Credit Crunch?...What Credit Crunch?

no worries…no interest!

You cannot escape the doom and gloom surrounding the recent credit crunch.
Higher interest rates, soaring inflation, increased fuel costs…the list seems endless.

So, to give you a break from all the bad news, we wanted to offer you something more positive instead like saving your business money.

Until the 31st October 2008, Concise IT are offering 0% interest lease options* on the complete range of HP Products including:

ProLiant Servers
PDA’s
Desktops
Monitors
Notebooks
Printers
Thin Clients
Carepacks

If you are planning to replace or upgrade your network with HP hardware, now would be the best time to do it, as you can spread the cost over 24 months – totally interest free!

Example. Spend £3000 on new hardware.
Spread the cost interest free over 24 months = £125 per month.

To find out more please call our customer services team on 0800 0833160.

* Minimum transaction £1000. Subject to credit approval. 0% lease applies to HP Hardware & Carepacks only.

Concise IT acheive the top 5 Microsoft Network Competencies

Microsoft Gold Partner - top 5 competencies and counting!

Microsoft confirmed that Concise IT have now passed the top 5 Network competencies from Microsoft.

They are:

Advanced Infrastructure Solutions
Networking Infrastructure Solutions
Information Worker Solutions
Mobility Solutions
AND Unified Communications Solutions (We have too many competencies to fit on the Microsoft Gold Partner Logo - see below)

Virtualisation - a better way to manage your IT infrastructure

Virtualisation is a proven software technology that is rapidly transforming the IT landscape and fundamentally changing the way that organisations manage their infrastructure.

Basically, it lets you transform hardware into software and can benefit anyone who uses a computer. It enables you to virtualise the hardware resources of an x86-based computer - including the CPU, RAM, hard disk and network controller - to create a fully functional virtual machine that can run its own operating system and applications just like a “real” computer. However, virtualising a single physical computer is just the beginning.

Multiple virtual machines share hardware resources without interfering with each other so that you can safely run several operating systems and applications at the same time on a single computer.

The VMware approach to virtualisation inserts a thin layer of software directly on the computer hardware or on a host operating system.

This software layer creates virtual machines so that multiple operating systems can run concurrently on a single physical computer.

VMware offers a robust virtualisation platform that can scale across hundreds of interconnected physical computers and storage devices to form an entire virtual infrastructure.

How virtualisation can help disaster recovery

Business continuity and disaster recovery (DR) planning are critical to managing risks in a successful business. According to the Definitive handbook for Business Management, between 60-90% of companies that do not have a proactive disaster plan find themselves out of business within 24 months of experiencing a major disaster.

However, implementation of a reliable recovery strategy with fast time to recovery is expensive largely because it involves maintaining recovery equipment that mirrors the equipment in the primary data centre. Virtualisation can overcome this problem and help your Business Continuity and DR plans in a number of ways:

Built-in continuous availability - provides inherent high availability at several levels
Hardware Independence - virtual machines encapsulate the complete environment, so applications can be restored to any hardware with a virtualisation platform without concern for the differences in underlying hardware

Hardware Consolidation - failover servers can also enjoy the consolidation benefits enjoyed by your live servers, usually with twice the ratio

Find out more

We believe that virtualisation is the way forward and are keen to introduce the benefits of this technology to as many organisations as possible. To this end we are running a series of free-of-chrage breakfast briefings during 2008 at which you can find out more.

We except demand for these events to be high, so to reserve your place, click here.

Business Continuity Service

Reasons why Business Continuity is becoming the must have service from Concise IT.

A recent survey by Aveco revealed the frightening statistic that 43% of organisations who experience a flood or fire will never reopen, and of the remainder 80% will fail within 13 months of the event.

Statutory regulations, such as those governing companies regulated by the FSA are now starting to place demands on businesses to ensure that they can continue to function and meet regulatory obligations in the event of an unforeseen interruption.

Traditionally Disaster Recovery (DR) has been the start and finish of organisational strategy for dealing with an unplanned event. This would ensure that IT systems and data can be restored after unscheduled downtime.

But over the last few years the growth of Business Continuity has meant a shift in focus to the prevention of such events, rather than the cure of DR.

Business Continuity Management (BCM) covers the whole lifecycle of disaster prevention and recovery. It embraces the entire organisation and provides a planned and controlled method of anticipating and responding to events that are likely to interrupt key business activities.

To cater for the huge demands for a Business Continuity Service, Concise IT has invested in a dedicated 12-seat Business Continuity Suite for small to medium sized companies, that also compliments our Disaster Recovery (DR) Service.

