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Copyright © 2016 K2 Enterprises, LLC. Reproduction or reuse for purposes other than a K2 Enterprises’ training event is prohibited.
Risks And Rewards Of Hosted, On‐Premise, And Hybrid
Solutions
August 31, 2016
Copyright © 2016 K2 Enterprises, LLC. Reproduction or reuse for purposes other than a K2 Enterprises’ training event is prohibited.
CLOUD STRATEGIES AFFECT FIRM’S SUCCESS – BOTH GOOD AND BAD
Which Result Do You Want And Need?
Copyright © 2016 K2 Enterprises, LLC. Reproduction or reuse for purposes other than a K2 Enterprises’ training event is prohibited.
Learning Objectives
Upon completing this session, participants should be able to:
– List major Cloud technologies that can work for your organization
– Recognize opportunities created by Cloud, on‐premise, and hybrid solutions
– Define your needs and what solutions are available to meet these needs based on what is available from technology vendors
Copyright © 2016 K2 Enterprises, LLC. Reproduction or reuse for purposes other than a K2 Enterprises’ training event is prohibited.
Definitions
• SaaS – Software as a Service – applications that run in a browser. Typically multi‐user & multi‐tenant
• On‐Premise – traditional desktop and network applications
• Hosted – running traditional applications in a data center or colocation facility (COLO)
• SLA – Service Level Agreement, guarantee of uptime
• Remote Access – Enabling Anywhere, Anytime, Any device (AAA) with remote technologies like Microsoft RDS or Citrix
• Hybrid – mixing one or more of the techniques above to solve a business problem
Copyright © 2016 K2 Enterprises, LLC. Reproduction or reuse for purposes other than a K2 Enterprises’ training event is prohibited.
WHAT DO YOU BELIEVE ARE THE RISKS AND REWARDS?
You Are Attending This Session With Some Knowledge Already
Copyright © 2016 K2 Enterprises, LLC. Reproduction or reuse for purposes other than a K2 Enterprises’ training event is prohibited.
Risks, Rewards
• Risks
– Freedom Act (Patriot Act Sec. 215)
– Unauthorized access to data
– Unencrypted data
– Minimal control of speed
– Communication outages
– Can’t control or time increased costs
• Rewards
– Known recurring costs
– Minimal capital expense
– Outside IT expertise
– Upgrades applied
– Attention to security
– Anywhere, Anytime, Any device (AAA)
Copyright © 2016 K2 Enterprises, LLC. Reproduction or reuse for purposes other than a K2 Enterprises’ training event is prohibited.
Attitude – What Is Your Belief?
• Risks
– Your team can provide more/better protection
– There is nothing you can do about it
– Your firm can be responsible for exposed data and breach reporting
– Catastrophic failure (fire, storm, computer storage)
– Less expensive to own vs. perpetual rental model
• Rewards
– Get Over It!
– Benefits outweigh risks
– Cloud providers will upgrade faster than your own company
– Collaboration with client or customer is needed
– You can’t buy the application any other way
– Outsource non‐core competence items
Copyright © 2016 K2 Enterprises, LLC. Reproduction or reuse for purposes other than a K2 Enterprises’ training event is prohibited.
Cloud Risks
• Down time/outages
• Speed beyond your control
• Somewhat linear costs and costs escalate/ reduce with user counts
– Not always a cheaper model
• Freedom Act (Patriot Act Section 215) used to access data without notification or subpoena
• Local infrastructure (firewalls, switches, cabling, computers still needed, maintenance)
Copyright © 2016 K2 Enterprises, LLC. Reproduction or reuse for purposes other than a K2 Enterprises’ training event is prohibited.
Cloud Risks – Cont’d
• In the case of hosting by vendors, they only support their applications (Thomson/CCH/ Sage/Epicor)
– Bundled offerings may be on older software versions (Office/Citrix).
