Vox 4 Thought

Continuous improvements are bringing local cloud providers to the fore

Posted on 18 November 2021 by Barry Kemp

By Barry Kemp, Head of Managed IT at Vox

With the demand for cloud-based services growing as South African companies look to enable seamless remote or hybrid working and mitigate against power outages, local providers have been continually improving their offerings in order to provide customers with solutions that compare with those of international peers, but are more cost-effective.

Changes in business and society in response to the multiple levels of lockdowns over the past year has however seen these organisations taking a new view toward the continued use of on-premise infrastructure. The first headache is floorspace: at a time when many offices are downsizing as they adjust to a hybrid working model where everyone is not in at the same time, the area dedicated to a company’s on-premise infrastructure remains the same.

Beyond worrying about office leases, they need to worry about cooling for their server room, that connectivity remains uninterrupted and perhaps even the increased physical security risk from having your equipment in a sparsely occupied building. Not to mention ensuring that your generators are topped up with fuel, serviced as required and is regularly tested; there have been many instances where companies have been left in the dark after a power outage because their generator has failed to kick in.

This is a growing distraction for businesses at a time when many are looking to cut costs and recover from a tough economic environment. For organisations that already have their own infrastructure, and are looking to maximise their investments, co-location gives them the ability to place their infrastructure at data centres, which offers peace of mind when it comes to physical security, and reliability of power supply and access to connectivity.

Co-location isn’t the final solution however; while it keeps companies from having to worry about many of the external challenges traditional office environments would face, it still leaves them responsible for maintaining their servers that will now be located inside a vendor-neutral data centre.

Breaking free of IT maintenance

Fully freeing themselves from having to worry about IT infrastructure requires them to take the next step, and instead migrate to a virtual data centre, such as that offered by Vox, which provides them with remote compute and storage capabilities, as well as a range of connectivity solutions including direct point to point, VPN, MPLS or dedicated Internet breakout, all connected through a secure edge gateway.

Continuous developments by Vox over the past few years have ensured competitiveness with solutions offered by international providers, with new innovations being rolled out to cater to growing business requirements and the latest trends, such as the growing preference for multi-cloud.

Through offerings such as CrossConnect, customers have access to up to a 1Gbps dedicated link that provides a secure direct connection between Vox’s Virtual Data Centre and other providers, be it another co-location facility, or to a public cloud such as Amazon Web Services or Microsoft Azure.

Making cloud more cost-effective

Based at data centre facilities that adhere to the latest ISO 27001 and ISO 9000 standards, turning to a virtual data centre takes away the headache of companies having to manage large IT infrastructure anymore – safe in the knowledge that there are highly skilled specialists to assist with managed cloud or migration services if needed.

Being a local company, Vox can work closer with customers in order to design and implement unique network requirements that they might have. In fact, Vox uses its own virtual data centre to run its connectivity and voice business.

Leaving companies with fewer things to manage – their operating system, applications and data – not only means that IT staff have more time to carry out more strategic tasks that add real value, but businesses stand to benefit overall from the agility and flexibility of moving from capital expenditure to a consumption based model.

In Vox’s instance, this also means being able to provide local support for customers, as well as to bill in Rands and not Dollars, making it more cost effective and ensuring that customers are not subject to billing increases resulting not from increased consumption, but as a result of currency depreciation. With a return to loadshedding, a trend toward hybrid working, and availability of quality local solutions, can your company afford not being in the cloud?

Let’s Talk Archiving

Posted on 16 November 2021 by Suhail Dinat

Ah, Archiving.

It may sound like a shoe store in Sandton or evoke memories of those pictures in your gallery you didn’t want anyone to see (you know the ones), but in the context of Vox, it’s a lot more PG (or at least we hope so).

You see, contrary to popular belief, we at Vox offer a variety of services that don’t just include Home and Business Wi-Fi you can complain about on Twitter. You’ve probably heard of some of them; from Cyber Security to Cloud solutions, to that Weather channel you doubted at first but grew on you after the first episode. Another one of these, which gets less spotlight than the rest, is Archiving – which is why we’re here today.

At first glance, the topic of Archiving seemed as entertaining as one of our “Family Meetings” – so much so that this author needed four coffee breaks, one trip to the Archive store (for research purposes) and a quick browse through Takealot (as well as a prayer that their boss doesn’t read this) while writing the intro alone.

Surprisingly, however, a little bit of research goes a long way (who would have thought?) and, upon finding out more, we realised that Vox Archiving is actually pretty cool.

In a nutshell, Vox Archiving provides an easy path to affordable Cloud Storage.

