What is SteelWorks® with Continuity Suite?
What is included in the SteelWorks® product?
What is the Continuity Suite?
How does the Continuity Suite enhance business continuity?
Who was SteelWorks® designed for?
Do I need to buy a back up unit for it to work?
What about software licensing?
What are the benefits of SteelWorks® over buying BES software and server hardware separately and installing the environment?
Will SteelWorks® support with my email server?
Is it expensive?
What else do I need to buy?
Can’t I install the BlackBerry Enterprise Server on my Exchange or other shared server?
What level technical resource(s) do I need to implement SteelWorks®?
Who supports the product?
How does SteelWorks® affect software support?
How does SteelWorks® affect the day-to-day maintenance of BES and Microsoft Windows?
Where do I buy it?
What is SteelWorks® with Continuity Suite?
SteelWorks® is an integrated plug & play BlackBerry® Enterprise Server
(BES) appliance. The SteelWorks® Continuity Suite enhances the reliability and availability of BES by providing
utilities to support disaster recovery, patch management, and high availability For many organizations, their BlackBerry environment is
considered to be mission-critical. It is therefore recommended that back-up and disaster recovery plans are implemented using the
Continuity suite as the lynch pin for continuous business operations. The functionality of SteelWorks® means
reduced BES down-time and higher quality of service. SteelCloud’s “BES in a box” appliance is the simplest, most cost effective way
to install, manage and protect your BlackBerry® environment.
What is included in the SteelWorks® product?
SteelWorks® includes everything you will need to implement the
BlackBerry® Enterprise Server in under 30 minutes! SteelWorks® combines a high
performance server platform running MS Windows Server 2003 with a full version of the BlackBerry®
Enterprise Server. These components are fully integrated under SteelCloud’s Steelworks
which reduces many pages of detailed, highly technical BES implementation steps down to a handful
of non-technical entries that can usually be accomplished in under 30 minutes. The SteelWorks®
appliance also includes utilities to help your organization better manage your BlackBerry®
environment. Every SteelWorks® appliance supports Microsoft Exchange, IBM Domino,
or Novell GroupWise – simply order your appliance based on the mail environment and Steelworks will configure BES appropriately.
What is the Continuity Suite?
Continuity Suite saves time, reduces risk, increase reliability –
SteelWorks® improves your BlackBerry experience every day! Our Continuity Suite is a set of advanced
utilities for disaster recovery, patch/upgrade management, and back-up and restore activities.
How does the Continuity Suite enhance business continuity?
The Continuity Suite includes an automated and scheduled facility for backing up the key components of
the BlackBerry environment to a secure, off-site location. When implemented in conjunction with a SteelWorks®
“warm back-up” appliance, the back-up BES can be put into production, remotely, within minutes. The Continuity Suite also provides
an advanced “snapshot” back-up capability that is essential in maximizing uptime when dealing with Windows patches. This facility
allows the user to quickly back-up the complete appliance image in the appliance itself or to a network share drive, apply a patch
or upgrade, and then, if there is a problem, restore the system to a previous “snapshot” – even if Windows fails. SteelCloud has
taken its years of developing Windows-based appliances and designed SteelWorks® to reduce downtime due to Windows patching
to an absolute minimum.
Who was SteelWorks® designed for?
Anyone who buys BlackBerry® Enterprise Server and needs the hardware to add to their network.
SteelCloud developed SteelWorks® for any organization that wants to reduce
the cost, complexity, and risk of implementing and supporting a BlackBerry® Enterprise Server environment.
Do I need to buy a back up unit for it to work?
A back unit will afford you full coverage in the event of a disaster. Once loaded with the back up
files it, replaces the primary unit with minimal interruption to your service. This manual failover assures that you will have
a working unit at the ready when you need it.
What about software licensing?
With SteelWorks®, your organization will receive a Microsoft® Windows 2003
license and a license to the SteelCloud’s SteelWorks® and BES support utilities. Although a full
version of BlackBerry® Enterprise Server is installed on the appliance, licensing for BES and appropriate
CALs are acquired separately. This flexible implementation allows your organization to buy your
BES licenses through your vendor of choice. And, your BES licenses remain portable between hardware
platforms. If you are already a BES customer, you can take advantage of SteelWorks® while using
your existing BES licenses.
