Geek Speak – October 20th, 2017
Technology Services News and Updates – October 20th, 2017
Happy Friday! Welcome to our weekly Technology Services newsletter for Hammersmith®! We hope you all had a good week.
This week in Technology Services has been busy with several items and projects. Below is a summary of what’s happened and what’s coming.
WEEK IN SUMMARY
- Update to Wireless Access Points in offices
We have improved connectivity in the Inverness office by Pikes Peak Conference Room and updated all of our access points to protect against a current security issue in wireless technology.
- Cleanup and preparation of new Ehammersmith.com!
The new version of EHammersmith.com is on it’s way! See below for more information.
- Server and network setup for Jenark test environment completion
UPCOMING PROJECTS
- Regular Friday maintenance tonight, October 20th, 2017
We are continuing our regular, calendared maintenance on systems and network tonight from 10:00 PM to 2:00 AM. By working on a consistent and standardized basis we will be able to get in front of any updates, issues, and preparation for new projects. The items for this week are:
- Microsoft Server Updates
- RUN update and repair
- Server 2012 upgrades to servers
- Network inventory and cleanup
- Monitoring improvements and setup
During our maintenance window servers, data, and connections to the network will be unavailable. EMAIL AND PILERA WILL CONTINUE FUNCTIONING AS USUAL.
- NEW E-Hammersmith.com will be live Monday, October 23rd!!
The NEW Hammersmith company website will go live on Monday, October 23rd. Because of the nature of how your computer knows where to go to get a webpage, you may notice some blips or down time while this move occurs. We don’t anticipate this taking longer than 30 minutes to an hour. We hope you enjoy the new site when it’s live! Check it out and let us know if you notice anything that needs to be changed!
- New Technical Support and Business Center ticketing system beginning on November 15th
We continue working on the implementation of our new ticketing system, Samanage. Our current focus is on connecting the system to our internal user directory for ease of use and function. Ben will be communicating more on training and information, including the new web portal for adding tickets, over the next several days.
CHANGES TO EXPECT
– November 15th is the start date in our new system
– We will be sending out training information and how-to information next week
– The new system will have a web portal for ticket submission to improve communication and accuracy of assistance. This will be linked on MyHMI
– We are working on templates for new users and other automated processes to improve efficiency
- Server Upgrades
We have begun the process of upgrading our servers to Server 2012. This transition will take place over the next four weeks and will be minimally impacting to all users for most of the transition. This will greatly improve our security as well as provide us with a better experience for users in file sharing, folder and file security, and Remote Desktop use. The first group of 5 servers will be complete on Friday, October 27th. We have a total of 34 servers in operation and will be communicating what changes you may encounter as we progress.
- OFFICE 365
Part of the Server upgrade project is to prepare for transitioning Hammersmith® over to Office 365 for our Email, K Drives, Microsoft Office products, and other future enhancements and software. We are currently working to determine a partner to assist us with this project as it is a huge endeavor to move all our mailboxes, distribution groups, calendars, and Outlook functions from one provider to another. We will be communicating a specific timeline and what to expect over the next three weeks. Our goal is to have this implemented and fully functioning by the end of 2017.
- Network upgrades and improvements
Our network connectivity upgrades are continuing and we are now working with Comcast on hard dates for implementation at all our satellite offices. We are currently looking at the 2nd-3rd week of November as the time frame for these onsite implementations to take place and will communicate hard date and times to each office as we receive them from Comcast. These upgrades will allow us to have a private, secure, connection from each office to Inverness and our Data Center without having to go through an Internet tunnel. It will increase the speed of file opening and transfers inside the network and will separate our Internet traffic from inside the network for better management and security.
As we continue with the changes and improvements here at Hammersmith®, we want to keep the Technology Services Mission in everyone’s mind:
Technology Services provides secure, reliable, and integrated technology solutions in alignment with Company goals,
while delivering excellence in customer service. In support of this mission, we will:
Partner with the Hammersmith® community to understand the information technology needs of staff and clients.
Provide leadership and planning for the effective and strategic use of emerging technologies.
Demonstrate technical and operational excellence through a commitment to professionalism and continuous improvement.
We hope you all have a great weekend!
