Maximize Your Business with IT: File & Printer Sharing
In today’s information age, businesses thrive on communication and collaboration. An organization’s ability to share and distribute client lists, product information, and other critical data across and outside the enterprise, in a variety of formats (documents, reports, presentations, emails, images, spreadsheets, etc.) is critical to its success.
For many companies like yours, email has been the traditional method for sharing information. In fact, more than 75 percent of the average company’s intellectual property is contained in email messages and their corresponding attachments, according to a study by research firm Enterprise Strategy Group (ESG).
But sending documents back and forth can be time-consuming and redundant, and can result in information latency (a file may be updated between the time it is sent, and the time it is opened and viewed). It can also cause communication to become inaccurate and ineffective. Additionally, the use of email to distribute large files to multiple recipients can negatively impact the performance of your IT network. That’s why Internet analyst Gartner predicts that, by 2009, email will be replaced by more cutting-edge collaboration tools in at least 50 percent of all
One way in which businesses can improve the timeliness and availability of vital corporate data is by creating a shared folder that allows authorized users to retrieve, view, and edit files. These folders can be set up on a central server, a dedicated workstation, a network-attached service device, or your own desktop.
In order to keep the data contained in shared folders secure at all times, you must grant authorized users the appropriate permissions to access, edit, and delete files as needed. Additionally, you must implement a rigid data backup schedule, to protect files from being lost, overwritten, or mismanaged. While backing up shared data at least once a week is recommended, daily back-ups will provide you with the highest level of safeguarding.
A Virtual Private Network (VPN) can make it easier and more cost-effective to link shared folders and files together, and to maximize information flow and accessibility among remote users across your business. Some of today’s most common VPN and VPN-like products include Microsoft Groove Virtual Office, Nortel VPN Gateway, CheckPoint, and Cisco.
Another option for businesses that must share information between users that are not connected to the same network is a Web-based file hosting solution. These solutions provide a secure, high-speed environment that enables the movement of large files back and forth between locations. There are hundreds of third-party providers that offer file hosting services. Among them are SWMirror, File Burst, File Factory, My Data Bus, and The File Den.
If all of your users and their computers are connected to the same network, there are three ways to share documents and files:
1) Peer to peer
2) Servers
3) Network attached storage (NAS)
Peer-to-peer sharing is the easiest option. All Windows computers, by default, allow users to share any drive, folder, or file with any other user on the same network. To do this, you simply go to Windows Explorer® and right-click on the drive, folder, or file you wish to share. Then, choose Properties, select the Sharing tab, and click on Enable File Sharing. Don’t forget to assign users with the appropriate access privileges. Consider prohibiting them from editing or deleting your files. Accidents are more common than you might think, and if another user unintentionally overwrites or deletes your document, you won’t be able to recover it.
Faster, more reliable, and more secure file sharing can be accomplished by dedicating one computer for the sole purpose of housing shared data. This will make documents and information readily available to authorized users, without impacting the performance of their individual workstations. The dedicated computer will act as a network server or file server. All you have to do to begin sharing information immediately is transfer the appropriate files to the workstation and grant user permissions.
|
Tip: You don’t need an expensive enterprise scale Windows based server to store shared files. If your company shares a small quantity of documents, or the files you share require low bandwidth, you can use the more cost effective Small Business Edition of Windows Server. Linux based computers are also quite effective for file sharing. Linux software is free, although you do need to have some additional technical knowledge to set it up. Or, if your business is very small, and your file sharing needs are minimal, an old Windows based computer may be all you need. |
Network storage devices provide yet another rapid, economical way to share electronic documents. These devices include hard-drives, a jack to connect the drives to your network, and a Web-based interface for configuring the solution and setting user access privileges. They can be conveniently purchased at any computer or office supply store. Well-known manufacturers of network storage devices include Adaptec, Iomega , and NetGear. For product feature comparisons, pricing, and availability, check Best Buy, CompUSA, Staples, Office Max, or Office Depot.
In addition to files, you can also share printers. This can help you significantly reduce costs and waste by allowing multiple users to utilize a single printer, instead of purchasing separate printers – and the needed toner and ink – for each individual computer. To share a printer, simply go to your Control Panel, click on Printers, choose the one you want to set as your dedicated shared printer, and set user access privileges.