Critical Windows Vulnerability

As of December 17th, a new patch for Microsoft windows explorer has been released. This new patch contains very important information for protecting your computer and the data present on your computer. The MS08-078 patch provides crucial security update against remote code execution programs. It is critical that this update is installed onto your computer as fast as possible because this issue has a maximum severity rating.

In order to ensure that you have the patch installed on your system, you should run Windows Updates and install the latest patches on your computer. On your Windows Vista computer, go to the start button and type in the words windows update. If you have Windows XP, start Internet Explorer 7 and choose Windows Update from the Tools pull-down menu.

For more information on the details of the patch, go here.

2009 Pricing Change

In order to better serve our clients, we will be introducing a pricing adjustment on all hourly services provided by Servcom USA to our clients. This rate adjustment will help us to remain competitive and continue to provide you with the most technologically sophisticated IT and networking service package in York County.

Our base rate will be moving to $100 per hour. Non-profit customers will continue to receive a minimum 5% discount off of our base rate for all labor.

Please note that this pricing will go into effect on January 1^st, 2009.

Finally, for all customers who have an existing Service Agreement with us at that time, your rates will not be affected by this rate adjustment.

Monitoring Site Maintenance

In order to provide you with an improved Monitoring platform, we will be performing maintenance on our support website this week. There will be occasional outages from Tuesday through Friday after business hours (6pm EST). Please note that if you have trouble accessing our site between 6pm and 10am during this time, you will need to try again during regular business hours. We apologize for any inconvenience.

CLOSING DATES

Closing Dates for December are as follows:

Wednesday 12/24

Thursday 12/25

Friday 12/26

Wednesday 12/31

Closing dates for January are as follows:

Thursday 01/01

Monday 01/19

Closing dates for February are as follows:

Monday 02/16

CLOSED

ServcomUSA

Will be closed 11/26-11/28 for Thanksgiving Holiday!

Please submit a ticket if you are having technical difficulties.

Critical Windows Vulnerability

If you do not have a service agreement with Servcom USA, you will need to contact our office immediately to schedule the installation of the fix for this Windows vulnerability. Please note that a patch has been released, but it must be installed ASAP. Customers under a current service agreement will be handled automatically. (Contract customers do not have to request installation of this patch.)

For more details on this problem, to see a list of affected operating systems, or for more information, you can see the full Microsoft Security Bulletin here.

Again, this is a VERY serious problem. You need to have this addressed on your servers and workstations IMMEDIATELY.

 

A repost of the Microsoft Security Bulletin released yesterday:

Microsoft Security Bulletin MS08-067 – Critical

Vulnerability in Server Service Could Allow Remote Code Execution (958644)

Published: October 23, 2008

Version: 1.0

General Information

Executive Summary

This security update resolves a privately reported vulnerability in the Server service. The vulnerability could allow remote code execution if an affected system received a specially crafted RPC request. On Microsoft Windows 2000, Windows XP, and Windows Server 2003 systems, an attacker could exploit this vulnerability without authentication to run arbitrary code. It is possible that this vulnerability could be used in the crafting of a wormable exploit. Firewall best practices and standard default firewall configurations can help protect network resources from attacks that originate outside the enterprise perimeter.

This security update is rated Critical for all supported editions of Microsoft Windows 2000, Windows XP, Windows Server 2003, and rated Important for all supported editions of Windows Vista and Windows Server 2008. For more information, see the subsection, Affected and Non-Affected Software, in this section.

The security update addresses the vulnerability by correcting the way that the Server service handles RPC requests. For more information about the vulnerability, see the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) subsection for the specific vulnerability entry under the next section, Vulnerability Information.

Recommendation. Microsoft recommends that customers apply the update immediately.

 

 

Business Trip

Adam and I will be out of town from September 23^rd through Monday, October 5^th. Servcom USA will remain open during regular business hours.

Save Your Data – Crush a Hard Drive

Ever wonder what happens to your computer once you throw it away? Chances are it ends up in a landfill, possibly in the third world. Or, if you donate it to a charity, it might get put back on the shelf for resale. Or maybe it goes somewhere else.

Except that the data on your computer might get sold or recycled along with it.

How do you make sure that your data is safe, even after you've donated it to a worthy cause? Let Servcom USA recycle your PC for you. Your computer will be cleaned, refurbished, and either recycled safely or transferred to a non-profit organization in the area.

We will make sure your hard drive is wiped clean and overwritten with random data. We use industry-standard software and procedures to make sure your data is gone, and that it will not be recovered.

And if that isn't enough for you, then let us crush your hard drive.

Crushing a drive ensures that the plates are warped or broken beyond repair. Broken plates can't be read by anybody – they are as dead as can be.

Here are a few images of our smashed drives.

By the way, our hard drive crushing meets the compliance standards of various industries. That means that you can recycle computers, even if they come from a HIPAA- or SOX-compliant environment.

Available Internship

Servcom USA is has an internship position available beginning immediately. Interested applicants, please call our main phone number: (803) 329-2867.