• Possibly difficult to get data back when you want to change
• If your Cloud vendor is not performing for you
– Very difficult to change, requires a new install
– If your managed service provider or your premise network fails, you find a new vendor
Copyright © 2016 K2 Enterprises, LLC. Reproduction or reuse for purposes other than a K2 Enterprises’ training event is prohibited.
Cloud Risks – Cont’d
• More complexity in problem resolution
– Premise issues, Internet issues (bandwidth and connectivity), and hosting issues
– Most hosting companies won’t let you troubleshoot issues on their end
– When you want them to do something you must turn in a work request and wait
• If Internet connectivity is down – no one in office works
• Unless dealing with someone with expertise in your profession, like Xcentric – you will not have quality application support for your industry applications
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Cloud Rewards
• Overcome local IT knowledge deficiencies
• Backup and Business Continuity/Disaster Recovery burden shifted
• Ability to work Anywhere, Anytime, Any device enhanced
• Infrastructure capital costs minimized
• Client OS agnostic
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Cloud Rewards – Cont’d
• Less power consumption
• Less maintenance at desktop level
– Thin clients are absolutely an option
• Capital requirements at desktop level reduced (5‐7 year vs. 3‐4 year life)
Copyright © 2016 K2 Enterprises, LLC. Reproduction or reuse for purposes other than a K2 Enterprises’ training event is prohibited.
Market Shift For Software Publishers
• Recurring license models, higher revenue to them (possibly higher cost to you)
– Microsoft Office 365
– Adobe Document Cloud (DC)
• Distribution less expensive
• More frequent updates and repairs
• More rapid development
• SaaS provides higher public market valuations
• Subscription revenue business models have more value in equity markets since there is predictable, recurring revenue
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Benefits Of Cloud Deployment
• Quicker time to market
• Scale up, scale down with seasonality
• Greater capability for small firms
• Less internal politics for large firms
• Less dependence on internal infrastructure (servers, SANs, IT resources)
• Backup and redundancy is the provider’s problem, and is part of the SLA
Copyright © 2016 K2 Enterprises, LLC. Reproduction or reuse for purposes other than a K2 Enterprises’ training event is prohibited.
Disadvantages Of Cloud Deployment
• Less customization
• User interface
– Can change with limited or no notice
– Changes to applications can occur during critical or busy times affecting productivity
• Integration with other applications
• Possible incompatibility when multiple applications are involved (cloud to cloud)
• Communication line risks (need redundancy)
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Who Buys The Components?Component SaaS, Hosted On‐Premise
User‐side Vendor You
Computer, printers X
Cabling X
Switches, Firewall X
Internet X
Maintenance X
Server‐Side
Internet X X
Firewall, Switches X X
Server & OS X X
Application X X
Backup X X
Maintenance X X
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Cloud Solution Approaches
1. On‐Premise – Traditional / Private
2. Hosted in Data Center
3. SaaS – Browser based
Hybrid – a combination of any of the other methods
Applications with add‐ons
SECURITY ACCESSSECURITY ACCESS
APP INTEGRATIONAPP INTEGRATION
LOGGING/AUDIT TRAILLOGGING/AUDIT TRAIL
DATABASEDATABASE
USER AUTHENTICATIONUSER AUTHENTICATION
SaaS “Chunk”
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Whether Public Or Private CloudItems You Must Have
• Next Generation Firewall
– SonicWALL NSA4600
– SonicWALL TZ300w
– SonicWALL TZ SOHO (home)
• Good Connectivity
– Cabling – CAT 6a
– Wireless – 802.11n/ac/ad
• 1GBps switches
– Jumbo Frame
– Power Over Ethernet
• Phone service (VOIP)
• Copier/MFP
• End User Computers
– UltraBooks
– Desktops
– Thin Clients
• Multiple Monitors
• Scanners/Printers
• Smartphones
• Encryption everywhere
Copyright © 2016 K2 Enterprises, LLC. Reproduction or reuse for purposes other than a K2 Enterprises’ training event is prohibited.
