The technology landscape is changing fast. Threats are becoming much more sophisticated and global, the competition is increasingly intense, and the need to modernize your environment to keep pace has never been greater.
That’s why it’s so astonishing that 7 percent of PCs still run the long-dead-and-buried Windows XP, according to Business Insider! Another 48 percent run Windows 7, even though mainstream support has already ended and extended support will end on January 14, 2020—but only if you have Service Pack 1 installed (and deep pockets).
So what happens if you stay on Windows past its end-of-support date? According to Microsoft:
“An unsupported version of Windows will no longer receive software updates from Windows Update. These updates include security updates that can help protect your PC from harmful viruses, spyware, and other malicious software which can steal your personal information.”
At least some of the blame for the massive “WannaCry” cyberattack, reports Business Insider, can be attributed to people and IT organizations not upgrading their PCs.
Microsoft Office 365: The cloud-based business productivity workhorse
Most of us are familiar with Microsoft Office 365, commonly referred to as Office 365 or O365. According to a recent article, there are some 120 million business users.
The cloud-based productivity suite includes the business apps we most often use—Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, OneNote, and Access (PC only)—plus, services like Exchange, OneDrive, SharePoint and others.
You can use O365 productivity apps on any Windows, Mac, iPad, iPhone, and Android device. An Office 365 subscription also ensures you’ll have the latest Office apps and updates when they happen.
Microsoft manages the data center, the infrastructure and servers—and they replicate your data to multiple data centers for disaster recovery purposes. You can scratch Patch Tuesdays off your list, as well as infrastructure setup and software management, and move resources to more strategic initiatives that add value to your organization.
Microsoft 365: A path to digital transformation
Microsoft 365 offers a pathway for those who haven’t yet started a digital transformation journey—or those who want to continue it. This integrated offering includes Windows 10, Office 365 and Enterprise Mobility & Security for a secure and transformative digital experience that inspires greater productivity.
3 reasons to upgrade to Microsoft 365
- Enterprise-class security – Get significant security features that help protect your business and data, such as Office 365 Advanced Threat Protection and Windows Defender Exploit Guard, plus a consistent security configuration across devices with the always on, always up-to-date Windows Defender.
- Easier device deployment and setup – Simplify IT administration with a single admin console to quickly set up and manage users, devices and apps.
- Discounted licensing – Reduce and better manage licensing costs with a more predictable cloud-based consumption model and value-added services to help you get the most out of Microsoft 365.
To back up…or not to back up?
Finally, most people are surprised to learn that there’s one very critical thing that Microsoft Office 365 does not do: It does not back up or restore your data.
That means that you cannot perform a point-in-time recovery. While they have multiple workarounds for Deleted item recovery, including the soon-to-be phased out litigation hold, Microsoft itself says that “point in time restoration of mailbox items is out of the scope of the Exchange service.”
That means that if you accidentally deleted an email yesterday that you desperately need today, you will not be able to retrieve it.
Fortunately, we have a solution.
Logicalis + Microsoft: A pathway to digital transformation
As a Microsoft Gold partner, Logicalis brings a team of highly skilled and certified solution architects and certified delivery engineers who can provide professional services across various Microsoft platform technologies, including Microsoft 365.
Our Extensible IT approach enables digital transformation by making it easier to deploy and manage new business services that work well together, whether on site or in the cloud. Our value-added services and cloud licensing model can help you drive down the cost of ownership, better leverage Microsoft investments and optimize business productivity and efficiency.
Finally, Logicalis offers industry-leading backup solutions to ensure that your data can be restored when you need it.
See compelling real-world examples of how Logicalis helps our customers transform their digital environments with Microsoft.
Wendy McQuiston is the Director of Microsoft Business at Logicalis, responsible for Microsoft consulting, design and the end delivery of the Microsoft solutions as well as the Gold partner relationship with Microsoft.