External IT

As you well know, the distinct shift in how IT services are delivered today is toward cloud computing. This is particularly true for small to midsize businesses.

In the pages that follow we’ll talk about all the advantages the cloud has for both companies and IT Directors. Along the way, we’ll point out why no other cloud computing company, to date, can match our technology, security, ease-of-migration and management, technical expertise, client satisfaction record or operational flexibility. Are we overpromising? We may be understating things.

What gives us, and our clients, so many advantages?

It’s how well we work in support of IT staff and their companies. It’s our unsurpassed infrastructure. And it’s the one thing that makes cloud computing live up to its promise: the OS33 Portal Desktop.

OS33 vs. managed hosting

A tuba vs. the New York Philharmonic. A linebacker vs. the Dallas Cowboys. Managed hosting vs. the Portal Desktop.

As you well know, "managed hosting" is just one component in a comprehensive IT solution. It doesn't unify applications, data, or in any way make a company's full IT suite easier to use, nor does it ramp up employee performance. External IT, with OS33, does all of these things.

And think about yourself in this equation. Managed hosting does very little to help you manage all of your IT. It does nothing to make your life easier when you need to add new employees, update software or make sure that laptops, PCs and mobile devices are configured properly. External IT, with OS33, makes all of these tasks easier. But then OS33, unlike managed hosting, is a unifying platform loaded with a comprehensive range of IT management tools.

OS33 vs. stand-alone SaaS

SaaS applications are hugely popular and will only become more prevalent going forward. The problem with stand-alone SaaS, however, is just that, it stands alone. Your staff has to log in to each application separately. The applications themselves are not unified in a way to allow for easy file sharing or collaboration.

They don't give you easy administration tools, such as business dashboards or centralized permissions control. Permissions have to be managed and maintained in each SaaS location. If someone leaves the company you have to change their permission status with each SaaS application. The work is tedious, and potentially you could overlook an application or two.  This is a very real, and reoccurring problem with stand-alone SaaS these days.

Log in. Log out. Log in. Log out. Day after day after day after day.

Stand-alone SaaS also doesn't allow for outsourcing your Help Desk if need be—covering your staff after hours, on weekends, or when you're on vacation. And during regular business hours, if your company is working with six different SaaS applications they, or you, may have to deal with six different support departments. This also means logging in and out each time they use an application. Not exactly the best way for an IT Director to make new friends.

OS33 unifies all of your IT. This means that the people in your company have single sign-on access to applications, files, email, everything.

When there's a problem, they can have the option of directing it to us. That way, there's only one support ticket for them to write, or one call to make. Whichever they prefer. And they'll get a level of help that's honestly useful. The members of our support group have an average of five years experience. They're prompt, adept at resolving issues, and can work in support of your in-house IT staff, with as much flexibility as you need, right up to 24/7.

OS33 vs. Hosted Desktop

OS33 is not just another version of Hosted Desktop. It's a different, and far superior technology—a Portal Desktop. First launched in 2002 it has since progressed through countless releases, adding greatly expanded functionality. Today, many thousands of users, in four countries, work in the cloud every day with OS33 and External IT.

Unlike Hosted Desktop, OS33 does not sit on top of your native desktop and take over your screen. Whatever applications you have open, whether they're hosted locally or in the cloud, are easy to find. They all appear on one task bar.

Unlike Hosted Desktop, OS33 also works with virtually any application, integrating Win-based and Web-based applications with equal dexterity. (Hosted Desktop technology was originally created for a Window-centric world. You can imbed a browser so you can connect to SaaS applications, but there's no need for this type of detour with Portal Desktop Technology.)

This means that OS33 works perfectly with PCs, Macs, the iPad, and even works with mobile, though ideally in a customized form given the smaller screen size.

Hosted Desktop does not work well on an iPad or with your cell phone.

The biggest, and fundamental difference between a Portal Desktop and a Hosted Desktop is that there are tremendous tools already built into the Portal Desktop. A Hosted Desktop is essentially just an empty platform. To give it functionality comparable to the Portal Desktop is no small understanding, particularly if you want it to have a similar range of time saving administrative tools.

You can add a new user in five to ten minutes - covering everything from assigning applications to permissions. This frees you up to have a life outside of work, and to concentrate on bigger, more interesting strategic IT initiatives for your company.

OS33 gives you a range of functionality that even expands what can be done with Windows-based applications. This is due, in part, because of how well it integrates both Win-based apps and SaaS. It's also ready to roll with collaborative tools, third party gadgets and dashboards. Our clients will tell you straight away that OS33 has taken their IT capabilities to a place that's well beyond what they imagined possible with their locally hosted IT.

For many companies, there is one more aspect of External IT and the OS33 Portal Desktop that goes way beyond winning the built-in capabilities round of the contest. It's the reason why OS33 simply walks away with all the chips on the table: security. OS33 is a much more reliable option for failover. Hosted Desktops rely on simplistic routers. What's more, with External IT you can have complete, secondary failover protection housed at a separate site. Our continuous replication and standby actually come in at 80% less than the cost of traditional disaster recovery implementations.

For quick reference, here is a more specific, pocket-size list of External IT/OS33 benefits. Okay, “pocket-size” may be understating things a bit. You may need two pockets, and an attaché. What you won’t need is any help in seeing why we make companies more competitive, and IT Directors happier.

The OS33 Portal Desktop lets anyone work from anywhere. All they need is a computer and an Internet connection. They have limitless freedom, and their desktop interface experience is exactly the same wherever they are.

External IT provides you with a “turnkey” solution. Whatever you need to move to the cloud, however comprehensive the service or configuration, we can provide it.

Our migration teams are highly experienced, across a range of industries, and employ a ten-step process that ensures the smoothest possible transition to the cloud.

As one of the pioneering firms in the world of cloud computing, few companies can offer our depth of knowledge for such a well-proven technical solution.