Remember those annoying “no storage space” messages you’d get which forced you to delete 1 000 selfies with the dog filter only to free up 1MB? Imagine having to do that for your business files. Sounds about as fun as being a contestant in Squid Game – except, you know, there’s no quick ending.

Storing your Data can be expensive, and finding the time to Archive it can be similarly disruptive (as well as drive a poor intern to the brink of sanity). When done correctly, however, tiering and archiving your information can save you up to 70% on storage, backup and Data Recovery costs.

Vox Archiving means your business can store your valuable info in a secure, practical manner that allows you to know what’s cutting. It also means no costly licenses (or SABC ads reminding you to pay them), no disruption, no changes to users and access as well as no hardware to deploy. We analyse, we move, we manage your file or object Data at scale and in the process save you money. It’s like buying a Bat-cave. And Alfred. And then some.

Okay, cool pitch, but why should I or my business care?

Actually, there are an abundance of reasons, from the ability to upgrade your filing system from those used pre-Cold War to one more relevant to businesses this side of the century. But, in case that’s not enough, here are four practical reasons your business should consider Archiving.

Can I speak to the Management?

Easy there, Karen, not that kind of management. We’re talking the ability to analyse, move and store your Data at scale while cutting up to 70% of your storage and backup costs. So rather than having to “speak to the manager” every time you can’t find a file, you can circumvent the process altogether and just find what you need, when you need it.

More Mobile than a Gupta with a tender

In the current Hybrid world, the importance of accessing your Data any time can’t be underestimatedYou can migrate, archive (naturally), tier and move the right Data to the correct (and affordable) storage solution at exactly the right time.

Is there an Archive in your glasses? Coz you’re Insight.

Get insights on Petabytes (yes, that’s a thing) of Data to make smarter investment decisions (Ka-Ching). Know your Data before you buy more storage, backup or Cloud infrastructure – meaning you don’t need to waste money on resources you don’t need right now (did someone say, “Christmas Bonus?”)

Leave the disruptions to Eskom.

Unlike everyone’s favourite service provider, Vox Archiving is designed to not stop your business in its tracks. You can tier “cold” Data to our Vox Cloud Storage without interrupting user access and, unlike other providers, there are no additional costs when downloading these files from the Vox Cloud.

Essentially, if your business needs to store its valuable information without investing in a safe room and an ADT guard to sleep during his night shift, Archiving is a solution for you. It’s an inexpensive way to use the Cloud to keep, access and manage all your Data without stressing about finding more room. Not only is it fully redundant, but we also keep two copies in case of disaster while being ISO27001 compliant (no, that’s not a brand of Terminator). Our audits (unlike your accounting firm) will provide you with the perfect solution for you, you need no third-party tools to access your information and, if the Apocalypse does happen in the near future, you can at least know your business information is safely stored.

Now, if only we could invest in bunkers…

My Best Photos from Forza Horizon 5

Posted on 9 November 2021 by admin

Last week Friday, my upload was complete, and I hunkered down to get some early hands on time with Forza Horizon 5.

The incredible, arcade-like, open-world SIM racing game takes the iconic Horizon festival from previous iterations of the game and moves it to Mexico. Here, you’ll be able to explore an epic open-world that is equal parts beautiful and challenging. You’ll jump into street racing, rally driving and everything petrol-head obsessed gamers will love.

Forza Horizon 5 has swallowed HOURS of my life for the last week. I cannot get enough of it. The various activities and tasks are so much fun and the scenery of the game brings me a sort of peace that my life has been sorely lacking for a few weeks. It’s been an escape for me – one that has bought me so much joy. You have hundreds of incredible cars to choose from, and can style yourself out as you simply drive around Mexico to explore the Horizon festival while listening to XS (the rock and alternative radio station option – hot damn the tracks are fire!).

Trying my hand at in-game photography

A few months ago, I interviewed the incredibly talented ‘CHRISinSESSION’ for Red Bull. You can read the interview, and see some his pictures by clicking here. When I was online sharing my hype for Forza Horizon 5, Chris said he’d be keen to see some of my captures from the game….

CHALLENGE ACCEPTED!

I’ve spent a lot of my time in game trying to perfect my photography skills and thought, rather than give you a normal stock standard review of the game, I’d share some of my favourite photos that I’ve taken. I really believe they showcase this game so incredibly well and I’m hoping they highlight the emotions it was able to elicit in me. I’ve included my favourite pictures below:

This was probably one of the first captures I did early on in the game BUT it is, without a doubt, one of the best I’ve taken. I wanted to give that sort of hazy rain feel yet still share the warmth. I tried to imagine the feeling I had when it rained in Bali and imagined it would be similar in Mexico. I hope I was able to get that across!

