Computer Outsourcing for Mid-size Businesses

With the majority of office networks, 64-bit processing is a great untapped power source. Intel and AMD, the top CPU manufacturers, have been delivering 64-bit capability in their commodity processors for years, with the result that all classes of business computing hardware including laptops, desktop computers, engineering workstations and advanced servers now possess the ability to operate in 64-bit mode. Yet the majority of these in-place devices continue to host 32-bit operating systems.

The primary reason for this common hesitation to participate in the 64-bit millennium is that the real advantage for upgrading in-place systems has appeared to be modest in comparison to the effort required. There is no automatic path to migrate from a 32 to a 64-bit OS. The upgrade demands a clean install, which means reinstalling existing programs, backing up and recovering data, and configuring new drivers. This demands thoughtful planning to do efficiently. Furthermore, many popular office productivity software are currently offered only in 32-bit versions, so what's the benefit?

Advantages of Upgrading to 64-bit Computing
The benefits of 64-bit over 32-bit computing may appear to be subtle and hard to quantify, but they are significant. The RAM partitioning techniques utilized by 32-bit operating systems are basically a technical afterthought that undermines stability. Memory-hungry programs are often not able to access free memory since the O/S is unable to assign it effectively. This results in programs freezing or executing fitfully even when a computer appears to have plenty of available memory. Also, 64-bit operating systems support much more addressable memory than 32-bit ones and crunch more information per clock cycle. You can also jump from one RAM-hungry application to another faster when you are running in a 64-bit environment. Basically, 64-bit computing makes systems more stable, more scalable, and faster, which in turn makes companies more competitive.

Microsoft's x64 Support
Microsoft's “x64” technology works with the 64-bit processors found in most computers currently installed in business networks. (Microsoft's 64-bit "Itanium" technology is restricted to special high-end CPUs and is designed for environments that need massive multi-processing.) Prior to the availability of Microsoft Office 2010, most Microsoft desktop applications such as Microsoft Office 2007 and Visual Studio 2005 were available solely in 32-bit versions, which can still be run on x64 Windows. The new generation of Office delivers dramatic improvements. As an example, Microsoft Excel 2010 is offered in a 64-bit version that allows you to create spreadsheets with huge databases that are not limited to the 2-Gbyte file size imposed by previous versions of Excel.

Microsoft has developed true x64 versions of many Microsoft Server platforms, including Microsoft Windows Server 2008, Microsoft SQL Server 2008 and 2005, Exchange Server 2007, Microsoft Commerce Server, Microsoft BizTalk Server, plus System Center Operations Manager. Microsoft Windows Server 64-bit editions are priced and licensed the same as their 32-bit versions, so typically you pay nothing extra for 64-bit server operating systems or machines.

For client computers, Microsoft supplies Windows 7 and Windows 8 in same-price 64-bit editions that provide advanced stability, capacity, and throughput. As with all upgrades from 32- to 64-bit operating systems, the upgrade can't be carried out seamlessly. Every workstation and server needs a clean setup that involves reconfiguring applications, saving and restoring data files, and configuring 64-bit device drivers. In fact, for most current desktop PCs, and for all PCs running Windows XP, the 32 or 64-bit release of Windows 7 or Windows 8 will require you to perform a clean install. Consequently, there will never be a better time to migrate to x64 processing on the workstation, since it will involve scarcely any extra work.

How Progent Can Assist Your Business to Migrate to 64-bit Processing
Besides helping you to understand the business advantages, costs, and technical risks attached to upgrading to 64-bit processing, Progent's Microsoft-certified consultants can help you plan, document, carry out, manage, and troubleshoot a system-wide migration to 64-bit server and client OS software and business applications. Progent can help you test your 64-bit infrastructure to verify that it supports all of the key 32-bit applications which you intend to keep as well as the new 64-bit editions of software you wish to install. If moving to Microsoft Windows 7, Windows 8.1, or Windows 10 is part of your 64-bit upgrade strategy, Progent's certified Windows 7 experts, Windows 8.1 migration consultants, and Windows 10 testing and migration consultants can assist you to determine which workstation computers and programs can or ought to be preserved, and design an upgrade procedure that is minimally disruptive to your network productivity.

Other ways Progent's consultants can help you to migrate to 64-bit processing include:

• Progent's experience delivering online computer consulting and troubleshooting can save you time and expense over the course of your x64 migration, and Progent's background working with internal IT staffs and delivering technical information transfer to them can improve the effectiveness of your support team.

• Progent's certified Cisco CCIE network consultants can verify that your network infrastructure is optimized to accommodate your 64-bit computing environment, that it is simple to track, manage, and repair, and that it offers a high degree of security and fault tolerance.

• Progent's business continuity consulting professionals can assist you in developing and testing a disaster recovery strategy that incorporates your 64-bit servers. Progent's Microsoft certified System Center SCDPM engineering professionals can assist you to deploy Microsoft System Center System Center Data Protection Manager to provide automated remote backup with the advantage of rapid data recovery.

• Progent's CISSP and GIAC security engineers can assist you develop a company-wide security plan that implements some of the new security technologies included with x64 servers. Progent can also provide security vulnerability testing to evaluate or confirm your network's compliance with industry or government security standards.

• Progent's virtualization consultants can help you benefit from 64-bit virtual server solutions to save money on hardware, simplify administration, improve dependability, lower hosting costs, and reduce restoration time in the event of a catastrophic breakdown.

• Progent's online instruction can help get both your network support team and your desktop employees up to date quickly and cost-effectively by delivering remote virtual training specialized for your network environment and business procedures.