Check your router’s vulnerability

A recent security vulnerability has been unearthed in many routers previously though safe. Universal Plug and Play (uPNP) is a method of easily configuring a router automatically to allow traffic to flow from the Internet into the local network. It should only be accessible from devices inside the local network. However, as it turns out, the vulnerability allows devices on the Internet to potentially reconfigure a router. This is REALLY, REALLY bad to say the least.
Researchers found that more than 6,900 product models produced by 1,500 different vendors contained at least one known vulnerability, with 23 million systems housing the same remote code execution flaw
You can find out more about the specific of the issues at:
https://community.rapid7.com/community/infosec/blog/2013/01/29/security-flaws-in-universal-plug-and-play-unplug-dont-play
So advice is that you should check to ensure your router is not vulnerable. To do this visit grc.com and go to the Shields Up page like so:

Click on the GRC’s Instant UPnP Exposure test.
Hopefully you will see:

If not then you need to take steps to ensure you rectify any issues discovered.

Office 2013 transferability made clearer

There are plenty of changes around Office 2013 licensing along with questions about what happens with previous editions, what’s allowed and what’s not. Here’s a nice table that summarizes everything quite nicely.

More information is contained in the blog post:

http://blogs.office.com/b/office-news/archive/2013/02/19/office-2013-and-office-365-installations-and-transferability.aspx

Best posts from February

I have finally completed the migration of over 1,200 blog posts going back prior to 2007 onto this new platform. During the process I came across a lot of really good posts that are still very interesting and relevant. There are also plenty of interesting posts along with some funny and downright stupid ones. So, what I thought I’d start doing is spend one post a month reviewing a sampling posts from that month back in the history of this blog.
Thus, it being February here we go:
2012
Office 365 Identity options – information about the different ways that identity are handled in Office 365.
2011
No Office Web Apps on SBS 2011 standard – information about how Office Web Apps, which is an addition to SharePoint is not supported on Small Business Server.
SharePoint Foundation BLOB storage – details how Binary Large OBject storage can be used with SharePoint and why in an SMB environment you really shouldn’t use it.
2010
Productivity Part 1 – first of a three part series I wrote as a guest blogger on real productivity.
Installing SQL Server 2008 on Windows Server 2008 R2 – SQL is the basis for SharePoint storage.
2009
Productivity costs – how much poor productivity is costs businesses
Email addiction – interesting information about how many people’s lives are rules by email.
2008
It’s all going to the cloud – Yes, even back then I was saying this!

There is more to Office 365 than just suites

I have started to come across more and more people who don’t seem to realise that you can purchase individual Office 365 components. This means if you just want basic email you can purchase Exchange Online Plan 1 (from around $4 per user per month) or if you want email with advanced features like Legal Hold and unlimited inbox then you can go for Exchange Online Plan 2 (from around $8 per user per month). The same holds true for SharePoint, Lync and even Office on the desktop (yes you can purchase just the latest Office desktop software via Office 365).

Typically, if you needs extend beyond just a single product, say email and collaboration, then that’s when the value of a suite becomes apparent but importantly, you don’t necessarily have to start there. Let’s say you just want basic email, you could purchase Exchange Online Plan 1. Then a few months down the track you get bitten by the SharePoint bug (if you haven’t yet you will), you can simply add that to your current Exchange Plan 1 in Office 365.

The individual components of Office 365 are currently offered under the Enterprise (E) licenses. Currently the cheapest suite offering is the Small Business and Professionals license (P) which offers the basic plans of Exchange, SharePoint and Lync (but no Office) rolled into a single package. The good thing about this P licenses is that it is great value for what you get. The bad thing is that it is not as flexible as the Enterprise or E plans. This means you can’t add features to the P license (say kiosk workers).

For that reason, it is my opinion that most businesses should only consider E licenses for the simple fact that it provides far more flexibility with the ability to easily add and remove features for individual users. P Plans are great provided the business is not planning to change much and is unlikely to want additional functionality.

I would still caution people about P plan even if they think they are unlikely to change. Why? Because chances are a change of circumstance will dictate a need to change down the track. If they have locked themselves into a P plan then migration is not easy. A good example is where a business decides on a P plan solely based on price. Down the track, if they find they need inboxes greater than the current 25GB limit in a P plan they can not simply add to their current offering as doing so is unsupported on P Plans. However, if they were instead over on an Enterprise (E) plan it would be simple process to effect this upgrade, even for just a single user.

For example, here’s the link to just the Exchange Online plans in Office 365

http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/office365/exchange-online.aspx#PlansAndPricingTable

If you are in Australia you’ll find them at:

http://www.telstra.com.au/business-enterprise/business-products/t-suite-software/microsoft-office-365/index.htm#mos

My experience with ANY technology is that you want to provide the maximum amount of flexibility because situations change. This should be EXACTLY the same when it comes to choosing Office 365 for your business. My advice is to just start with what you need and grow from there. This generally means moving to Enterprise (E) plans from the get go. They may be a little more expensive than the P plans but having that flexibility is well worth any small incremental cost. Trust me, you’ll find out what I mean if you don’t.

SharePoint Online getting a store

One of biggest improvements to SharePoint 2013 and especially SharePoint Online coming with the next version of Office 365 real soon, is the addition of a SharePoint Store.

You access the Store by simply adding an App and selecting the SharePoint Store link on the page. Once there you’ll truly be surprised at how many apps are there (remembering that this still a preview!).

Even though many of the apps are free this still represents as much an opportunity for developers as it does end users. Having a simple place to see SharePoint solutions, right in SharePoint, I reckon is really going to be big. Why? Simply because SharePoint is only the starting point for solutions that businesses want. If clever developers can come up with handy apps then the potential is huge just as it has been in the mobile space.

Once the new Office 365 is released I’ll start digging more into the store and reporting here on the best apps I find, so stay tuned. In the meantime, if you have the Office 365 preview dive in and try a few. I’d be interested to know what you find.

SharePoint Online bootcamp next week

A final reminder about my SharePoint Online bootcamp next week in North Ryde on Thursday the 21st of February. Places are still available via registration at:
http://ciaops210113.eventbrite.com.au
You’ll receive a full days training on available SharePoint hosting options, with a particular focus on Office 365. You’ll also learn how to do SharePoint Online administration as well as learn how to use SharePoint Online to construct business solutions.
Entry to course will also provided you with all meals and refreshments, a comprehensive set of course notes, Internet access as well as the opportunity to network with other about SharePoint.
If you want to learn how to take advantage of on of the fastest growing fields in technology then this course is for you.