I think this could be mistaken for a real photo, lol! I loved how the game had shared the sunset over the sea, and wanted to try capture that.

Did I neon pink out a very rare car I found in a barn during the game? Yes. Yes I did. I thought it would be cool to get the colours popping here.

I purchased and customised a Merc. It’s ridiculously obnoxious now after the paint job. I loved the lines of this particular shot.

Quick Fast? That’s what I’d caption this.

I was playing with colour here, the pinks of the flowers combined with the browns and greens. I thought the baby blue colour complimented the surroundings.

This is very similar to my Quick Fast picture, but I was hoping to get a bit of the beautiful game scenery in the shot.

Forza Horizon 5 is out on November 9th. You’ll be able to play it on launch day with Xbox Game Pass Ultimate. You can get it for the Xbox Series X and S, Xbox One and your PC. It’s roughly 103GB for PC (via Steam or Game Pass), 103GB on the X and S and then 116GB on Xbox One.

Disclosure: Xbox South Africa gave me a code to do an early playthrough of the game.

Laptop Rental Saves Your Company More Than Just Money

Posted on 8 November 2021 by Guin Davies

Maintaining efficiency and upgrading to the latest tech in an instant is easy when you rent your laptops.

It’s almost impossible to name another piece of tech more integral to the day-to-day functioning of almost every business than the laptop.

Where once office workers were trapped behind bulky desktop devices from nine to five, now they’re free to work whenever and wherever their laptop connects to Wi-Fi.

With this freedom comes loads of responsibility – and most of it falls on a stressed IT department tasked with not only making sure the company’s laptops remain virus-free, but they also return to the IT department in one piece.

A small to medium size business can spend up to R500 000 to re-fresh its existing tech, while most usually don’t have the means to buy laptops outright, meaning staff are left to make do with outdated laptops unable to handle the stresses of hybrid work – which includes video conferencing and constant security updates.

No matter how well these devices are looked after, ultimately there will come a day (for businesses, it’s usually within three to four years) when they’ll no longer be able to accept any software updates. And that brings us to the first point:

We never really own our smart devices

While most of us prefer to own rather than rent our devices – it’s a once-off (albeit usually hefty) payment for an item we believe is ours to use as we please forever.

When it comes to tech, especially tech that needs constant software updates to work effectively or even at all, we’re all at the mercy of the companies supplying the software – usually via annual subscription – and the companies who issue these devices in the first place to keep supplying those services.

Unfortunately, as we become more interconnected via everything from smart TVs, to smartphones, tablets, and laptops, investing in these depreciating assets starts to make less and less sense. Especially when these assets stop accepting updates, start to glitch and eventually burn out while companies shell out added resources for hardware upgrades or replacements. Usually at the most inconvenient times during the financial year.

Take the recent release of Windows 11, for example. The minimum system requirements are already far beyond what most older generation laptops are capable of handling – especially when it comes to Microsoft Teams integration.

The future is flexible, especially with laptop rental

Choosing to rent laptops instead of owning them with Vox Laptop Rentals gives companies the option of upgrading or downgrading – not only the quality of their devices, but the number of devices too – when needed.

Starting now, in addition to our 36-month contract, we’re offering the opportunity to rent this hybrid work essential month-to-month with no contract lock-ins.

With a Vox Managed Service, your laptop rental not only guarantees access to the latest devices from the most trusted brands, but next business day onsite support for maintenance services or hardware replacements from our tech experts when needed too. We have a national footprint, and our support team is available 24/7 to assist.

All of our new devices are 11^th Gen Intel Core Processors and compatible with the requirements for the Windows 11 update, meaning there’s really no delay when it comes to working as efficiently and securely as possible.

When you’re ready for a tech re-fresh or a new contract negotiation, all you have to do is give us a call to keep your budget in check and your work essentials optimised.

Navigating the Future of Hybrid Work

Posted on 4 November 2021 by Duncan Randell

The next great shift in work disruption is hybrid work, which is causing organisations to cautiously implement a phased or partial return to the office as we now consider the impact of a digitised workplace that balances working environments and working styles.

After 18 months of working from home, we are now facing a new challenge: how do we return to office life?

In a pre-pandemic world, knowledge work had already been established as the major economic sector, information sharing and effective collaboration on business objectives required meeting in conference rooms and boardrooms. This was largely driven by managers needing physical oversight and monitoring of employees to produce results.

