Just left a very exciting conversation with one of our IT partners and a client about Windows Small Business Server. This particular client, a national trade organization on Dupont Circle, has never had a server before and always connected like many home offices do - via a peer-to-peer network. But as they grew, and travel demands increased, they need a central, accessible place to store files. They also need a way to backup and archive data, something that has been a challenge in the past. Not to mention that their POP e-mail accounts (free with their web hosting package) are unreliable at best. They wanted an integrated, easy to maintain tool that would give them security, accessibility, and reliability. And they wanted it fast.

So as we looked for a solution, we came across Small Business Server (SBS) and were blown away. SBS takes many of the enterprise class server tools and technologies from Microsoft and combines them into one package, with a reasonable user limit. The included technologies range from the basic Windows Server to SharePoint Services (for collaboration) and Exchange (for e-mail). This is a great move by Microsoft because it pushes down technology - long used by large corporations - for small and medium businesses (SMBs). Now anyone with just a few employees can have a centralized server as well as their own Exchange e-mail and collaboration.

The actual server box is reasonable to buy and install. Qualified non-profits can even buy the software from TechSoup for next to nothing. And at the end of the day, your small company will be operating with the same technology as any global powerhouse.

So I will keep you posted on how SBS works out for our client, and feel free to contact me if you would like to learn more or schedule a demonstration.