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The Importance of Admin Accounts in IT

Admin Accounts, Data Security, Domain Admin Account, Domain Service Account, IT, OphtekAdmin Accounts, Data Security, Domain Admin Accounts, Domain Service Account, it, OphtekOphtek, LLC

Jun 2022

Visibility is vital when it comes to dealing with your IT network. Without it, anything could happen on your network. And that’s why we have admin accounts.

The amount of data processed on any business network will be substantial and, accordingly, it needs to be both secured and made accessible correctly. Your HR department, for example, will need to be able to access employee data whereas your sales team would, instead, more likely need customer data. Additionally, the security of your IT network needs considering. You wouldn’t, for example, want every employee to be able to download applications, an action which should only be reserved for IT professionals.

For all these factors to be regulated and correctly adhered to, you need to have an admin account overseeing everything.

What is an Admin Account?

The account you use to log on to Windows in the morning will, in general, be a standard user account. These will allow you to access the applications you need and store data which is relevant to your job. However, an admin account is significantly different. These grant the user much more power across the network. The most common and effective forms of admin accounts are:

Domain administrator accounts: this is the most powerful form of admin account, and allows those with the login credentials to carry out administrative tasks when required e.g. installing software and setting up new user accounts.

Doman service accounts: these admin accounts are used to complete automated tasks such as checking for software updates and completing backups. It’s important to separate these privileges from domain administrator accounts to maximize security.

What Do Admin Accounts Do?

Admin accounts are highly important when it comes to running an IT network, and their core focus includes:

User authentication: multi-factor authentication is one of the strongest forms of network security and its one which should be managed by admin accounts. This allows those with the correct privileges to put multi-factor authentication tools in place e.g. automated software to generate unique text message codes. Admin accounts can also be used to monitor and manage the way in which login credentials are entered e.g. raising an alert when multiple failed logins are attempted.

Analyze Data: one of the biggest breakthroughs in modern business has been the push to analyze data, and admin accounts are perfect for taking this on. Thanks to the visibility they have of your network, admin accounts are well placed to identify patterns such as the most popular files, website activity and where the most interaction takes place. This data can then be used to optimize your business performance.

Group configuration: admin accounts don’t need to operate purely on individuals’ accounts, instead they can configure entire groups. Therefore, if you need all of your customer service team to have the same privileges and access, admin accounts can configure bespoke solutions for entire teams. This not only puts team members on a level playing field, but it also reduces the time taken to configure user accounts for new employees – they are simply assigned the group privileges.

Final Thoughts

Admin accounts are an essential part of a functioning business IT network. Not only can they protect your employees and customers, but they allow you to optimize your performance in both IT and business productivity. Assigning admin account access, however, shouldn’t be taken lightly and it’s important that, when granted, this need is regularly reviewed to increase compliance and security.

For more ways to secure and optimize your business technology, contact your local IT professionals.

How to Carry Out a Successful IT Reorganization

IT, Office IT, Ophtek, Reorganizationit, office IT, Ophtek, reorganizationOphtek, LLC

Jul 2020

The business landscape is liable to change at any moment and this can mean big changes for organizations. And this is especially true when it comes to IT.

IT systems and infrastructures are far from perfect. But, on the whole, they should help your organization to tackle all the requirements of the digital age. However, changes both internally and externally can have a major impact on your IT efficiency. And when this leaves your IT infrastructure struggling it’s time for an IT reorganization.

Naturally, IT infrastructures are complex setups and any form of reorganization needs to be approached with care and caution. To help take the pain out of this process we’re going to give you a helping hand in getting started.

The Lowdown on IT Reorganization

IT systems are crucial to the running of any modern business, so you need to ensure yours is ready for the challenge. If you have found that your IT infrastructure isn’t effective as it once was then it’s time to act. And the best strategy should take in the following steps:

Identify the Problems: Key to solving your IT problems is identifying them. You need to know where your infrastructure is failing if you want to fix it. Some of these problems may be obvious such as storage issues, but other problems may be buried beneath a mountain of complexities. Therefore, it’s important that significant time is set aside to investigate the inherent faults that are having a negative impact on your IT.

Communicate: One of the simplest ways to find out what’s going wrong with your IT is to speak to the people who use it. This strategy allows you to discover what the most common and frustrating problems are with your systems. Your staff, after all, will have daily experience of issues that even the most experienced IT professional may not be aware of. Nonetheless, consulting with your IT team is critical as their experience of the system will be crucial in identifying and resolving any issues.

Understanding Bad Decisions: IT systems should be allowed to evolve in order to keep pace with technology, but too much change can be disastrous. Adding additional layers of complexity is not always necessary. However, in business there’s a tendency for organizations to feel that constant change is the only way to remain fresh. This is particularly true when leadership changes happen. Evaluating any recent changes to your IT infrastructure is vital in to determine whether they have had a positive/negative impact.