When world economies were forced to work from home, no one challenged this transition. Unknown to us at the time that we would discover a more productive way of conducting business, this is the case for the majority of knowledge workers that have been provided with radical flexibility, enhanced collaboration and self-management to drive task completion.

As we begin to normalise, we face the next impending transition of going back to the office – this is considered to be the next great disruption, and it is going affect work life balance. The pandemic has shown us that employees have the flexibility to work from anywhere and for anyone, making this transition strategy the one chance organisations have to redesign their workspaces and work models to retain their talent pool or attract talent that wasn’t previously available due to geographic limitations.

In a post pandemic world, knowledge workers are expected to only consider job opportunities that include flexible remote work options. A study by Gartner has found that up to “39% of knowledge workers could leave if you insist on a ‘hard return’ to fully on-site work”.

It’s time to rethink the traditional work model and blend flexible remote work to accommodate a hybrid work culture. The trick to doing all this while safeguarding an organisations’ founding culture is to understand how your employees work styles balance with work environments, ultimately to maintain elevated levels of productivity and employee satisfaction.

Understanding working environments and working styles.

After a decade of analysing workstyle evolution, the latest research by Poly has identified 6 workplace personas which account for 92% of a typical enterprise workforce, and 7 personas if you count the 8% which make up the traditional office independent type.

There is no doubt that flexible and hybrid work is here to stay, this is clearly identified by the workstyles of the Connected Executive, Road Warrior, Flexible Worker and Remote Collaborator, making up 52%, with the remaining 44% split between the Office Collaborator and Office Communicator. The Office Collaborator currently holds the highest percentage out of all 6 personas at 27% of the workforce but said to be a declining statistic which will split between the Office Collaborator and Flex Worker as we look to the future.

What does this mean for the digitised workplace and the technology required for effective and efficient communication?

With an exception for the Road Warrior, the remaining 5 workstyle personas indicate the majority of their time being spent at the office, which means organisations need to re-imagine their office workspace strategy with an emphasis on safety and social distancing, flexibility, cost reduction and employee experience, allowing a seamless transition whether collaborating from home or at the office.

The question that many executives are asking themselves to address this challenge is, are the current workspaces and meeting spaces fit for purpose? if the answer is no, you need to identify what impact this is going to have on individual’s productivity, team productivity and employee engagement. To maintain elevated levels or productivity and engagement, meeting spaces need to provide intuitive and familiar interactions, easy to use, with an inclusive experience for remote and local participants.

Just as the right technology and workspace needs are carefully considered for meeting spaces, remote and flexible technology solutions also need a degree of consideration. Not all personal devices are the same, pro-grade headsets are equipped with advanced noise cancelling on both the microphone and speakers, and high-definition webcams provide auto-light correction to create the same professional meeting room experience for in person 1-1 collaboration meetings. These are essential considerations for open plan workspaces or Café’s where distracting noises can impact on far side participants.

We have been given a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to redesign and rethink our workspaces, for the now and the future needs of flexible hybrid work. The next phase of Technology adoption is going to determine how productive your workspaces and workforce are for years to come.

Systems Offline: How to Prevent your Business from being Home Affairs

Posted on 4 November 2021 by Suhail Dinat

“Sorry Sir, our system is offline”

South African Proverb

It’s as uniquely South African as biltong, the Bokke, minibus taxis and tweeting about the President’s shirt. Systems being offline is by no means exclusive to our beautiful country, but it’s a saying used significantly more frequently than most of us would like. Passports, ID books, drivers’ licences (and, heck, even a whole countries electricity provider) have all been subject to it – but the modern, efficient business owner understands that even a second of downtime can make or break your entire organisation.

Admittedly, this can be a bit hard to adhere to given the difficult external circumstances said business owners face. Randomised power outages (sometimes multiple times a day), weak signal, a whole pandemic and the entirety of Facebook, Whatsapp and Instagram shutting down without warning (hey, some of us work in Social Media) all threaten to undermine your organisational commitment to maximum output.

The bad news is that at any given time, something new can arise.

The good news? Vox boasts an array of solutions which are a sure-fire way to ensure that down-time doesn’t happen at any time.

Let’s start with power outages (because they’re the most relevant and, sadly, don’t seem to be going away soon. Be patient, it’s only been 13 years…)

Well, we’ve *beeeeen* saying this, but a UPS Solution from Vox should have been designed exclusively with South Africa in mind. Sadly, we don’t have one big enough to plug into everyone’s favourite electricity provider, but we definitely have a few to take a bit of the load off while everyone else is shedding. True, nothing can eliminate the unanimous frustration of having your TV, Devices and lights shut off at least once a day, but at least you can still work remotely and reduce the impact of rolling outages (plus Netflix and chill is better in the dark anyway).

