Metalogix Provides Solution for SharePoint and Exchange Data
January 2, 2014
SharePoint and Exchange both contain huge amounts of data, and getting them to work together at maximum efficiency can be a great challenge. ZDNet offers a solution to this scenario in their latest article, “Metalogix Liberates SharePoint and Exchange Data.”
The article begins:
“SharePoint and Exchange are both complex products. While the multiplicity of setting and options makes it possible to adjust their operations to address an organization’s requirements, it also makes it difficult for organizations to pick up and move their data to take advantage of cloud service offerings or to migrate some or all of their data to different on-premise solutions.”
Metalogix says they have this problem covered:
“Metalogix pointed out that their products address the requirements IT decision-makers have to maintain tight management control of their content, security for that content and support a mirrored environment for higher levels of reliability.”
And while Metalogix may or may not be the right product for your enterprise, it is worth following a news source that gives you the latest on SharePoint, as well as tips and tricks. Stephen E. Arnold of ArnoldIT.com, as a longtime leader in search, follows the latest in enterprise search, including SharePoint. Research proves that organizations that get the most of their SharePoint installation are those that customize and continue to tweak. Stay tuned for ways to optimize your installation.
Emily Rae Aldridge, January 2, 2014
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, developer of Augmentext
On Site SharePoint is Not Dead Yet
January 1, 2014
The move to the Cloud, away from on-site installations has been a rapid one, but not everybody is on board yet. Some organizations still have legitimate security concerns. Others just do not have the time or energy to make the move. So for people who need to rely on on-site SharePoint for a little while longer, there is good news. Read more in the SharePoint Pro article, “SharePoint SP1 and On-Premises vNext.”
The article says:
“In mid-November, Microsoft announced that Service Pack 1 for Office, Exchange, and SharePoint will be released in early 2014. The same day, SharePoint Senior Product Manager Bill Baer (@williambaer) announced in the SharePoint Team blog that the team will ‘continue to deliver… future on-premises versions of SharePoint on our traditional release cadence of 2-3 years.’ That simple announcement says, plain as day, something we’ve wanted Microsoft to say: On-prem SharePoint is not dead yet! There will be at least one more vNext of SharePoint.”
Stephen E. Arnold of ArnoldIT.com covers the latest in SharePoint news. As a longtime leader in search he has seen many trends come and go. And while the Cloud is probably here to stay, it is no doubt a recent invention and one that still has a few drawbacks. Stay tuned for more SharePoint news as well as the latest in search.
Emily Rae Aldridge, January 1, 2014
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, developer of Augmentext
SharePoint and Enterprise Content Management
December 25, 2013
SharePoint may be the flagship ECM (enterprise content management) system, but that does not mean that it is perfect. In addition, such a huge system means that users constantly have to keep up with the latest news and updates. Read more in the CloudTweaks article, “7 Essential Facts About SharePoint And ECM.”
The article begins:
“Pioneer enterprise content management systems like SharePoint can help in take up your business to the next level, but only if you use them correctly. Here are seven things you need to know about this leading web application platform featuring the Office suite, collaborative workforce software and more.”
A couple of common themes that run through this article are: 1) security is key and 2) complexity continues. Stephen E. Arnold of ArnoldIT.com is a longtime leader in search. He often covers SharePoint news and finds many of the same conclusions. While SharePoint is widely adopted, there are noted weaknesses, and users are always looking for the latest tips and tricks.
Emily Rae Aldridge, December 25, 2013
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, developer of Augmentext
Secure Collaboration in SharePoint
December 24, 2013
While SharePoint is the mostly widely used collaboration software available, broad adoption does not quell the security concerns of organizations. And as mobile becomes more widely adopted, access is not limited to a single at-work machine. Organizations are getting creative about security and KM World covers a newly available solution in its story, “Secure collaboration in SharePoint and File Shares from HiSoftware.”