Whether Public Or Private CloudOptional Items
• Wireless (public/private)
• Tablets
• Cellular Data
• Portable Monitors (MMT, HP U160)
• Conference Room–Displays/projector
–Apple TV/McTivia
–Citrix Mirroring
• Digital Signage
Copyright © 2016 K2 Enterprises, LLC. Reproduction or reuse for purposes other than a K2 Enterprises’ training event is prohibited.
Needed No Matter What Solution
• Com line(s), Firewall/Switch, Cabling/wireless
InternetInternet Redundant Com LinesCable/DSL/MPLS/T1
Copyright © 2016 K2 Enterprises, LLC. Reproduction or reuse for purposes other than a K2 Enterprises’ training event is prohibited.
Dozens Of Right Ways To Implement Technology, Hundreds of Wrong Ways
Component Good Better Best
Firewall True Firewall Security Services Managed
Gigabit Switch Layer 2‐Trunking Stacked Backplane Layer 3 Chassis
Cabling CAT 6 CAT 6A CAT 8
Server Tower Rack Xeon Rack Xeon
SAN iSCSI SATA Fiber Channel
Storage 15K Drives SSD Z‐Wave SSD
Workstation Core i5 8GB Core i7 8GB Core i7 16GB
Monitor Two 22” Three 24” One‐Two 27‐32”
Virtualization VMware ESXi VMware Essentials+ VMware Enterprise
Remote Microsoft RDS Citrix XenAppCitrix XenDesktop or VMWare View
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Sizing Technology – Minimally Acceptable, Stronger Is Better
Component 1‐15 10‐50 30‐200+
Firewall Sonicwall TZ300w Sonicwall TZ400w Sonicwall NSA 2600
Switch HP 1820 HP 2920 HP 5400
Cabling CAT 6 CAT 6A CAT 8
Server HP ML350 HP DL360 HP DL380
Copyright © 2016 K2 Enterprises, LLC. Reproduction or reuse for purposes other than a K2 Enterprises’ training event is prohibited.
Technology Cookbook
• Servers/Workstations– Windows Server 2012 R2
– Windows 8/10, Office 2013/6
• Infrastructure– VMware ESX HA and SAN ‐ Virtualize Servers
– Citrix XenApp, XenDesktop, or VMware Horizon View VDI
– Backup Appliances
– SonicWALL NSA3600/TZ400w
– Gigabit over CAT 6af
– Shortel, Mitel, Avaya, Cisco, Trixbox, Fonality, for VOIP phones
– Sufficient UPS
• Security– Firewall gateway protection
– Webroot, other anti‐virus
– Disk Encryption ‐ BitLocker PGP or Data Encryption
– Email Encryption – Reflexion, ZixCorp or Protected Trust
– Adobe Acrobat DC (Document Cloud)
– Retention and other Policies
• Mobile Device Management– Security
– Apps
• Web– Portal, SEO, Localization
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Cloud – Hosting And SaaS
• Pro
– Provider has scale and expertise with their applications
– Server side costs for a particular application can be identified as part of the hosting fee OR the hosting fees for all applications can be seen in your hosting costs
• Con
– If you have a mixed application load, provider must have expertise with many applications
– Some providers will only host their application, so you have to work with multiple providers
Copyright © 2016 K2 Enterprises, LLC. Reproduction or reuse for purposes other than a K2 Enterprises’ training event is prohibited.
Cloud ‐ Hosting And SaaS
• Pro
– No servers or applications to buy, upgrade or maintain
– Backup, Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery of servers and data handled by vendor
– Can scale down if contract allows
• Con
– Costs per user likely to be higher when user counts > 15
– Applications are independent “chunks”
– Speed delays likely between separately hosted “chunks”
Copyright © 2016 K2 Enterprises, LLC. Reproduction or reuse for purposes other than a K2 Enterprises’ training event is prohibited.
Decision Making Strategy
• Solve the business problem first, with traditional needs analysis and selection
• Project all costs over a 7‐10 year period
– Recurring licensing
– Hardware requirements
– Line costs
– IT and other supporting labor
– You may be surprised where the breakeven falls
Copyright © 2016 K2 Enterprises, LLC. Reproduction or reuse for purposes other than a K2 Enterprises’ training event is prohibited.