Our smaller Fibre unit is designed to connect up to 3 devices and should keep you online with a seamless switchover once the power cuts. Small and compact, it has a 40-Watt output, and can ensure that working from home isn’t at a standstill for two hours a day. Our bigger model, the Home Office UPS, reaches up to 5 Devices with a 500-Watt Output and can, if need be, power up your PC, screen and cell phone in conjunction with your Internet solutions. Both models have up to 4 hours of battery life and 24/7 support. Because we’ve got your back. Always.

What about Systems actually being offline? How do you prevent that?

Well, you’ve got to start with the best Internet connection to ensure maximum connectivity (and limited downtime). In terms of reliability, speed and durability, you can’t go wrong with Fibre to the Home or Business. Not only is it less prone to theft or impacted by bad weather, but it promises faster connectivity and a vastly reduced chance of being disconnected.

But what if your area can’t get Fibre? Relax, because LTE has you covered. Fibre-like speeds without the fixed line, it’s the best way to enjoy all the speed in the areas you really need them. Combine this with a Cloud or Archiving solution, which allows you to store, access and manage your Data remotely (or on the go) and you have no reason for your valuable information to ever be inaccessible (incidentally, you can also find a wide array of software options from Braintree, such as D365 Business Central, D365 Customer Management, BC Xpress, CRM24, Teams and M365. These enable you to manage or run your operations both remotely and from the comfort of, well, wherever you desire).

But what if my PC crashes, or I have an IT problem that needs solving?

That would be a tough one if we didn’t have a team of experts ready and waiting to assist a client in need. For only R29pm, our Home IT Support team can remotely troubleshoot those pesky issues with the touch of a button. You (or your team) can access any one of our skilled engineers from between 07h00 and 21h00 on workdays without being charged for hours of non-use (we only bill for the time spent getting actual assistance). From your end, all you have to do is activate an installed desktop icon. We offer BitDefender Anti-Virus and Anti-Malware, regular Windows Updates and patching of any identified security holes. Peace of mind, ease of access and expert assistance? You’ve got it with our team that prioritises the things that matter.

The way we see it, the modern remote workspace has enough challenges without the added stress of non-service delivery affecting your output. Thankfully, we live in the age of technology, and there’s always a solution in waiting. We’ve refined our own operational model to fully embrace the concept of Work from Home, but we wouldn’t be advocates for the concept if we hadn’t fledged out solutions which circumnavigate any potential stumbling blocks.

So leave the “system offline” problem to Home Affairs and let your experts in tech solutions offer you just that.

Top Security Breaches

Posted on 2 November 2021 by Suhail Dinat

As companies become increasingly reliant on modern technology and new digital solutions, their increased cyber presence unfortunately makes them more vulnerable to attacks.

It’s a logical sequence of events, as an increase in time spent online will doubtlessly lead to more opportunities for attack. Plus, with information and Data being as valuable as currency and their resultant storage solutions also residing in the Cloud, there’s more scope and potential for harm as far as hackers are concerned.

The bottom line is that not only are corporate Cyber-Crimes on the rise (at a rapid rate, too), but successful ones can prove fatal to an organisation.

It’s a damning indictment of the scope of said Cyber Crimes that not only are the “elite”, Fortune-500 companies being hit, but businesses and industries across the board. We’ve compiled a list of the 10 most significant Data Breaches of 2020 for an idea of just how severe this risk truly is.

Microsoft:

In Jan 2020 (worryingly, before lockdown even started!), Microsoft disclosed the compromisation of an internal customer support Database. Said Database contained user analytics and other confidential information, and this breach led to this being exposed online.

Sounds minor, right? Except it wasn’t. In an instant, over 250 million customer records accumulated over 14 years were exposed online, with no password needed to access them. IP Addresses, Email addresses and other confidential customer info were all leaked – meaning that in spite of their higher-level security, encryption and protection, even the creators of the Internet weren’t safe from malicious intent.

One would think that a behemoth such as Microsoft would have impenetrable defence systems, and for the most part this is true. However, the unfortunate reality is that with the ever evolving, innovative nature of Cyber Crimes, there’s no sure-fire way to ensure that your business will be perpetually protected (which is, incidentally, why we highly recommend Vulnerability Assessments and Penetration Testing).

Facebook:

Yes, that Facebook. The same one which owns Whatsapp and Instagram, which we see every day (and which crashed not so long ago).

In April 2020 (just as lockdowns kicked in and users skyrocketed), more than 267 million Facebook profiles were put up for sale on the Dark Web. The cost of one user profile? Just $600.

