude of uses like mail, remote access, file sharing, application sharing, communications with other employees, centralized security and backups, faster access, password management, role restrictions, mass storage and the list goes on.
For all you small business owners working to make your business larger and more profitable it is time to think about how technology will help you, if you plan for it. Call me, let’s talk.