What are the benefits of SteelWorks® over buying BES software and server
hardware separately and installing the environment?
SteelWorks® “BES in a Box” is more cost effective, faster, and significantly
reduces your installation risk. The BlackBerry® Enterprise Server is universally recognized as a
unique piece of technology with tremendous depth and breadth of functionality. Because BES tightly
integrates with so many pieces of an organization’s IT infrastructure, its installation is complex and
time consuming, requiring a wide range of technical expertise. SteelCloud spent the better part of two
years studying how to improve the BES installation and support process. SteelWorks® “BES in a Box”
dramatically simplifies BES implementation and support, while reducing time, risk, and the technical staff
requirements. One common theme expressed by SteelWorks® clients is that it does not make sense to train
and allocate scarce and valuable IT resources to the BES installation process when it
is done so infrequently - and when a
simple plug & play BES appliance solution is available.
Will SteelWorks® support with my email server?
Yes! Every SteelWorks® appliances support Microsoft® Exchange, IBM Domino®, or Novell®
GroupWise®
Is it expensive?
SteelWorks® “BES is a Box” was designed from the ground up as the
highest quality, least-cost option for implementing and supporting the BlackBerry® Enterprise Server.
SteelCloud has productized thousands of hours of automation development to create a product that
delivers dividends on your investment the first day you own it. No risk of “shelfware” with SteelWorks®
– your BES will be operational in less than 30 minutes.minutes.
What else do I need to buy?
SteelWorks® is a complete BES appliance solution. Just add your BlackBerry®
BES/CAL license keys and have a keyboard, monitor, and mouse available for set-up. And, of course, you
will need some BlackBerry smartphones!
Can’t I install the BlackBerry® Enterprise Server on my Exchange or other shared server?
No, a base requirement of BES is that it be installed on a stand-alone server. RIM offers a
simplified limited-function product, BlackBerry® Professional, that is designed to install on a shared server. BlackBerry® Professional, however,
will only support up to 30 handsets and is not upgradeable.
What level technical resource(s) do I need to implement SteelWorks®?
SteelWorks® generally requires one resource for about 30 minutes. The
SteelCloud “BES in a Box” appliance reduces the steps necessary to implement BES to an absolute minimum. Instead of multiple technicians
and possibly multiple days, SteelWorks® can be installed by a single resource familiar with your organizations
environment in less than 30 minutes.
Who supports the product?
SteelCloud is available to support SteelWorks® customers on issues relating to the
installation and support of the appliance. BlackBerry® Enterprise Server support is provided by RIM as with any standard BES product.
How does SteelWorks® affect software support?
With SteelWorks®, SteelCloud has not modified the standard products or implemented any
proprietary support procedures for Windows 2003 Server or BES. Therefore, standard procedures for supporting Windows and BES have been
implemented in the SteelWorks® appliance – nothing proprietary. SteelWorks®
Continuity Suite does include valuable utilities to help reduce support risk and streamline the product update and patch management process.
How does SteelWorks® affect the day-to-day maintenance of BES and Microsoft Windows?
SteelWorks® will enhance the day-to-day maintenance of your BlackBerry®
environment. SteelWorks® is functionally equivalent to a Windows server running BES so the
patching and service pack update process is the same. SteelCloud, however, has added additional technology that is extremely useful
in supporting the BES environment. Patches are a way of life with modern software applications. The
SteelWorks® SteelRestore™ utility allows the administrator to quickly do a checkpoint back-up of the entire
system image. Patches can then be applied and tested. If there is a system failure due to a patch (even if Windows may have failed),
the administrator can use the Continuity Suite utilities to quickly recover the pre-patch system state. The entire back-up and
recovery process, including the BES application, the Windows operating system, and the user-specific database, takes less than 10 minutes
thus reducing BES down-time and enhancing the quality of service.
Where do I buy it?
We make it simple!
- Email us at wirelesssales@steelcloud.com
- Call SteelCloud at (703) 674-5500 and ask for SteelWorks® sales
- Contact any Ingram Micro Reseller
- Or, you can order from CDW - Click here