There are a number of motivators for someone to steal your identity (which we’ve covered in detail here), but the leaked information also made it possible for Cyber Criminals to systemically target and hack these compromised individuals. Phone numbers, Email addresses and entire identities were made available for misuse. The entire population of South Africa is around 61 million. This leak alone had an impact on more than four times that amount.

Twitter:

July 2020: Twitter suffers an unprecedented hacking of celebrity accounts. This stemmed from a spear-phishing attack on the networks employees, which in turn allowed hackers to access their Database and go wild. We don’t mean minor celebrities like Carrot Top either – some of the accounts compromised included Barack Obama, Kanye West, Elon Musk, Joe Biden and Bill gates.

These accounts were used to perpetuate a Bitcoin scam and use their direct messaging feature to prey on unsuspecting members of the public. These individuals were scammed into investing money into dubious ventures (hey, if Bill Gates himself asks me to personally invest in a product, I’d pay attention) and subsequently lost said investment.

The worst part is that only a month prior to this attack, another security incident at Twitter HQ led to billing information for millions of users being similarly compromised.

Zoom:

By April 2020, Zoom was being heralded as one of the saviours of the pandemic – a shining knight way before J&J stole their thunder. That is, of course, until hackers took advantage of their inadequately secure network and gained access to over 500 000 user accounts.

Attackers were able to breach their credentials and, you guessed it, post them up for sale on the Dark Web. This led to “zoombombing”, where Cyber Criminals could jump in (or take over) a live meeting and wreck-havoc. From listening in to confidential discussions to screen sharing disturbing imagery to unsuspecting viewers, the Zoom breach led to many a case of identity theft (and PTSD).

We really miss the days of Mxit.

When it comes down to it, nobody is ever 100% safe from Cyber Crime. These attacks just scratch the surface or recent breaches, as everyone from Virgin Active to MGM, Estee Lauder, Nintendo and the Irish Health System were all subjected to similar incidents. It goes to show that no matter how big your organisation or the industry it caters for, a breach is a breach and attackers will show no mercy. Which begs the question – if even the biggest of brands have become victims of Cyber Crimes, can your business really afford not to take it seriously?

Luckily, there’s always Armata (which you can read about here) to save the day before it even needs saving.

Vox Meets SD-WAN

Posted on 29 October 2021 by Jeanette Simpson

You’ve likely read all about SD-WAN here, but how does Vox come into the mix? Glad you asked…

Upon extensive analysis of our unique South African market, we at Vox have developed two unique solutions which cater for vastly different segments – SD-WAN Lite, and SD-WAN Secure.

The former, (SD-Lite) is suitable for the Small Business that requires a streamlined offering at a very competitive price. The latter, however, is our flagship offering, and delivers advanced WAN capabilities combined with Next-Generation Security Firewalls and is perfect for medium to large companies. Need high-end security as well as WAN Resiliency using a single pane of glass? SD-WAN Secure simplified monitoring and reporting to offer you just that.

But first, Vox SD-WAN Lite – an SME value proposition

Vox has developed SD-WAN Lite, an entry-level SD-WAN solution built from the ground up to cater to the unique needs of the South African small business. When compared to recent technology trends and requirements for enterprise-level SD-WAN solutions, the Lite solution provides a more niche value proposition than its counterparts.

The focus of SD-WAN Lite is on delivering high resiliency Internet connectivity, while providing excellent voice quality, reliability, and an in-depth view of network performance via an online Web portal. The solution is designed for small businesses and SOHO customers – those who cannot afford expensive enterprise-level SD-WAN solutions or dedicated connectivity solutions. The benefits include:

Reduced cost of expensive dedicated connectivity solutions.
It will improve the quality of connectivity to support Vox voice services specifically in under-serviced connectivity areas.
Managed traffic load balancing while delivering automatic fail-over.
Improved uptime ratio of connectivity by means of automatic failover.
It is quick and easy to install.
It is a quality control system.
It brings to the user information about the quality of their connectivity and self-control to adjust by means of real time monitoring and alerting.
It allows users to adjust their load balancing and failover strategies at will

Along with affordable pricing, Vox SD-WAN Lite delivers monitoring and alerting services to notify businesses when their Internet links become unavailable. The product caters for connectivity that includes Fibre, Wireless, 5G, LTE, Satellite, and DSL; ensuring the SME is covered regardless of how it accesses the Internet.

Vox SD-WAN Lite supports up to three direct Internet connections that can be any combination of the technologies referred to above. Internet-bound traffic can use multiple links concurrently or be configured to failover in order of priority as chosen by the customer. This can be combined to offer: for example, two links in active/active load balancing mode and a 3rd passive link specifically for failover, should the other links go down.

