Thursday 15 September 2016

Windows 10 Free Upgrade Has Ended - What Happens Next?

Windows 10 is the latest operating system released by Microsoft, and you were given until July 29, 2016, to upgrade to it for free. That date is exactly a year since the initial release of the OS. The upgrade was offered for free as part of Microsoft's plan to get the OS to run on one billion devices in the next few years. Those running authentic Windows 7 and Window 8.1 were given the chance to upgrade for free; however, some users failed to do so. Regardless of your reason for not taking advantage of that free upgrade, upgrading to Windows 10 after July 29 simply means having to pay for it.

Upgrading to Windows 10 can be a crucial step to future-proofing your systems. Microsoft's long-term goal for providing a free upgrade is to gradually phase out Windows 7. On January 14, 2020, Microsoft will stop its commitment to provide extended support for it. Putting off the upgrade until 2020 may put your business at risk, because delays, reduce productivity, and make your systems vulnerable to attackers.

After the deadline, your small business can still upgrade by buying Windows 10 and consulting with a reliable network solutions provider for assistance in deployment. This way, you can avoid the guesswork and the upgrade will not have to cause too much downtime in your operations. A specialist can help you determine and confirm your system's readiness for Windows 10, too. They will take measures to ensure that you can upgrade to Windows 10 seamlessly and cost-effectively. Likewise, they can take care of the error codes and other issues that may occur during and after installation.


A Windows 10 upgrade can be automated to help you save time and effort. the deployment can be automated by using Microsoft s SCCM application. There are many benefits to upgrading to Windows 10. Apart from preparing you for the end of Windows 7, the new operating system lets small businesses be more flexible as it works across all devices, including mobile. It empowers BYOD policies while ensuring cost-effective implementation. Windows 10 may help boost your productivity with help from Cortana, the new virtual assistant, and other intelligent features like the unified control panel, enhanced notifications, and virtual desktops. At the same time, your business gets enterprise-grade security for your data.

About the Author:
           
Mike Rana is the Chief Technology Advisor of Orion Network Solutions. Orion Network Solutions specializes in providing Computer Installation, Maintenance, and Consulting services along with 24x7 help desk services for small and midsize companies. We provide network solutions that enable small businesses to not only lower their management cost but also increases employee productivity at the same low price. We offer network solution that becomes an integral part of your organization and can provide an increase in productivity of your organization.

Automating Your IT Infrastructure

Manual work can take up too much of your time. Instead of being able to attend to other important tasks in your small business, it leaves you stuck doing repetitive work—thus reducing your productivity and causing you to miss out on opportunities. Have you thought about automating your IT infrastructure? Experts highly recommended this strategy as a first step to boosting your productivity and enabling you to focus more of your time on the major tasks that make your business profitable.

IT automation connects software and disparate systems in a manner that lets them self-regulate and act by themselves. Automation can be as simple as integrating a form into a PDF file that will be routed automatically to pre-assigned recipients, or it can be more complex—like an offsite backup's automated provisioning.

Industry Examples

IT automation eliminates manual processes that can take a lot of your effort and time. Many industries benefit from it, including real estate. Through IT automation, real estate offices can automatically list or find new contracts and customer data as soon as they are submitted. Tasks like transitioning the data and email server to cloud, data backup, and inventory management can be accomplished faster and effortlessly with minimal to zero errors. IT automation is also useful in a business that encourages self-service. With this system, end-users no longer need IT staff to manually collate and organize data.

Save Money and Other Benefits

With IT automation, business operations can become more efficient while helping you save money in the long run. It is crucial for small and mid-sized companies that may lack the resources and budget for additional manpower. IT automation will help a small business boost productivity and throughput, improve the quality and consistency of their data and services, and reduce the need to hire and pay for additional labor. Automation may replace human eliminate the need to have your own IT department, too.

Automating your IT systems will be easier with help from a network solutions specialist that which can provide tools and solutions to get you started with IT automation. Some of these tools can help small businesses save money. LunarPages, for instance, provides web hosting configurations and advanced hosting solutions like complete IT infrastructure, private cloud hosing, business continuity, and disaster recovery solutions. AddressTwo is the online-based CRM software that lets you create several user accounts with unique login credentials at no extra cost.  It records events with details about the user, so you can easily keep track of your sales team's productivity and achievements. 


About the Author:
           

Mike Rana is the Chief Technology Advisor of Orion Network Solutions. Orion Network Solutions specializes in providing Computer Installation, Maintenance, and Consulting services along with 24x7 help desk services for small and midsize companies. We provide network solutions that enable small businesses to not only lower their management cost but also increases employee productivity at the same low price. We offer network solution that becomes an integral part of your organization and can provide an increase in productivity of your organization.