Cooking and SBS... they have more in common then you think

Harry sure knows how to have a good time. He sent over a town car and took us out to The Blue Ribbon Cooking School where we got to learn the fine art of culinary cooking. We actually prepared and cooked the meal we ultimately ate. And during the process we learned that they actually use Small Business Server 2003 (SBS) themselves!

During discussions with the head chef, I made some interesting corrilations between cooking and how to run SBS efficently. You have to think about your 'ingredients' and get them together before you start cooking. When you begin the cooking process, be patient and ensure you follow the recipe. The result is something you thoroughly enjoy.

But what if you skip a step? Well then things just don't "taste" right. In this case, I am referring to some experiences they have had in the past with their implementation. Quite frankly, it sounds like the "chef" (aka VAR) that did the installation decided not to follow up and see if his "cuisine" was prepared and served correctly. In this case at one point they found they were missing 16 patches, including 7 security patches that weren't even installed on their system. Of course, they took care of that.... but my question is... why didn't the VAR do that in the first place (or at least turn on auto updates)? Automated patch management (with reporting) ISN'T that hard. Why wasn't the free version of Shavlik's HFNetChkPro installed? Heck, the VAR could make incremental revenue streams by having the reports sent to them, and then ensuring that the updates occur on a regular basis.

SBS is a GREAT recipe for many small businesses. But if you forget even a single ingredient, you might find it doesn't taste very well. The VARs in the field managing these systems need to remember that as the chefs, its up to them to ensure the recipe is followed.

Harry, thanks for a great evening. It was a thoroughly enjoyable experience.