Citric's infrastructure consultancy services cover everything needed to implement and maintain a secure, reliable and efficient server network. This is a big area, so on this page you'll find a description of just some of these services.
Server/Network Provisioning
Consultancy in this area provides the core services on which good networks are built. Whether it's a brand new network, an extension to an existing network, or a hardware renewal, we aim to offer you a complete service. This could include any or all of the following:
- Hardware Acquisition - we can detail all the equipment you need, for the solution to work reliably and allow for at least three years growth. We can acquire hardware on your behalf, or recommend suppliers.
- Network equipment and cabling - we can take care of organising any required cabling through our partners, and we can plan and implement the physical arrangement of the datacenter with regards to power, cooling and network connections. We can also advise on comms (internet and voice) provision, and configure firewalls/routers to ensure secure and efficient internet access.
- Core Server Builds - once the network infrastructure is in place, we can configure the servers that will run the network - Active Directory, DHCP and DNS. From that point on, your network is ready to run.
- Server Upgrades - Testing, planning and implementing upgrades to ensure minimum disruption and maximum performance.
Backup Services
Citric can implement backup systems that require minimal user interaction (perhaps as little as swapping tapes once a month), but still ensure you can restore data from either as recently as possible (for example, using a snapshot backup means the last backup is no more than 15 minutes before), or as long ago as 12 months.
Remote backup services - using spare internet bandwidth to constantly backup files as they change to a remote server. This has several advantages over local tape/disk backups:
- There are no tapes to remember to change over.
- Because files are backed up as they change, you can always restore the latest version.
- There are no tapes or disks to lose - in the event of a major disaster, such as fire or theft in the datacenter, you can restore over the internet to a different location.
- You only pay for what you backup - a typical tape system for backing up to 40GB per day will cost over £1000. If you have a small new network, it may take a year or so before you need that capacity - whereas with remote backup, you can pay only to backup a few gigabytes in the first months and gradually increase the cost as you backup more.
Network Perimeter Services
Citric can offer a number of solutions to secure and monitor incoming and outgoing internet access, ensuring you get the most from internet services without exposing the company to unnecessary risk. These include:
- Firewall configuration.
- User internet usage monitoring, including policy formation and enforcement.
- Secure publishing of services such as remote access, email and web servers.
- Spam and website content filtering.