Plan Your Strategy: Reorganizing an IT infrastructure is a monumental task and is littered with complexity. Rushing into such as reorganization is far from recommended. Instead you need to tread carefully and plan extensively. The labor and costs involved in reorganizing IT will be high and these are valuable commodities you do not want to waste. Also bear in mind that these are long-term projects which require multiple inputs. Accordingly, you will not be able to expect immediate results, but the long term should bring gradual changes.

For more ways to secure and optimize your business technology, contact your local IT professionals.

Simplifying Small Business IT With Google Apps

Office IT, Servicesbusiness, calendar, cms, crm, email, gmail, google apps, itOphtek, LLC

Mar 2014

Access your documents from anywhere.

Just because you have a ‘website’ it doesn’t mean you or your organization is ready to start dealing with internet matters. Depending on where you’re going with your business, you have to decide which tools will suit your needs most. There are many supposed ‘all-in-one’ packages out there, but no one specific product will likely meet or even come close to fulfilling your demands.

That said, if you’re searching for a cloud suite to conduct and collaborate on ‘general’ internet matters, Google Apps for Business is a wonderful tool. Unlike niche-specific tools like customer relationship management (CRM) and content management systems (CMS), GApps provide you with most of the tools you would need to complete and collaborate on various tasks.

The Must-Have Emailing System

GMail from Google.

Let’s start with email. When it comes to brand building and recognition, you should have your own ‘domain’, which (in this instance) is something like www.mybusiness.com. Along with the domain name, you’ll also likely want to send out emails with a @mybusiness.com address. The hosting service you’ve chosen may provide you with an email system, but trust us when we say that these systems are simply just not as robust as the one built by Google. If you’re using a @gmail email address, you’re using one of the products GApps offer. From spam filtering to on-point subject searches, the Google-based emailing system is as powerful as you can get without getting your hands dirty. Once you’ve signed up for the GApps service, you’ll be able to integrate your business domain into Gmail and send out emails from the Google-built system.

Browser-based productivity apps that you can share and edit in real-time.

Collaboration In Real-Time

For creating documents, there are GApps products like Docs, Sheets and Slides for you to use—these are the cloud equivalent to Microsoft’s Word, Excel and PowerPoint. Since the GApps document apps are based in the cloud, all your work will be saved onto Google’s server so you can access them whenever and wherever you want. The documents also have built in ‘sharing’ features so that you and/or you employees can share and collaborate with each other without needing to constantly email drafts back-and-forth. Moreover, authorized users of any shared documents will be able to monitor and edit (if given permission) them in real-time.

Cross-platform Calendar app allows your employees to sync all their activities with each other.

Streamlining and keeping all your employees and partners up-to-date is also covered via Calendar. Despite all the technological advancements we’ve experienced in the last decade or so, a calendar is still exactly just that. Unlike the paper pocket reminder you have stashed away in your desk drawer, cloud-based calendar programs provide much more flexibility. Calendar from GApps gives you the ability to sync all your planned activities with your employees. This is especially beneficial if you’re all on time crunches and in need of a tool that will display when exactly everyone will be available.

Heavy In Features But Lighter Than A Cloud

Of course these cloud services will also require some sort of cloud storage, so Google is offering 30GB per user at a price of $5 per month. Should a person need more than 30GB, the administrator of the account can add 20GB to Drive for $4. Your information is automatically encrypted with Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) security technology, so the burden of having to build virtual private networks from the ground up is negated. Google guarantees that their servers will be up 24x7x365, which means you won’t have to ever worry about not being able to access your data—provided you have an internet connection.

We can’t forget to mention that GApps is a cross-platform service, meaning you can access/create documents and generate new information on virtually any devices. Many businesses have adopted the bring-your-own-device (BYOD) model, and chances are your employees have more than just iPhones in their pockets. GApps is accessible on Android, iPhone, Blackberry, Windows Phone and any phone or mobile device that supports a modern browser. Keep in mind that a modern browser is basically one that’s built for a smartphone, so a flip-phone from 10 years ago will likely not support GApps.

Well Done or Medium Rare?

GApps for Business isn’t, as we already mentioned, a tool that will provide you with everything you need to run your business from a workstation. Moreover, since there are so many ‘separate’ tools available, you need to decide which apps will offer the most return on your time spent using them. The GApps ‘system’ itself is like a raw piece of prime cut steak, and you get to decide how you want to have it done. Essentially, the only con when it comes to cooking a delicious GApps system is the time spent to figure out what you’re in the mood for, and for some this part of the thought process is the ‘make-it’ or ‘break-it’ portion.

A lot of work has to go into information management and GApps simplifies a lot of these areas. The apps themselves are simple enough to use, but with choices come confusion. How will you put all of it together? That’s why we’re here, send us an email or give us a call, we’ll be more than happy to guide you through the GApps process.

Tag Archives: it

The Lowdown on IT Reorganization

The Must-Have Emailing System

Collaboration In Real-Time

Heavy In Features But Lighter Than A Cloud

Well Done or Medium Rare?