Computer Problem Solvers (CPS) Resolves Talent Agency’s IT Debacle “The biggest thing for me with CPS is that when I have a problem, they take care of it. That’s what is most important to me, and how excellent their customer service is. That really means a lot to me, because I am in the customer service business.” - Rita Vennari, President, SBV Talent Agency Background Sutton, Barth & Vennari is a powerful force in the world of creative talent agencies. Over the last three decades, SBV has built a solid reputation in finding leading talent for on-camera commercials, radio and television voice-overs, TV promos, movie trailers, and live event announcers. Yet in 2002, SBV’s productivity was threatened when the company experienced a breakdown in their computer network system. At the time, SBV’s IT company could not solve their major computer network problems. The result? SBV’s servers were sometimes down for an hour at a time, and instead of spending time on client projects, employees wasted valuable hours wrestling with technology. Computer Problem Solvers was called in to evaluate the situation. CPS started with a complete network performance evaluation and found that the infrastructure problems SBV faced in 2002 could be broken down into two categories: - Performance
- IT Security
Performance SBV’s former IT service provider created an infrastructure riddled with performance problems. The server was so overloaded, employees were unable to pull audio files without fear of the server crashing. And when the server finally did crash, SBV discovered that their system backups were thirty days out of date. Work screeched to a halt as employees scrambled for old file versions to restore the system. SBV pinpointed two roots to the problems: System backup was taking place only once a month Audio server was also being used as an employee workstation. This slowed down the system and often caused it to freeze up resulting in downtime. CPS solved SBV’s back up problems by implementing a four-stage backup strategy: - Train backup operators
- Create backup schedule
- Automate backup
- Send automatic notifications each time a backup is successfully performed
Next, CPS made audio recording and voiceovers the sole purpose of the audio server; this freed up space and usage of the server and sped up the system. IT Security With client profiles, accounting files, and digital voiceovers all saved electronically, a weakness in security could seriously impact all aspects of SBV’s daily workflow. The loss of private client information could have damaged the company’s hard-earned reputation. Breaches in accounting could have put hackers in control of customer billing information. Loss of proprietary voiceovers could have crippled SBV’s competitive edge. The security problems SBV faced were multifaceted and spanned four main areas: - Workstations
- Gateways/Routers
- Servers
- Email
CPS made cost-effective changes to the four main areas mentioned above to create an ultrasecure computer networking infrastructure. Workstations. Before CPS came into the picture, employees would download games, instant messengers, and other potentially harmful software programs to their workstations, and file sharing was a free for all. CPS addressed and solved these individual workstation security problems by: - Removing all unauthorized programs from workstations
- Moving “my documents” folders to users home folder on file servers
- Disabling file sharing and printing where applicable
- Changing all workstation passwords
- Only allowing access to local workstation resources to those who require access
- Assigning local file sharing permissions, allowing only administrators to write and delete.
Furthermore, basic data security procedures were not being followed. Employee usernames and passwords were often written on sticky notes and stuck to the side of monitors. CPS instructed SBV employees on the importance of workstation security by setting, explaining, and enforcing network-security guidelines. Gateways/Routers. Routers and gateways provide Internet access to desktops, laptops, and servers. Without proper security, viruses, worms, Trojan horses, and other web-borne threats have direct access to all the files on these workstations. To preempt these possible threats, CPS repaired SBV’s gateway and router security issues by: - Obtaining and changing existing router administrator passwords
- Disabling unnecessary ports on existing routers
- Enabling inbound and outbound router filters
- Enabling and configuring the router’s inbound security log
Servers. CPS also made several alterations to SBV’s servers. Before, the servers were slow and prone to crashes. After the changes, SBV enjoyed a stable platform fit for demanding audio and video applications. CPS’ server modifications included: - Disabling unnecessary services running on the server
- Disabling the server’s unnecessary ports
- Creating custom groups and assigning appropriate users
- Hiding all restricted share folders with coded names
- Specifying log-on hours and disconnecting users from the server when those hours expired.
Email. In the commercial talent industry the significance of email security is profound, because email can act as a backdoor to private server files. CPS knew that avoiding email security lapses required a proactive and comprehensive strategy that included: - Removing all of SBV’s corporate, client, and product data off the email server
- Assigning the email server to its own domain and using a one-way trust relationship between this domain and the company’s domain
- Placing an additional firewall and screening router between the email and the company's domain.
Outcome “It’s hard to put all these years of benefits into words.” -Sandy Brenner (Sutton, Barth & Vennari) Today, SBV’s employee productivity is at an all time high. Their system runs with a 99.99% uptime and no security breaches have been reported. CPS continuously monitors SBV’s systems and keeps meticulous records. When an employee calls in with an IT hiccup, CPS is on the ball with specific troubleshooting techniques and a quick resolution. Their proactive approach to IT keeps SBV’s data secure and ensures that any technical glitches are minor and temporary. | 