The article begins:
“HiSoftware has launched a new version of Security Sheriff specifically designed for secure collaboration of sensitive information stored in File Shares and SharePoint. The company explains the new Secure Document Viewer included in Security Sheriff allows users to open an encrypted document in a protected state to ensure that a user with read-only permission cannot open and decrypt a document, then manually distribute it using print, save as and send to actions, or copy its contents. It will then remove the file from their system once the file is closed.”
Stephen E. Arnold is a long time leader in search and the man behind ArnoldIT.com. He spends a lot of time writing about SharePoint and security is a common topic. SharePoint isn’t going anywhere anytime soon, so users would do well to pay attention to what the experts have to say about security.
Emily Rae Aldridge, December 24, 2013
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, developer of Augmentext
Patch Fixes Microsoft and SharePoint Vulnerabilities
December 17, 2013
Patches are common with any software, but even more frequent with such a large suite as the one offered by Microsoft. Information Week covers the latest round of patches in their article, “Microsoft Patches Windows, Office, IE, SharePoint.”
The article gives more details on the specific vulnerability to SharePoint:
“Ultimately, the company discovered that the Office 365 desktop client, and in particular Microsoft Word, wasn’t verifying authentication headers by comparing them against SSL certificates. As a result, attackers were able to tell a Word client that they were a SharePoint server, when in reality the server was malicious.”
The latest patch fixes known issues. However, with a software as massive and ubiquitous as SharePoint, it is important to stay on top of the latest news and problems. Stephen E. Arnold of ArnoldIT stays on top of the latest in search, including SharePoint. Stay tuned for the latest problems and solutions for your SharePoint deployment.
Emily Rae Aldridge, December 17, 2013
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, developer of Augmentext
SharePoint Over the Years
November 26, 2013
SharePoint has come a long way since its inception in 2001 with SharePoint Portal Server. And while many criticize SharePoint for not being able to keep up with the times, it has made progress over the years. Chris McNulty of CMS Wire covers the history of SharePoint in his article, “SharePoint 2013, This Old House Style – Moving In and Living Together.”
McNulty says:
“SharePoint 2013 is not what it was 10 years ago. Its expanded capacity and security capabilities mean that your layout of sites and libraries — information architecture — can match actual usage patterns more closely, bringing content and stakeholders more closely together than before. Advances in sharing and publishing helps assure that your documents start out life in the right place, and minimize the degree of redundant or obsolete copies of the same document being randomly distributed around the farm. The introduction of user-friendly document lifecycle management helps assure the documents are automatically curated, retaining what’s essential and purging or archiving old information.”
And while the author outlines many improvements that SharePoint has made over the years, most users are reporting that in order to have full enterprise functionality, they are supplementing with add-ons. Stephen E. Arnold of ArnoldIT.com is a longtime leader in enterprise search. His recent research points to the fact that while SharePoint is widely adopted, it is also widely supplemented with add-ons to complete functionality.
Emily Rae Aldridge, November 26, 2013
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, developer of Augmentext
SharePoint Online Capitalizes on Consumer File Sharing
November 21, 2013
Security concerns plague the enterprise when employees turn to unsanctioned cloud-based file sharing. But for years, the convenience of services like Dropbox could not be matched by sanctioned enterprise services. SharePoint Online hopes to change that by offering convenient and safe cloud storage options for employees. CMS Wire covers the story in their article, “What Consumerization of IT Means for SharePoint Online, SkyDrive Pro.”
The article begins:
“BYOD has taken over the enterprise, whether the enterprise likes it or not. But it’s not just BYOD. Employees are turning to consumer versions of file sharing cloud solutions like DropBox, Google Drive, SkyDrive (not to be confused with SkyDrive Pro) and others to access their documents no matter where they are. IT needs to resolve this problem, and it won’t be done by banning the use of these devices and apps. There’s a smarter way.”