RECOGNIZE OPPORTUNITIES CREATED BY CLOUD, ON‐PREMISE, AND HYBRID SOLUTIONS
There Are Great Places For Each Technology
Copyright © 2016 K2 Enterprises, LLC. Reproduction or reuse for purposes other than a K2 Enterprises’ training event is prohibited.
Good Fits For Cloud
• The firm and application has no confidential information
• Not a core competence
• Need to scale up and down
• Example applications:
– Expense tracking and reporting
– Bill payment
– In the right situation, accounting software
– Email, archiving
Copyright © 2016 K2 Enterprises, LLC. Reproduction or reuse for purposes other than a K2 Enterprises’ training event is prohibited.
Good Fits For On‐Premise
• The firm and application has significant confidential information
• Strategic to the organization
• Speed and integration important
• Example applications:
– ERP/Accounting Software
– Email integrated into phone system
Copyright © 2016 K2 Enterprises, LLC. Reproduction or reuse for purposes other than a K2 Enterprises’ training event is prohibited.
Good Fits For Hybrid
• The firm and application has some confidential information
• Costs for core system can be controlled
• Large number of remote workers with minimal confidential information
• Example applications:
– Run ERP/Accounting Software On‐Premise
– Run Expense tracking and reporting, bill payment in the Cloud
– Hosted email integrated to premise phone or vice versa
Copyright © 2016 K2 Enterprises, LLC. Reproduction or reuse for purposes other than a K2 Enterprises’ training event is prohibited.
Cloud Data Center Advantages
• Redundant communication lines
• Generators for backup power
• SLA (service level agreements) of 99.999+%
– Very important to look at how “uptime” defined
• Physical security and control
• Command centers
• SOC/SSAE 16 certifications (often inherited)
• Probable BC/DR preparedness
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Cloud Shortcomings
• Speed
• Integration with other applications
• Data integrity
• Security of data and regulatory compliance
• Control of data and application changes
• Reliability
• Lack of feature depth on products
• Governance
Copyright © 2016 K2 Enterprises, LLC. Reproduction or reuse for purposes other than a K2 Enterprises’ training event is prohibited.
On‐Premise Shortcomings
• Lack of expertise
• Cost controls
• Responsiveness
• Complexity of installation, operation
• Ability to satisfy needs
• Single site risk
• Disaster Recovery
– Power outages
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Hybrid Shortcomings
• Integration
– Initial integration creation
– Maintenance and update as applications change
• Portions of the system could be out, rendering the entire system unusable
• Costs will need to be controlled
• Vendors
– Will make changes affecting your operations
– Will make changes at timing not favorable to you
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Public Cloud Vs. Private Cloud
What Technologies Have Made This Possible?
• Public Cloud (Hosted)
– Cheap, unmetered Internet access (at risk with Net Neutrality gone)
– Virtualization
– Dot com bust made for data center bargains
– Less expensive model for vendors
– Very large scale SANs
– Increased server power
• Public Cloud (SaaS)
– Better development tools
– Faster centralized compute
• Private Cloud
– Citrix XenDesktop, or VMware View/Horizon
– Lower Priced Storage Area Networks (SANs)
– Backup Appliances for Business Continuity/DR and off‐site capabilities
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Cloud Vs. On‐Premise Summary
Public Cloud‐SaaS/Hosted
• Subscription based services
• Maintained by third‐party
• Data stored somewhere else
• Multiple solution providers
• Execution through a browser
• Data secured by third‐party
• Immature ‐ limited features
• Very scalable
• How will my data convert
• Built‐in disaster recovery
On‐Premise/Private Cloud
• Purchase the solution
• Stored and maintained locally
• Store & protect data locally
• Single source solutions
• Client/server implementation
• Data security is up to you
• Mature code is feature rich
• Heavy investment to scale
• Data fairly easy to convert
• Disaster recovery is up to me
Copyright © 2016 K2 Enterprises, LLC. Reproduction or reuse for purposes other than a K2 Enterprises’ training event is prohibited.
