Trustco InFocus Newsletter
Trustco InFocus - Secure Technology Solutions

InFocus Spring 2009
Return on IT budgets  
 
   
What's New at Trustco
Hitachi Prize Draw
Trustco Video Library
 
 
   
Features
Return on software budgets
Sun's SSD Technology
Energy efficient data centres
Storage Economics
Trustco AdVantage
 
 
   
Industry News
Doing more with less
Government on open source
IBM sales miss estimates
 
 
   
Techie Corner
Tips & Tricks From Our Technical Team  
 
   
Offers
Storage: DataCore free trial
Storage: HDS SMS 100 Demo
Web: ScanSafe free web audit
 
 
   

 

 
   
 

Welcome to our quarterly newsletter which this time focuses on return on investment. IT managers increasingly face the combined challenges of increased business demands and flat or squeezed IT budgets. We look at some approaches, technologies and support that can help to ensure you get the most from your budgets.

In this edition of InFocus we're looking at:

  • Maximising the value from your software budget
  • Building energy efficient data centres
  • Managing overall, long-term storage costs

We look forward to helping you drive down costs and extending the value of your budget.

Trevor Kennard
Trevor Kennard, Sales Director, Trustco PLC
Click Here to read our
Environmental Policy Statement
 
   
What's New at Trustco

Hitachi Prize Draw

Cutting the cost of data storage competition

Well done to Neil Allen, Director of IT at Lancing College who won a Bose sound docking station in our Hitachi prize draw. This draw is closed now, but take a look at the information on Hitachi's data storage products here.

We run regular competitions, so click here to see what's on offer today!

Video Library Additions

Our library of short, informative videos continues to grow. Click here for quick tips and insight into

  • Cost saving suggestions - and going green
  • Virtualisation
  • Reducing the volume of data you store and manage
  • Managing data storage

See our video library here
 

 
   
Making the most of your IT budget


Maximising the value you achieve from your software budget

 

Purchasing software licences is just the start of the story. Support and maintenance costs mount up over the years, so it makes sense to take stock of all your software contracts and ensure that you are getting the best value for money.

Click here for five top suggestions on how to control your expenditure on software upgrades and support.
 


 

SSDs... No flash in the pan, just instant performance benefits

Many customers need to provide faster access to data and are challenged by growing throughput requirements for their business applications. Achieving high performance for can be very challenging because servers are often rendered inefficient by storage bottlenecks. SSDs based on flash technology are emerging as a new enterprise class storage option for faster performance at a compelling price point and incredibly low power requirements.

Click here to read more...

  • Learn about Sun's SSD technology

  • Find out how to get Sun's Flash analyser to see how you can accelerate system performance

Latest: Oracle Corporation is to buy Sun Microsystems. Read the article...


 

Energy efficient data centres
Saving money and power through integrated disk & tape-based storage

The IT industry as a whole is urgently looking for ways to reduce power consumption. Given the state of power availability, improving efficiency is essential in order to make further data centre expansion economically and environmentally defensible, and board-level executives will certainly be realising this as the green IT debate continues.

 

For those that already have restricted power provisioning in place, there is a real challenge to find the most power efficient solutions. There are examples where data centre floor space cannot physically be utilised because the existing equipment has used up the power quota.

 

Click here to discover a range of technologies that can be deployed to save money and power.
 


 

Storage Economics: Understanding and managing overall storage costs

Difficult economic times require new approaches and strategies for reducing the cost of storage infrastructure investments. The past several years of IT procurement have left many IT organisations with underused and oversubscribed storage capacities. Now, with a squeeze on capital and credit, many organisations are faced with edicts to do more with less.


Storage Economics presents a major shift in the way companies assess their storage requirements and investment returns, from one focused on capital expenditure to the true ownership cost. These days the capital cost typically equates to just 20% of the total cost of ownership over 3 to 4 years, understanding the other 80% - the operational expense - is essential to containing and reducing the overall costs.

Click here to find out about this comprehensive methodology


 

Sign up to Trustco AdVantage

Trustco AdVantage enables you to maximise the benefits of doing business with Trustco. In addition to annual rebates you will benefit from priority access to vendor offers, business events and our acclaimed online reporting.

Click here to read more.

 

 
   
Industry News

'We're doing more with less,' say data centre managers

Three-quarters of data centre managers surveyed for Symantec’s 2008 State of the Data Centre report said user expectations were rising even when the primary pressure on managers was to reduce costs. Around 60% reported service levels becoming more difficult to meet.

Click here for the article at Information Age


UK Government initiative on Open Source, Open Standards and Re-Use

The UK government has announced its most far reaching policy initiative on open source software to date. The report, 'Open Source, Open Standards and Re-Use: Government Action Plan sets out detailed steps the Government needs to take with their technology suppliers to take advantage of the benefits of open source technology. As the leading open source vendor, Sun fully supports the Government on this policy. One of the main objectives of this announcement is to ensure public awareness around open source solutions as it provides more choice and support through cost-effective and flexible solutions.

Click here for the announcement from Sun Microsystems


IBM Sales Miss Estimates Amid Slump, Currency Changes

IBM missed first-quarter revenue estimates after demand for services and computer hardware shrank and currency changes ate into sales.

 

 

Revenue dropped 11 percent to $21.7 billion, falling short of an estimate of $22.6 billion in a Bloomberg survey of analysts. Holding currency constant, revenue would have declined 4 percent, the company said. Cost cuts helped IBM beat profit estimates in the period.

Click here to read the article
 
   
Techie Corner

Recovering from a Lost ESX Root Password in VMware ESX 3.5

Click here to see the details of this hot tip.
 

Need Help Deciding on Tape Technologies and Backup Speeds?

Trustco's tape chart lists the key tape technologies alongside data rates, tape capacities and read/write compatibility - all for easy comparison. Download your copy now to help your decision making. Click here.

 

Got Any Tips To Share?
We'd love to hear any technical tips you have. If we publish your tips in a future edition of InFocus we'll send you a bottle of champagne! Reply to this email or write to info@trustco.co.uk with your suggestions.

 

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For more information about Trustco or any of our technology solutions,
please contact us on 0870 160 1505 or visit this page for alternative contact details.

Trustco Plc is a leading provider of Servers, Storage, Communication & Security Solutions from the very best vendors. Our focus on dedicated specialist account management along with technical resources make us the supplier of choice for a wide variety of businesses across the UK. Our ability to traverse the direct, distribution & reseller channels enable us to retain our competitive price advantage and keep lead times down to a minimum without any compromise on quality of after sales care. Visit www.trustco.co.uk for further information.

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