Available Internship

Position Description: Assistant Network Administrator

Responsibilities:

1. Maintain and service Windows servers in test and production environments
   
2. Maintain, troubleshoot, repair, and design networks and networking equipment
   
3. Maintain and repair desktop, laptop, and workstation computers
   

Prerequisites:

1. Experience with desktop computers, especially Windows 2000, XP, and Vista
   
2. Experience troubleshooting and repairing computer hardware, including network devices
   
3. Working knowledge of TCP/IP networking, DNS, DHCP, and Layer-3 routing protocols
   

Extra skills (suggested, but not required):

1. Experience with Windows Server operating systems
   
2. Experience with any (or all) of the following: IIS, Exchange, SQL, ASP, .Net, Visual Basic/C#, Symantec BackupExec, Hyper-V, Linux
   
3. Certification in any IT field, such as A+, CCNA, Network+, MSCE, etc.
   

Additional Criteria and Information:

Servcom USA is a Technology consulting and services firm located in Rock Hill, SC. We have been servicing non-profit organizations and small businesses in York, Chester, and Lancaster counties since 2000.

This position will require 10 hours per week at Servcom USA's main office, although some work may be conducted off site. Pay will be commensurate with experience. Servcom USA will provide the assistant network administrator with additional training, as needed. The internship will run from August through December of 2008. All work can be completed outside of school hours; currently enrolled students are encouraged to apply. Applicant must be able to provide own reliable transportation. Please provide at least one current letter of recommendation from an employer or educator in a field relevant to the requirements of this position.

Interested applicants, please call our main phone number: (803) 329-2867.

Easy Email Backups

Most of us can't work without email, and you know that you can't afford to lose any email when your computer crashes.

But most email backup software is expensive, complex, and requires lots of time to set up.

If you are looking for a program to just back up your Outlook email, download the Microsoft Outlook Personal Folders Backup tool. It works for Outlook 2002, 2003, and 2007.* Save the backup to your external hard drive or USB drive for quick backups of your email, contacts, calendars, and journal notes. Best of all, it's free!

Installation instructions for the Microsoft Outlook Personal Folders Backup tool are available here. Call or email us for help installing this tool on your system today!

*Requires validation and Genuine Microsoft Office installed on your system. File download is approximately 160KB. The tool does NOT support Outlook Express or Windows Mail.

**** Maintenance Notice ****


When: 8/18 - 8/19
What: Security Updates
Impact: 15-30 minute service interruption

Details:

On August 18th and 19th, we will install all of the security updates currently available for the server where your website(s) and/or database(s) reside, as well as any patches the machine requires.

This maintenance will occur between 02:00 a.m. and 06:00 a.m EDT and the estimated downtime is between 15 - 30 minutes. All of the patches that will be deployed have gone through our quality assurance process and are currently running with no incident on our test servers.

The calendar feature in the HostMySite Control Panel allows you to see upcoming server security upgrades and patches for a progressive one month period. You can also check the calendar for maintenance and other important updates.

Worried About Your Security Online?

Worried about the recent DNS exploit? Servcom can help keep you safe. We have a fully customizable web-browser protection platform.

Using our custom server, you can block specific websites and even filter explicit material. Block all shopping websites on your work network, or just prevent your children from accidentally stumbling on adult content online.

Best of all, it can be enabled on your network remotely. Call us for details.

Comporium's DNS Servers Safe

If you have heard about the recent DNS exploit, don't worry too much. I just checked Comporium's DNS servers, and they appear to be safe from the most dangerous problems. We will continue to verify patches on our customers' servers. If you are concerned about your server, you can test it here. Please notify us of any server vulnerability you find.

Website Outages

For our customers who host their websites with us:

Maintenance Notice
------------------
When: 7/30/08
What: Firmware Updates
Impact: 4-6 hour service interruption
Details:

On July 30, 2008, we will be performing firmware updates to our SAN storage solution along with increasing the storage capacity. The update and the additional storage will take place over a 6 hour maintenance window from 12:00 and 6:00 a.m. EDT. Please note, any data you have connected to the SAN will be unavailable during this time.

**Maintenance**

When: 7/30/08
What: Firmware Updates
Impact: 4-6 hour service interruption
Details:

On July 30, 2008, we will be performing firmware updates to our SAN storage solution along with increasing the storage capacity. The update and the additional storage will take place over a 6 hour maintenance window from 12:00 and 6:00 a.m. EDT. Please note, any data you have connected to the SAN will be unavailable during this time.

Closed 08/01/08

***Closed Friday August 1^st ***

**Servcom USA closing dates**

Friday July 25^th (training)

Friday August 29^th (training)

Monday September 1^st (Labor day)

 

System Maintenance

Servcom USA's ticketing system will be taken offline for routine maintenance from 9pm Saturday, June 14^th through 6am June 15^th. Please note that the Client Access Portal may be inaccessible during this period. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.

Closing Dates for July.

ServcomUSA will be closed Friday July 4^th.