DEFINE YOUR NEEDS AND WHAT SOLUTIONS ARE AVAILABLE TO MEET THESE NEEDS
Based On What Is Available From Technology Vendors
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Only You Can Define Your Needs
• Review business plan strategy and tactics
• Look for opportunities to satisfy high value strategies and tactics
• Locate potential solutions
• Run the numbers for 7‐10 years as noted earlier
Copyright © 2016 K2 Enterprises, LLC. Reproduction or reuse for purposes other than a K2 Enterprises’ training event is prohibited.
Choices You Can Make
• Stay on‐premise using remote enabling technologies such as Citrix XenDesktop
• Using hosting companies such as InsynQ, CETROM, Xcentric, Rackspace or Amazon
• Use SaaS (Software as a Service) applications that run in a browser
• Mix solutions together and create “hybrid” solutions, probably the most common
Copyright © 2016 K2 Enterprises, LLC. Reproduction or reuse for purposes other than a K2 Enterprises’ training event is prohibited.
Accounting Firm End Game
• Use Thomson Virtual Office and Right Networks
• Use CCH Axcess
• Host everything with a CPA Firm‐centric company– Xcentric
– InsynQ
– CETROM
– Etc.
• Choose SaaS applications (incomplete today)
• Run everything in‐house virtualized and managed– Backup to alternate site or into Cloud for safety
• Maintain traditional LAN with local support
Copyright © 2016 K2 Enterprises, LLC. Reproduction or reuse for purposes other than a K2 Enterprises’ training event is prohibited.
Industry End Game
• Host everything with a general hosting company
– Microsoft Azure
– Amazon
– RackSpace
– CETROM
• Use Hosted or specialty vendors such as Right Networks, Unidata or Qutera for QuickBooks
• Choose SaaS applications
• Run everything in‐house virtualized and managed
– Backup to alternate site or into Cloud for safety
• Maintain traditional LAN with local support
Copyright © 2016 K2 Enterprises, LLC. Reproduction or reuse for purposes other than a K2 Enterprises’ training event is prohibited.
Goals
• Maximize reliability and speed
• Minimize downtime and cost
• Provide flexible client solutions
• Work Anywhere, Anytime, Any Place…or not
• Most of you don’t care about how the technology works, you just want to get your work done
Copyright © 2016 K2 Enterprises, LLC. Reproduction or reuse for purposes other than a K2 Enterprises’ training event is prohibited.
SO HOW DO WE GET THAT DONE?
Does Anyone Have The Magic Formula?
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List Major Cloud Technologies That Can Work For Your Organization
• Office 365
• SaaS Accounting
– FreshBooks
– Wave
– Sage One
– QuickBooks Online
– Sage 300 Online
– Epicor Online
– Etc.
• Expense Reporting
– Tallie
• Vertical solutions
– Time & Billing
– Projects
– Specialized
• Document Sharing
– SmartVault
– ShareFile
– SharePoint
• Document Mgmt.
