I've been using a Synology DS1010+ for a few years. They are affordable, easy to setup, and come with a good number of features. There is a VPN server, but there are also a few simpler methods for remote access on the Synology. If you mainly need remote access to data on the Synology, the Cloud Station software is simple and you can work with files offline. They also provide easy to use mobile apps for remote access. Its a good device to keep files on your client machines backed up. If you were comfortable with your dabbling in networking, you'll do fine with a Synology.
It would be a good idea to determine what kind of skills are in demand where you live, or figure out where you are willing to relocate. I got my RHCE a month ago, and there just doesn't seem to be any demand for that in my area (to be fair I have been casually looking around for only a few weeks). And I am outnumbered in my small IT dept. by MCSEs & MCSDs (2 of each to my 1 RHCE). I'm sure it will be beneficial to me at some point, but I may have to relocate and will definitely have to find new employment to maximize the gain from it.
But it is soo cool!
Actually, saving money on inter-office calls was what I was trying to sell. But, we have a lot of other expansion going on right now, so my timing probably wasn't the best. And I think it will take a while for all of the old school management here to start believing that technology isn't scary and doesn't have to be a drain on finances. Oh...I should probably post anonymously in case one of them learns how to work that newfangled Internet!
Well, I hope we will be around for a while (the company has been around for over 40 years).
We currently have 6 locations running 5 different phone systems, and a few of the older phone systems are really showing their age and have reached their maximum capabilities. And I am afraid that it may become more difficult to find someone to support some of our remote locations the older these systems get. We have a new CEO & I have a new PHB who is really energetic about making IT a very utilized resource rather a black hole in the budget (which is how the 'old' management sees us). Every impression the new CEO has given is that we are facing some aggressive expansion in near future, so it just seemed like a good opportunity to look at integrating our phone systems and trying to save some money over the long run on phone bills (especially long distance between divisions). I really liked the Cisco solution, and thought I could sell it beginning with one of our plants we just moved to a new location. But while everyone was impressed with the features, they balked at the cost. I am not looking immediately deploying an entire new system, but I plan on evaluating different solutions over the next 1-2 years so that when they are ready for something new, I have a handle on what would be a relatively feature-rich solution with a reasonable ROI. And maybe by then we would be ready for a corporate wide rollout, and the cost wouldn't seem so prohibitive with a Cisco/3Com/whatever solution. I did just order the Asterisk DevKit to play around with a bit, and I will probably mess around with some SIP softphones just to get a feel for the system. But I would definitely look into any system pointed out to me.
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I've been using a Synology DS1010+ for a few years. They are affordable, easy to setup, and come with a good number of features. There is a VPN server, but there are also a few simpler methods for remote access on the Synology. If you mainly need remote access to data on the Synology, the Cloud Station software is simple and you can work with files offline. They also provide easy to use mobile apps for remote access. Its a good device to keep files on your client machines backed up. If you were comfortable with your dabbling in networking, you'll do fine with a Synology.
If you would be so kind - anomalie(gmail). Thanks!
Classic Menu for Office - http://www.addintools.com/index.html It's not free though.
It would be a good idea to determine what kind of skills are in demand where you live, or figure out where you are willing to relocate. I got my RHCE a month ago, and there just doesn't seem to be any demand for that in my area (to be fair I have been casually looking around for only a few weeks). And I am outnumbered in my small IT dept. by MCSEs & MCSDs (2 of each to my 1 RHCE). I'm sure it will be beneficial to me at some point, but I may have to relocate and will definitely have to find new employment to maximize the gain from it.
Thanks for info!
But it is soo cool! Actually, saving money on inter-office calls was what I was trying to sell. But, we have a lot of other expansion going on right now, so my timing probably wasn't the best. And I think it will take a while for all of the old school management here to start believing that technology isn't scary and doesn't have to be a drain on finances. Oh...I should probably post anonymously in case one of them learns how to work that newfangled Internet!
We currently have 6 locations running 5 different phone systems, and a few of the older phone systems are really showing their age and have reached their maximum capabilities. And I am afraid that it may become more difficult to find someone to support some of our remote locations the older these systems get. We have a new CEO & I have a new PHB who is really energetic about making IT a very utilized resource rather a black hole in the budget (which is how the 'old' management sees us). Every impression the new CEO has given is that we are facing some aggressive expansion in near future, so it just seemed like a good opportunity to look at integrating our phone systems and trying to save some money over the long run on phone bills (especially long distance between divisions). I really liked the Cisco solution, and thought I could sell it beginning with one of our plants we just moved to a new location. But while everyone was impressed with the features, they balked at the cost. I am not looking immediately deploying an entire new system, but I plan on evaluating different solutions over the next 1-2 years so that when they are ready for something new, I have a handle on what would be a relatively feature-rich solution with a reasonable ROI. And maybe by then we would be ready for a corporate wide rollout, and the cost wouldn't seem so prohibitive with a Cisco/3Com/whatever solution. I did just order the Asterisk DevKit to play around with a bit, and I will probably mess around with some SIP softphones just to get a feel for the system. But I would definitely look into any system pointed out to me.