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August 17, 2005

Calculating Total Cost of Ownership

When one operating system costs $2000 and another $150, the cheaper one makes more sense at first glance. There are a ton of hidden costs when setting up a network server that go beyond the price tag on the box. We call the sum of those costs "Total Cost of Ownership."

ZDNet has a good discussion of the factors involved in TCO:

Those variables and others--such as what distribution of Linux is in play and the version of Windows or Unix it's being compared with--make it impossible to plug numbers into a preset formula and spit out an easy answer, explained Al Gillen, research director of systems software for tech analyst IDC, which has been doing TCO studies for several years.

Both Linux advocates and Microsoft will tell you that their way of doing things has the advantage. From the same article:

"The cost of acquisition of software, hardware--all the things you buy up front--that's a minority element of the total cost of ownership of any operating system," he said. "Whether you pay $2,000 for a Windows license or $49.95 for a boxed copy of Linux, over the course of its lifetime, that ends up being a minor cost."

Gillen pointed out that $2,000 divided over five years is $400. "What is the cost for a technical support professional per hour to be there on staff? Probably a couple of hundred dollars," he noted.

This makes a lot of sense at face value, but it's really a lot more complicated. What looks like a minimal cost over five years isn't really. If you're setting up a mail server, for example, you need a license for Windows, but then you need another one for Exchange. Then you need client licenses. If you need a database server as well, you need a license for SQL Server. You probably won't want to run e-mail and database engine on the same box, so now you need two Windows server licenses.

In the Linux world, you simply install the same $150 package on one or more servers. Activate the mail program on one, the web server on another, and the database on a third. Your total outlay is still $150.

But that's not the end of the discussion, of course. This assumes that the products are equal; that's not even a dangerous assumption, it's foolhardy. There's also the labor factor. We'll discuss these in the future.

Posted by Edward J. Branley at 11:06 AM | TrackBack

August 9, 2005

Upgrading Video Surveillance with Digital.

EMC Launches Security Data Storage System

Aggregating and analyzing security data from multiple sources will speed response time to security incidents.


EMC Corp. on Tuesday unveiled Surveillance Analysis and Management Solution, or SAMS, a system that helps businesses store, archive, retrieve, and analyze video and other security-related data collected by security devices such as surveillance cameras and access control systems.


Demand for video surveillance systems has grown in the wake of heightened concerns over security. SAMS includes EMC's Clariion storage arrays, Centera content-addressable storage system, and other software and services.


[via InformationWeek]

 

This is a good example of re-packaging existing hardware for a new task.  Video storage has long been something that TV editors and the like consider, not the average business.  We have a client that's a small bar that has a nine-camera video system.  Recording to tape requires a lot of manual effort, so a fully-digital storage system makes good sense.  Video surveillance systems are often not considered mission-critical to the businesses who install them.  They're more an after-something-happens concept.  A manager might monitor his employees via video, but retrieving stored images only hits the radar when the video is needed by law enforcement.

 

An EMC solution is going to be on the high end in terms of cost, but there are a number of brands and options.  After all, if you can use TiVo or Cox DVR at home, there's no reason that technology can't be applied to the workplace.

Posted by Edward J. Branley at 3:01 PM | TrackBack

August 1, 2005

"Phishing" Don't Involve Trout!

By now, I'm sure that most of y'all have received e-mails from banks, financial institutions, and eBay, saying that you need to re-login to fix a problem with your account. The catch is, of course, that you don't have an account at many of these banks, or you've never used eBay or PayPal in your life.

Those messages are from criminals who are on "phishing" expeditions. The criminal sends out an e-mail that looks like it originates from a bank, eBay, or PayPal. They tell you there is a problem with your account and suggest you click a link in the message to go fix it. If you click one of those links, you go to a login page. You log into your account and the site responds with a "thank you" for fixing the problem.

The catch here is that you didn't log into the bank or eBay. You just gave your login ID and password to a criminal who will now use that data to steal from you and the bank.

How can you avoid becoming a victim of a phishing attack? The easiest way is to never, ever, ever, ever, log into a financial website from an e-mail message. If you have to do banking business, or if you want to pay for something via PayPal, open a new browser window, then log into the website.

If you suspect you've been a victim of a phishing attack, contact your bank or financial institution immediately! Tell them what you did and that your password may be compromised. Treat the incident in the same way you would treat a stolen credit or debit card.

Posted by Edward J. Branley at 1:01 PM | TrackBack