– GoFileRoom
– eFileCabinet
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Cloud Options For CPA FirmsSolution Limitations Advantages Annual $/10 Users
Virtual Office CS (Citrix) Only use Thomson apps and MS Office
Simple installation, consistent speed
$50,400
Hosted on Cloud 9 Can run only 331 supported apps
All installation and updates done
$6,575 + 25,000Thomson/CCH fees
Hosted on InsynQ Can run only 300+ supported apps
All installation and updates done
$17,200 + 25,000Thomson/CCH fees
Hosted on Xcentric(Citrix) > 10 users
Can run only supported apps
All installation and updates done
$30,000 + 25,000Thomson/CCH fees
Hosted on CETROM(Citrix)
Can run any apps All installation and updates done
$32,000 + 25,000Thomson/CCH fees
Private Cloud (Citrix or VMware)
Quality of support makesor breaks
Speed and Flexibility Varies, approx. $9,000 + 25,000 Thomson/CCH fees
Managed Services to support Private
Won’t include hardware repairs
Software patches and backups
Varies, approx. $24,000
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Cloud Options For IndustrySolution Limitations Advantages Annual $/10 Users
Microsoft Azure Vendor/Self installed and maintained
Simple installation, consistent speed
$9,000
Amazon Vendor/Self installed and maintained
All installation and updates done
$10,200
Rackspace Vendor/Self installed and maintained
All installation and updates done
$7,200
Bank Example such as Profit Stars
Can run only supported apps All installation and updates done
$30,000
Skyline Can run only rental apps All installation and updates done
$35,880
Private Cloud (Citrix or VMware)
Quality of support makes or breaks
Speed and Flexibility Varies, approx. $9,000
Managed Services to support Private
Won’t include hardware repairs Software patches and backups
Varies, approx. $24,000
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Illustrative Private Cloud Configuration For 5‐50 Users
Small Redundant Virtualized System• Dual HP DL360
• MSA P2000 G3 SAN
• Backup Appliance
• Dual UPS units
• Wireless Firewall
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CPA FirmPublic Cloud Vs. Private Cloud
Public Cloud (Hosted)
Virtual Office CS
– Citrix
– Thomson products only (no outside vendor integrations)
– Reliability/speed good
– $420/user/mo.
Hosted
– Cloud9 Real Time
– InsynQ
– Xcentric
– CETROM
– Others
Private Cloud (On‐Premise)
SaaS
– GoSystem RS
– GoFileRoom
– Office 365
Hybrid
– ShareFile
– SmartVault
– SurePrep
– XCM
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Licensing
Public Cloud (Hosted)
• Applications from vendor
– Accounting Software
– Included with little negotiation
– Licensed separately for other Cloud providers
• MS Office
– Included in monthly fees
– SPLA licensing
• Hosted by Microsoft (Office 365)
– Email $4‐8/month
– Office $20‐22/month
Private Cloud
• Applications
– Negotiated with publishers as they are today
– Monthly payments common
• MS Office
– Open Licensing/ Software Assurance
– OR Office 365
– NOT OEM
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Office Features And Pricing
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Office 365 Features And Pricing
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Some Thoughts On Licensing
• Office 365 ProPlus is less expensive than either Open License plus Software Assurance or SPLA– Version, one time plus maintenance over 9 years– Office 2013 Standard = $233*3+(109*6)=$1353– Office 2013 Professional = $318*3+(148*6)=$1842– Office 365 ProPlus = $144*9=$1296 (forever), stop paying, you don’t own the license, and MS Office is disabled
– Office 365 E3= $240*9=$2160 (forever), most expensive of all, but some bonuses with hosted email, Office Online
– SPLA = Vendor rate * forever = $14.95 *108 = $1615
• Expect software audits (SAM or full) from Microsoft• OEM can’t be used in many situations – avoid!
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Implementation Steps
• SaaS– Review contract
– Look at SLA
– Convert data
– Integrate to other systems
• Hosted– Review contract
– Agree to implementation steps
– Migrate data
– Train users
• On‐Premise (status quo?)– Coordinate with Internal IT or managed service provider
– Revise implementation to enable more Cloud tech
– Coordinate integration between SaaS and in‐house implementation
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Implementation Considerations
• SaaS
– Aggregate all costs
– Review security
– Review integrations
– Look at limitations
• Hosted
– Understand limitations of solution
– Review scalability and integration
– Consider local technology support
• On‐Premise (status quo?)
– Review expertise
– Consider past costs and results
– Don’t underestimate your in‐house expertise vs. outsource skills
– Blend in‐house and managed services capabilities to minimize risk
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Inappropriate Use Of Data
• What keeps Cloud solution providers like Thomson Reuters, CCH, Intuit, or Microsoft from mining confidential data if it is stored on their computers?
– Your agreement with them makes such action a violation of your contract.
– If one of these companies did mine your confidential data, word would eventually get out and it would kill the company – they know this.