ArnoldIT.com, a service run by longtime search expert Steven E. Arnold, is skeptical of SharePoint’s continued relevance in the changing enterprise environment. Arnold often argues that SharePoint is not capable of its main function, search, and has diluted its mission by focusing on add-ons. Regardless, SharePoint is still a large portion of the market and is worth following.
Emily Rae Aldridge, November 21, 2013
SharePoint Online Adoption is Slow
November 20, 2013
Although Office 365 SharePoint Online makes the enterprise fully accessible on the cloud, the latest research shows that users are slow to move away from the traditional server model. Redmond Magazine covers the story in their article, “Enterprises Slow To Move to SharePoint Online.”
The article states:
“Office 365 SharePoint Online use was at 15 percent among respondents, according to August 2013 survey results produced by Forrester. That result is up just 3 percentile points from last year’s survey. The survey found that 79 percent were using SharePoint Server 2010. The lag in online adoption has its roots in SharePoint being considered as an on-premises solution historically, but there are other concerns.”
Security may be on reason why organizations are keeping deployments on on-site servers, but the functionality of Office 365 is likely another. Enterprises are slow ships, hard to turn. According to Arnold IT, a leading search news service of Steven E. Arnold, another reason may be that for most organizations, SharePoint is not enough in and of itself. Add-ons keep most SharePoint deployments afloat, and most organizations probably aren’t ready to move so much content, with its patchwork approach to ECM.
Emily Rae Aldridge, November 20, 2013
AddOns Secure SharePoint Cloud Data
October 10, 2013
As more and more information moves to the Cloud, questions arise about how to secure that data. CipherPoint has announced a new Cloud data security solution that hopes to help solve the problem. Read more in the EON article, “CipherPoint Announces Cloud Data Security Solution for SharePoint Online and Office365.”
The article begins:
“With CipherPoint Eclipse™ for SharePoint Online and Office365, organizations can now identify, secure and audit access to sensitive and regulated data stored in cloud collaboration platforms. This new solution provides customers with robust encryption, using industry standard encryption algorithms, access control, audit reporting and customer-controlled encryption keys to address real concerns that large enterprises have about cloud security.”
Stephen E. Arnold, a longtime expert in search and founder of Arnold IT, has frequently noted that while SharePoint is the most widely used enterprise solution, it is not necessarily the highest functioning. Key features are still lacking and it might not be much longer before even the biggest enterprises go looking for other solutions, including open source. Enterprises still using SharePoint often have to supplement with additional add-ons, such as the security solution that CipherPoint now offers.
Emily Rae Aldridge, October 10, 2013
SharePoint Deployment Makes Users Angry
October 3, 2013
A simple rule of thumb is that when a program is hard to deploy it makes users angry. Bad news for Microsoft, says CBR Online, because “Users Struggle To Implement Microsoft’s SharePoint 2013.” What does SharePoint 2013 do differently than any of its other versions? It is not surprising that the issues deal with security and Cloud technology. It is the same old routine we have heard before. What is even more depressing are the numbers from an AIIM survey: 28% of SharePoint users have stalled their deployment, and one-third are having troubling implementing it. Even more depressing is that 43% will not even use the Cloud to store information and only 6% of users claim to have had success.
Does Microsoft feel the pain yet?
“AIIM President John Mancini said: ‘There are many benefits to tapping into the power of SharePoint 2013, specifically the mobile and social aspects, yet as our research indicates, many business and IT leaders are wary of security issues around cloud technology. While using SharePoint can help companies of any size, as a collaborative platform and even a records management tool, it’s clear from our research that, based on a variety of factors, deployments and adoption of the technology has not reached its original goals.’ “
Content management is only as useful as the program storing it, as Stephen Arnold of Arnold IT, has explained many times. If the software does not do what it is supposed to then it slows productivity and frustrates users. This does not come as a surprise from a Microsoft product. The advice that should be followed is to wait a few months, until Microsoft fixes the bugs.
Whitney Grace, October 3, 2013
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