Vox SD-WAN Secure – Designed for the big business

Vox has used the Forti-Secure product as the foundation for the flagship SD-WAN Secure solution. It targets mission-critical operations as well as large and enterprise-level businesses.

SD-WAN Secure delivers intelligent networking and security capabilities in a unified solution for companies who need WAN resiliency with a strong focus on security. It supports Multi-branch VPN overlays, dynamic policy-based decisions for application path selection across multiple independent WAN connections, consolidated management, and advanced protection against threats. SD-WAN Secure can reduce operational cost and complexity and improve efficiency without compromising on security.

SD-WAN Secure is characterised by:

Native Next-Generation Security.
Multi branch VPN overlays.
Highest Quality of Experience for voice and data traffic.
A reduction of the cost of connectivity and operating expenditure.
WAN resiliency and intelligent application steering.
Real time monitoring, analytics, and reporting.

Traditional WAN is no longer an effective solution for today’s distributed business.

Companies are overcoming significant security and network issues by moving to SD-WAN. There are many different SD-WANs on the market today, and. as such, we highly recommend a careful review of your options before selecting the appropriate one.

Vox SD-WAN Lite is a more bespoke offering that is streamlined to deliver the features a small business would require. This makes it not only affordable, but also provides an environment where the company can more easily scale according to how it is growing and adapting to market forces.

Vox SD-WAN Secure, using the foundation of FortiGate SD-WAN, integrates enhanced SD-WAN features with proven security capabilities, delivering next-generation protection and networking capabilities that improve network efficiency without compromising security. It delivers a combination of WAN capabilities with firewall-driven security effectiveness. Essentially, a large business gets two solutions for the price of one.

Vox SD-WAN: A Thought Leadership Piece

Posted on 29 October 2021 by Jeanette Simpson

You’ve probably heard the term SD-WAN, and with good reason, as it’s rapidly shaping up to be a viable method of redefining efficient connectivity.

In light of a rapidly modernised work environment and the hyper-accelerated adoption of new technological solutions, an increased number of businesses are transitioning from outdated “legacy” solutions to more modern, Cloud-based alternatives. The reason? A newfound willingness across the board to accept (and embrace) digital transformation while seeking affordable last-mile solutions.

Sadly, South Africa contains many organisations still heavily reliant on said outdated infrastructure, although admittedly. recent years have seen accelerated transitioning to the Cloud. Across the board, the Covid-19 pandemic has necessitated a newfound reliance on technology and evolved solutions. In fact, it’s estimated that over 70% of applications have made this transition, with those who haven’t struggling to keep up.

This is where SD-WAN comes into play – presenting a unique opportunity to reinvent the fundamental network building blocks on which businesses are built.

Okay, I’m with you so far – now how does SD-WAN affect my business?

Well, any user needs an agile network to ensure effective collaboration, connect with customers/suppliers and simplify access to Cloud-based technologies without a drop in quality.

With so many new and different business functions (such as video conferencing or Data storage), traditional networks can easily be overloaded, which in turn leads to reduced speed, efficiency and quality. Modern businesses need flexible, secure and consistent solutions that don’t break bank – which brings us to SD-WAN.

Simply put, SD-WAN is a software defined, wide area network solution which enables companies to leverage any combination of last mile services, including MPLS, 5G, LTE-A, Fibre, Microwave, and the like to securely connect users to applications. Unlike you traditional WAN services (which connect office users to applications and servers in a Datacentre), SD-WAN utilises multiple Clouds in a digital-centric environment to encapsulate software-as-a-service (SaaS) applications.

Said solutions eliminates the need for expensive routing, reducing hardware costs while providing businesses with the flexibility of Multi-Cloud Services.

Why does it matter?

Fibre in South Africa has developed at a phenomenal rate, resulting in a similarly phenomenal impact on the reliability and quality of last-mile or backup solutions. In the past, companies utilised dedicated solutions, but these proved exceptionally costly.

With SD-WAN, you can enjoy resilient, high-quality network while allowing the customer to view their performance through real-time monitoring and reporting. The key selling-point, however, is that replacing these conventional links means a vastly reduced overall cost. Not yet sold? Here are all the ways SD-WAN will propel your organisation to the next level.

Application Steering = Increased performance for business-critical applications.

In simple English, SD-WAN takes your web traffic and routes it via the strongest connection. This ensures the best performance as, rather than divert this through a problematic route, your business can enjoy optimal efficiency.

