When the last network administrator at IHPR moved on to a new position, Backbone Information Technology Services was called in to ensure that the network and various workstations ran harmoniously. There were 30 workstations, a Microsoft domain controller/fileserver, and a dedicated web server behind a Cisco firewall.

The previous administrator was not available to provide all of the needed passwords, so we had to quickly penetrate the security on the existing systems to regain complete control of the network. We removed all previous administrator access and secured the network, restoring it to a stable operation.

After a few months of routine maintenance and despite regular anti-virus checkups, a new and undetectable Trojan program attacked the network. With no known defense against the new trojan, we took the extra step of abandoning the vulnerable Microsoft operating system and converted the primary file server to the Linux operating system. This rendered the IHPR file server immune to the many infections that target Microsoft software. We then migrated the workstations from the old Microsoft domain controller to the new Linux Samba domain controller. After the migration, the staff did not have to change any of their workflow or habits; the migration was seamless to the end-users.

Lastly, we instituted an automated off-site backup system. This means that all of IHPR’s data is safely stored in a remote location protected from fire, theft, or other disaster. As an added benefit, the new backup system is significantly faster than the previous, tape-based method.