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IT Works

Your IT system is an ever changing landscape ? computer asset upgrades and management, operating system and application licensing, updates and migrations, security patches, disaster recovery, user management, help desk support, and more. Budget constraints can lead to system failures and downtime in any of these areas, affecting top line revenue.

The solution to resource constraints? Provide the IT support team tools that automate repetitive tasks so they can cover more ground with less effort!

IT Works dramatically improves efficiencies and reduces costs for deployment, maintenance, support, and migration for your servers and end point computers. IT Works enables you to do all this and more:

At the core of IT Works sits the Hierarchical Inheritance Model, making it easier to manage computers and deploy software. Administrators can deploy operating systems, applications, configuration updates simply by dragging and dropping the software or customizations on the desired branch of the tree. All computers within the branch will automatically inherit the change unless otherwise noted. The administrator has instant visibility into the equipment configurations and software installed on each system.

Deployment - Operating Systems & Applications

  • Quickly realize ROI on this feature alone
  • Schedule software deployments for nighttime hours and end worker downtime
  • Optimize configurations and settings on desktops for peak performance
  • Reduce the time required to complete installation or migration

Migration of Operating Systems & Applications 

  • Get the flexibility and simplicity you need to immediately deploy or migrate to new OS and other new technologies
  • Save administrator?s time and focus so that they can invest it elsewhere
  • Eliminate end user downtime and inconvenience normally associated with migrations

Asset Inventory Management

  • Reduce planning, audit, and management of service agreements and software licensing with accurate asset inventories
  • Reduce the time needed to inventory and analyze IT assets
  • Improve the accuracy of asset inventories
  • Gain environment stability
  • Eliminate the risk of dependence on one or two key individuals

Automated Hardware Additions & Replacements    

  • Quickly and easily bring new computers online by using the Inheritance Model to replicate the desired software and configurations already in use
  • Add user specific menus
  • Reduce administrative time and cost for initial setup and installation
  • Ramp up end users to productivity quickly and with a process familiar throughout the organization

Remote Control & Remote Management

  • Reduce desktop problems with IT Works desktop Lockdown and Remote Management
  • Troubleshoot problems from any point on the network
  • Reduce or eliminate administrative travel time and costs
  • Eliminate interruption to end users for problem identification and resolution

 

Smart Packaging

  • An IT Works Package is a complete set of instructions, including the software installation executable file, and all necessary configuration settings required to install software on a computer unattended
  • Packaged software can be deployed on a variety of systems
  • Smart packaging is superior to ?disk imaging? which only copies a static image but does not provide a customized installation

"Walk Up & Use" Desktops

  • Gain flexibility when end users can work from any point on the network, without taking their computers with them
  • Ensure consistent services and behavior from all network computers regardless of physical location

Enhanced Security administration

  • Automate the installation of operating systems, hardware components, and software applications to stay current with patches and enhancements
  • Grant only ?Read and Execute? access to the file system and computer registry
  • Create a consistent user environment throughout the organization with embedded policies and permissions
  • Policies can add additional features including the ability to limit access to certain system areas like the control panel, and how application settings have been configured, e.g., default user path for saving documents

Disaster Recovery

  • Enhance end user confidence in the integrity of their applications and data
  • Eliminate end user downtime due to desktop repair or replacement
  • Save administrators time troubleshooting or rebuilding failed desktops

Integrated Help Desk            

  • Greatly reduce the time spent to document and track end user calls and requests
  • Improve IT service to end users when problems do occur
  • Improve IT communications with end users for a more satisfied user community
  • Improve productivity of administrators and end users for reduced costs
  • Interface with popular help desk systems

Frequently Asked Questions:

What is an IT Works “package”?
An IT Works Package is a complete set of instructions, including the software installation executable and all necessary configuration settings, required to install software on a computer.
Should I “package” all my software for IT Works?
Yes. Packaging software will enable you to deploy software to a variety of computers and ensure that all software installations are configured properly.
Who creates the “packages”?
SMT has a portfolio of software applications that are already packaged. For software that is not pre-packaged, packages can be created either by the IT Works administrator or SMT.
What Technical certifications are required?
IT Works does not require certification. IT Works is designed so that users with varying degrees of experience can be productive team members. The integrated nature of IT Works allows new IT staff members to add value to the organization sooner and with less training.
Is IT Works only for large companies?
IT Works delivers value to any size company. The ability to streamline the support operations is always useful. In either a large or small organization, the IT support staff always seem to have more than enough to do.
How many computers can be managed?
IT Works will support any number of networked computers. Both large and small deployments will realize a significant ROI.
Will IT Works save me money or time?
IT Works allows the IT support staff to perform more tasks efficiently and significantly reduce support requests from end users saving both time and money. Less problems to resolve and the problems that do occur are resolved more quickly.
What operating systems are supported by IT Works?
Microsoft Windows 7, Microsoft Windows XP, Microsoft Vista. IT Works supports Microsoft Active Directory, Network Operating System (NOS), MicrosoftWindows .NET.  
What software applications are supported by IT Works?
Any windows based software including operating system drivers.
Why does SMT suggest a “lockdown” security model?
To restrict end users from making unintentional system changes or installing software and unknowingly create a support call.
How do I deploy a single application to one or many computers?
Using the ManagER interface, the IT Works administrator, right clicks on a computer, drag the software package(s) to the desired computer and select Deploy. In minutes the software will be deployed to the selected computer or groups of computers.
Why is the inheritance feature beneficial?
Software can be deployed to a group, e.g., Active Directory Organizational Unit (OU) and all member computers of the OU will be configured with the specific software. With IT Works, building and deploying a Common Operating Environment (COE) is as simple as dragging and dropping application packages.
Is disaster recovery important?
What will you do when a hard disk fails? Replace the drive and rebuild the system? But what software was installed on the failed disk drive? With IT Works simply boot the system using PXE or a boot CD, IT Works will recognize the system and rebuild in a matter of minutes to the exact configuration as before the failure.
Can a remote helpdesk center use IT Works to support our users?
Yes, your remote Help Desk staff can do many of the routine support tasks including deployment of software to remote locations.
Why is IT Works better than a disk image or cloning technologies?
IT Works is a complete solution for system deployments, software delivery, disaster recovery, remote management, system lock-down and more - in one single software solution. IT Works installs the software “native” to a machine so the software is configured specifically for that hardware and that user. Image technology will deploy a single snapshot or image of a system configuration and copy that same image to multiple computers. A disk image that is copied onto another computer does not allow for any hardware or configuration difference so the system will not deliver optimum performance. If changes are made to the configuration, then a new disk image must be deployed.
How many computers can be managed by a single management station?
IT Works can manage an unlimited number of computers.
Can users change the system configuration or install software?
We recommend that all customers use the lock-down security model so that a user has only user access to the system. Lock-down eliminates users from installing software or making system changes that require a support call.
How are updates applied to computers? How about remote computers?
IT Works uses an internal process called SystemSync. On a scheduled (by the administrator) or ad hoc basis each computer will connect to the IT Works database and automatically self-update with any newly authorized software or system configuration.
Are mobile users supported with IT Works?
Yes, IT Works support mobile users, servers, and desktop systems. Bandwidth constrained computers can be managed with a CD-ROM/DVD/USB drive. Many choices are available and IT Works can adapt to meet your specific requirements.
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