Application Steering lets your business define priority traffic in order to improve performance and speed, using backup connections in active mode to increase bandwidth.

Improve Quality of Service for business-critical applications.

Centrally deployed policies will ensure than employees remain productive. High-bandwidth demanding applications will be steered through the best connection, while your staff can access Cloud-software, Data and files faster than before with minimal loading time. Faster performing applications, naturally, mean enhanced efficiency.

Easy deployment and implementation of changes.

SD-WAN’s Zero Touch Provisioning makes deploying a new branch quick and simple – simply ship the device to site and plug it in – no need to for experts to travel to each of your branches. Through a single pane of glass, you can centrally manage your network and execute mass configuration of devices on all sites.

Improve network security with the built in Next Generation Firewall.

Most business install security protocol at their head office, forcing all branch traffic to go through a central network location before they can connect. This method does protect the business network, yet it also leads to the decline of overall application performance.

Any business should prioritise security yet also seek a balance between efficiency and safety. Our SD-WAN solutions contain built-in, next generation Firewalls, which can encrypt security at individual sites yet not compromise performance.

Cloud migration preparation

Most businesses will inevitably transition to the Cloud (if they haven’t already). SD-WAN assists with this migration proactively, setting up the network so that moving your Email server or business application is a simplified, supported process.

Enables automatic and seamless failover between multiple connections.

An increasing amount of business functions are reliant on good connectivity – even an hour of downtime can mean lost revenue. With SD-WAN, downtime doesn’t exist – the technology will monitor and evaluate network problems, intelligently and seamlessly moving this active Data once a link fails to the best available alternative.

Reduce your monthly spend.

With SD-WAN, your business can make use of more affordable broadband links. This will result in lower operational spend which doesn’t compromise Data security. Enjoy better productivity and easy scalability – it’s a win-win.

Simply put, SD-WAN provides you with fast, secure connectivity, allowing you to reduce costs and enjoy visibility or performance benefits. Change your legacy network into a next generation SD-WAN solution which can be managed from a single interface. Your brand will be able to work smarter and, in turn, provide your customers with exceptional service as a result of more efficient network solutionsS

Creating eSports opportunities for South Africans

Posted on 27 October 2021 by Duo Marketing

By Eugene Scholtz, Product Manager: Gaming, Vox

By 2024, almost 600 million people will be watching eSports globally. More significantly, the worldwide eSports market was valued at just over $1 billion this year with Asia and North America representing the biggest share of the revenues. Even though it is still a niche pursuit in South Africa, there is significant potential for eSports given the availability of Xbox gaming consoles for rent, thereby democratising gaming to those who might not have previously considered it from an affordability perspective.

The benefits of eSports are well-documented with competitors attaining skills considered essential for the digital environment. These foundational skills can range from critical thinking and self-confidence to problem-solving and pushing for achievement. From a performance perspective, eSports athletes have significantly improved decision-making capabilities, motor and timing skills, as well as high attention spans to remain focused for hours at a time.

Furthermore, gamers have high emotional intelligence and a great deal of creativity typically associated with problem-solving. High cognitive awareness and self-esteem are added benefits from a personal development side. Even though many consider eSports to be a solitary pursuit, many games take place in team environments. This requires effective communication, leadership, people management, and negotiation skills.

Sports for all

Clearly, the stereotypes of gaming must change. These are athletes of a different kind who put in the hours to compete at a high level. And while not every gamer becomes a professional, the opportunities do exist to become a full-time eSports athlete especially as affordable, high-speed connectivity becomes available to more South Africans.

Up to now, one of the challenges when it comes to gaming in this country has been that very few people could afford the R7,000 to R12,000 of a new Xbox Series S and Series X, respectively. However, Vox has both these powerful consoles available for rental. Considering that the December holidays are around the corner, retailers have already experienced stock shortages whereas Vox still has units readily available for gamers of all ages.

The retail value proposition

With rental periods from 12, 24, or 36 months to choose from, and pricing starting from R420 per month, it has been a case of making gaming available to all South Africans. Launched in October last year, Vox has already seen great uptake with an increase of approximately 5-10% per month in applications for the units signifying how necessary the rental option is in a developing country like South Africa.

In addition to the affordability aspect, the Xbox can be ordered online, and delivery is door-to-door. Furthermore, the extended warranty means the unit can be replaced if it is faulty. Even better, a gamer can start with the Xbox S console and effortlessly upgrade it to the Xbox X later in the term of the rental contract. Vox will simply send a new quote and deliver the unit in exchange for the older model.

We never really own our smart devices

The future is flexible, especially with laptop rental

Available in your area