The Business Continuity Suite is based at our new offices at Gadbrook Park, Northwich, which has great links to the A556 and M6, just 10 minutes from Chester and 20 minutes from Manchester and Liverpool.

Call Aiden Wilkinson or Leigh Lockwood for further information on the Business Continuity Service on 0800 083 3160.

Free VMware Seminars in 2008

VMware Seminars 2008 (Free of Charge)

A series of short, free-of-charge Virtualisation briefings have been developed in partnership with VMware and HP to show you the benefits of server consolidation and containment.

By attending you will gain a detailed understanding of VMware Virtual Infrastructure 3 (VI3).
You will also be introduced to HP solutions that, coupled with VMware, will help reduce your infrastructure, power and cooling costs, therefore lowering your carbon footprint.
Book online for one of the following dates in 2008:

Friday 15th February (FULLY BOOKED)
Friday 14th March (FULLY BOOKED)
Friday 18th April (FULLY BOOKED)
Friday 16th May (FULLY BOOKED)
Friday 13th June (FULLY BOOKED)
Friday 19th September
Friday 17th October
Friday 14th November
Friday 12th December

If you cannot make one of these dates, but would like more information and an onsite briefing, please call Leigh Lockwood on freephone 0800 083 3160.

Agenda

9.00 Breakfast, Registration & Welcome
9.30 Introduction to VMware VI3
10.00 VMware VI3 Demonstration / Consolidation & Containment
10.30 HP and VMware; Storage and infrastructure Virtualisation
10.50 Questions & Answers
11.00 Finish

Book online

Concise IT Expansion Reaps Rewards

Concise IT is booming with success after moving to new premises at Gadbrook Park in Cheshire.

We are celebrating doubling our turnover in two years having seen a 50 per cent growth this financial year since moving to a new 4,500 sq ft office at Royal Court.

Apart from Network design, support, and implementation, Concise IT has proven expertise in more specialist areas such as Disaster Recovery, Business Continuity, Capacity Planning and Virtualisation.

Managing Director David Southern puts the current boom down to the combination of the quality of service that Concise IT provides, and its relocation to the new office.

“We are very proud of what we offer to companies in the local business community and across the UK. We are seen as a ‘Centre of Excellence’ by our clients because we have invested in a dedicated Business Continuity Suite and state-of-the-art seminar room where we regularly hold live demonstrations of the latest business critical technologies from VMware, Microsoft, Cisco, Sophos and HP.

“Now we are supporting and monitoring hundreds of business networks nationwide, with any potential problem being instantly notified, enabling us to alert the client and ensure that system ‘downtime’ is a thing of the past.

“Successful businesses are increasingly reliant on networks and the internet, for one client, every hour a server is down can cost them £60,000, so it is crucial their network is operating 24/7.”

He added: “We believe in ‘Best Practice’, and from experience know that it is better to invest in quality, be it software or hardware, as it is proven to the field to be more stable and secure. That ethos extends throughout our organisation, to the quality of people and premises. The impact our move has had on our business proves the point.”

VMware Virtual Infrastructure Breakfast Briefing

VMware Virtual Infrastructure Breakfast Briefing


Outline

A series of short, free-of-charge Virtualisation briefings have been developed in partnership with VMware and HP to show you the benefits of server consolidation and containment.

By attending you will gain a detailed understanding of VMware Virtual Infrastructure 3 (VI3).
You will also be introduced to HP solutions that, coupled with VMware, will help reduce your infrastructure, power and cooling costs, therefore lowering your carbon footprint.


Choose from one of the following dates in 2008 Click to book your place now:

October 17th
November 21st
December 12th

Attendees will receive a £500 certificate that can be used againstour Capacity Planning Service (1 per company).

If you cannot make one of these dates, but would like more information and onsite briefing, please call Andrew Flavell on Freephone 0800 0833160



Agenda
09.00 Breakfast, Registration & Welcome
09.30 Introduction to VMware VI3
10.15 VMware VI3 Demonstration / Consolidation & Containment
10:45 HP and VMware; Storage & Infrastructure Virtualisation
11.15 Questions & Answers
11:30 Finish

RSVP
Briefings are delivered in small groups, so dates will be filled quickly.
Therefore we urge you to call ASAP to reserve your free place and avoid disappointment.


Contact Andrew Flavell (VMware Sales Professional)
Freephone: 0800 083 3160
Register online: www.conciseit.co.uk/seminars