Is There Affordable And Reliable Backup For NAS?

Secure Systems, Inc. has reached the status many VARs and integrators strive for with their clients – trusted advisor. Several of Secure Systems' clients have been with them for more than a decade and refer other businesses to them. In fact, the integrator doesn't advertise. "Over 90% of our clients are from referrals," states Kevin Rhea, president of Secure Systems.

The integrator focuses on the SMB market. These businesses cannot have or don't want an inside IT department and look for an integrator who will act as their IT department. A key for Secure Systems to keeping these SMB clients and earning their trust has been service. According to Rhea, people will spend more if they perceive they're receiving a higher level of service. "Quality lingers long after price is forgotten," he stresses.

Recently, Secure Systems upgraded the network for Color Portraits, a 15-year client. Color Portraits are school photographers that specialize in kindergarten through eighth grade. The company switched to all-digital photography in the last few years. The photographers are required to keep their images for at least one year, and they shoot thousands of images each month. Image sizes range from 16 MB to 32 MB per image.

Secure Systems designed and upgraded Color Portraits' network over the years. The network, with 80 workstations, is a custom-designed, high-speed gigabit network that runs Kodak photo software. The primary storage currently in use is high-end RAID (redundant array of independent disks) level 5 NAS (network attached storage) appliances. The entire network is valued in excess of $2.3 million.