Here at RKL eSolutions, we manage a wide range of technology projects and consulting activity including ERP software implementation and training, integration to eCommerce and other systems, custom development, networking, and infrastructure services.
One advantage of our broad service offerings is that we have a lot of experience to draw on when troubleshooting issues that cross technology disciplines. Nothing exercises this more than working through issues with an aging server infrastructure found underneath some ERP systems.
Sage 500 and Sage ERP X3 are both mature products and this means that we support several years of releases across over a decade of Windows Server and SQL Server versions.
Without question, small and mid-sized businesses need to extend their infrastructure investment and as a result of this, we still support a lot of Windows Server 2003 and SQL Server 2005 installations. However, both of these server products are out of mainstream support and are nearing the end of extended support as well within Microsoft’s support lifecycle.
While both of these server products still function, there are several things that are important to consider:
On the hardware side, there are also several things to consider. The current generation of server hardware represents tremendous value - especially when you consider consolidation of resources through virtualization and SAN storage solutions.
Your network infrastructure plays a critical role in the success of your information services. Performance, availability, and security are all core functions of your network. This is also an area of high vulnerability and high demands from compliance requirements such as PCI.
It is important to evaluate whether your current network infrastructure and supporting hardware are up to the demands of your growing business. Ten year old routers and aging firewall appliances are simply not going to be up to the task today.
Yes, upgrading server infrastructure is an investment. But the return on the investment may actually be much faster than you think.
Here are other factors to consider as well:
The discussion above may seem academic. But we see examples on a weekly basis of businesses that are at the point of sorely needing to invest in updating their server infrastructure.
A recent example helps to illustrate this ...
Windows Server 2003 R2 is still found in many organizations. In some cases it hosts the RKL web services stack for Sage 500 that customers use for integrating eCommerce solutions. Recently, we have seen an increase in failures for credit card authorization calls out to Sage Exchange.
The underlying cause is a change in the level of security certificate that Sage Payment Solutions (SPS) is using to increase connection security to their payment processing services. Windows Server 2003 R2 requires a Microsoft hotfix to properly support this, whereas later version of Windows Server seamlessly accommodated the change.
Read More: Important Issue Affecting Windows Server 2003 and Sage Exchange
The difference of an interruption in service and the need to troubleshoot and update the servers, versus automatically accommodating the more contemporary security approach, is an example of how obsolete server software can impact your business.
Security and performance are the primary drivers. But I hope that some of the discussion above helps illustrate that beyond technology, there is actually a broader business impact that drives - and justifies - the investment in upgrading your server infrastructure sooner rather than later.
The team at RKL eSolutions is always available to discuss these topics in more depth with you. We pride ourselves in the partnership we have with our customers. Part of this includes helping them assess their current server infrastructure, help define proper upgrade paths, and assist in implementing those upgrades with minimum impact on their business.
If your business would benefit from that type of guidance, let's talk.