The End Is Near

If you still want to get your hands on Windows XP, you only have four weeks left! The last day for sales of Windows XP is June 30, 2008. Here's everything you need to know to get ready for July 1^st:

Why is Windows XP no longer available?

The short answer is that Windows XP has now been replaced by Windows Vista. Since Service Pack 1 was released for Vista earlier this month, Microsoft will be focusing most of its efforts on supporting and maintaining Vista

What happens to my computer running Windows XP?

Absolutely nothing. After June 30, new PCs will come with Windows Vista installed. However, your existing computer running Windows XP will continue to function normally. You will continue to receive Windows Updates until April 14, 2009. After that, Microsoft is scheduled to continue issuing minor security updates until April 8, 2014.

What if I buy a new computer?

New computers purchased after June 30 will only come with Vista. (If you still have unused Windows XP licenses, don't worry: after June 30, unused Windows XP licenses can still be installed on new systems.)

What if my computer breaks? Will I still be able to use Windows XP?

Unless you purchase a new computer, you will still be able to run Windows XP on your machine, even after it has been repaired, provided you still have the installation media (CDs) and a valid license.

If I still want a computer running Windows XP, how can I get one?

Servcom USA will stop issuing quotes for systems with Windows XP on June 6^th, 2008. In order for us to fulfill your order for systems with Windows XP preinstalled, payment will need to be received NO LATER than Tuesday, June 24^th. If you still have unused Windows XP licenses, don't worry: after June 30, unused Windows XP licenses can still be installed on new systems.

Is this going to happen again?

Yes. Microsoft will eventually stop supporting Windows Server 2003 and Vista, one day. If you don't want to get caught flat-footed by the constant upgrade cycle, let us help you manage your licenses! With a little planning, we can reduce the cost of replacing your operating systems and help you stay up-to-date for years to come!

I still have questions.

Check out this website for a brief overview. Or you can call or email me with specific questions.

Closed

***** SCUSA CLOSING*****

We will be closed Monday May 26^th for Memorial Day!!!

If you need assistance, please call and leave a message. We will return your call on Tuesday.

*******SERVCOMUSA’s CLOSING DATES *******

SERVCOMUSA will be closing early Friday May 30^th at 1:00pm

Closed June 2

Closed June 3

for our technicians to attend training.

In the event of an emergency, please contact Jennifer at 803-329-2867

New Management Tools

As part of our continued commitment to business excellence, I'm proud to share with you the news that we have been recognized by Autotask Corporation as one of their Top-Rated Service Providers.

We earned this recognition by implementing their award-winning IT Services management software to run our services business.

Autotask will help us maintain a more accurate history of your systems and services that we provide to you, as well as improve the level of detail and timeliness of the service details we capture as part of our work on your behalf.

As part of this software, we are now able to provide you with your own private web portal to make it easier for you to send us service request, track the status of those requests, work with us on long-term projects, and even see your invoices.

If you'd like more information about the powerful new system and processes we are implementing, I can forward to you a white paper prepared by Autotask Corporation that goes into detail about how their software helps technology solution providers to run our businesses better, and deliver "Top-Rated Service."

Maintenance Notice

When: 4/9/08
What: Network Maintenance
Impact: Up to 10 minutes of service interruption
Details:

On April 9, 2008 we will be conducting maintenance on our network to add features that will provide greater redundancy. We will be performing this maintenance between the hours of 2:00 a.m. and 6:00 a.m. EDT. During this time you may experience up to 10 minutes of intermittent latency, packet loss, and downtime.

Due to the nature of the maintenance, it must be performed during our maintenance window. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause. Please let us know if you have any questions or concerns.

Reagrds,
HostMySite Dedicated Support Team

Jennifer’s update

As most of you know, Jennifer is back. We have posted a picture of her new addition, "Abby." Born December 12,2007. She weighed 5lbs, 12oz.

Office 2007 Conversion

If you haven't upgraded to Office 2007, now is the time!

If you can't upgrade for some reason, those of you running Office 2003 and earlier versions can use the converter to open the new 2007 files. The update takes four minutes to download and install on a broadband connection.

Download the converter here.

Servcom Email Server Offline

Nobody's perfect! Our email server was offline for a brief period last night. If you sent us an email after 6pm on February 12^th and got a message that your email was delayed, it should come through this morning. If your email was returned NOT DELIVERABLE, please resend it. We apologize for any inconvenience and assure our customers that delayed email will not impact our service delivery.

Buy Servcom Stuff!

Want to show the world who your favorite IT consultants are? Grab a t-shirt or coffee mug at our new online shop.

Want to help expand your brand? How about generating some income for your non-profit? Call or email us to see how an online storefront can help you sell your business.

Servcom USA Closing Dates – Through March 31, 2008

 

Servcom USA will be closed for business on the following dates:

• February 14^th *
  
• February 15^th – 18^th (President's Day)
  
• March 21^st-24^th (Easter)
  

 

Please check the blog regularly for more closings, updates, and other information.

 

* Half Day – the offices will close at 1:00pm.