– They can already get your data anytime they want by simply designing a malicious patch to the software you are running on‐premise.
Copyright © 2014 K2 Enterprises, LLC. Reproduction or reuse for purposes other than a K2 Enterprises’ training event is prohibited.
Interception During Transmission
• Cloud solution providers use the same secure data transfer technology as banks
• Third‐parties, like VeriSign, provide certificates that authenticate web sites. SSL Extended Validation displays the "Green Bar" in your web browser.
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What If Cloud Provider Goes Under?
• Will you be able to get your data back if your Cloud solution provider goes bankrupt?
• Do you have a plan for restoring the data to another solution?
• Develop a contingency plan that includes producing or acquiring a backup copy of your data and for keeping operations going if your Cloud provider goes out of business.
Copyright © 2014 K2 Enterprises, LLC. Reproduction or reuse for purposes other than a K2 Enterprises’ training event is prohibited.
Control Over Acquisitions
• Who has the right to acquire and start using Cloud services with your data? Are employees already employing these services without approval?
• IDC recommendation – centralized acquisition as a matter of company policy.
• Uncontrolled use of Cloud services by employees can expose business data to unacceptable risks.
Copyright © 2014 K2 Enterprises, LLC. Reproduction or reuse for purposes other than a K2 Enterprises’ training event is prohibited.
Cloud Vendor Evaluation Checklist
• Financial stability– How long has the provider been in business?
– What is the company's financial standing?
– Is this a startup or a well‐established service provider?
• Security practices– How do they vet their staff of administrators and others with high‐level rights?
– Is all data encrypted during transmission?
– Is encryption a software‐only solution?
– Is the data encrypted at rest?
Copyright © 2014 K2 Enterprises, LLC. Reproduction or reuse for purposes other than a K2 Enterprises’ training event is prohibited.
Cloud Vendor Evaluation Checklist
• System availability and performance
– What level of support will you receive and what is the expected turnaround?
– Is support available 24*7*365?
– What are the patch management policies and procedures?
– Ask for down time history.
– Review the Service Level Agreement (SLA) for guaranteed uptime and financial penalties for downtime that exceeds the guarantee.
Copyright © 2014 K2 Enterprises, LLC. Reproduction or reuse for purposes other than a K2 Enterprises’ training event is prohibited.
Cloud Vendor Evaluation Checklist
• Backup, recovery, and attack response
– How are attacks monitored and documented?
– Will the vendor notify users when a data breach occurs?
– Can data be moved to another vendor?
– What recovery methods are used?
– Are all servers and backup servers located in the U.S.?
– Can you backup your mission critical data in a form and location that can be restored and working quickly should the provider fail?
Copyright © 2014 K2 Enterprises, LLC. Reproduction or reuse for purposes other than a K2 Enterprises’ training event is prohibited.
Cloud Vendor Evaluation Checklist
• Customer Satisfaction Ratings
– Review online customer reviews and evaluations
Copyright © 2016 K2 Enterprises, LLC. Reproduction or reuse for purposes other than a K2 Enterprises’ training event is prohibited.
Given what you know about technology today, would you set up a new office today the same way your current office is set up?
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Public Cloud Economics
• Is the Cloud always cheaper?
– (Are you certain it will always be cheaper?)
• Can you always access your data?
– (if no, cheaper does not matter!)
• Does going to the Cloud change overhead?
– Reduce support costs? (FTEs or overhead cost)
– Utility expenses?
• Will you be better off?
– Features and functions, workflow, collaboration?
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Wrap Up
• Are needed tools available from the Cloud?
• Is your Cloud access reliable?
• Does the cost savings/benefits justify costs?
• Are you prepared?
• www.accountingsoftwareworld.com
• www.totallypaperless.com
Copyright © 2016 K2 Enterprises, LLC. Reproduction or reuse for purposes other than a K2 Enterprises’ training event is prohibited.
Questions?
• If you have questions, please e‐mail [email protected]
• Current summary information at www.technologybestpractices.com
• or follow me on twitter @RPJohnston