PCEggheads is proud to announce its new business unit (BU): LionLink Networks. LionLink Networks (http://www.lionlink.net) provides network support and colocation services in the Ashburn, VA Market. Based inside of a Tier III Data Center Facility, LionLink Networks provides the uptime and reliability that you deserve and require.

Existing PCEggheads Customers are entitled to a special discount!

Below are some of the fantastic specials you can find at http://www.lionlink.net!

1U COLO FOR JUST $89/MONTH

Special Features:
Redundant Power included at no additional charge
3Mbps Bandwidth Burstable
SETUP FEES WAIVED!!!

2U COLO FOR JUST $149/MONTH

Special Features:
Redundant Power included at no additional charge
3Mbps Bandwidth Burstable
SETUP FEES WAIVED!!!

——-

Wait there’s more!!!

Need more than just a U or 2??

We have half and full cabinets available in all configurations. We also are able to offer full connectivity solutions back to Equinix DC2 (if you wish to bring your own transit)!! Various providers POP’d at our Datacenter (Abovenet, Internap, Cogent, and More!)

Full Cabinet Configurations:

120V / 20 Amp (Primary & Secondary Circuits) — $765/Month
120V / 30 Amp (Primary & Secondary Circuits) — $1140/Month
208V / 20 Amp (Primary & Secondary Circuits) — $1324/Month
208V / 30 Amp (Primary & Secondary Circuits) — $1825/Month

Offers on this post/page expire January 31, 2012. Customers may be subject to credit approval. Contact [email protected] for details

Today, Friday, March 13, 2011, pceggheads llc is proud to announce its partnership with top anti-malware company Emsisoft; which is currently leading

the fight against malware and viruses according to multiple independent reviews.  Our partnership will allow us to offer the full line of Emsisoft Products to our customers including:

• Emsisoft’s Complete Anti-Malware Solution
• Mamuto
• Online Armor Premium Firewall
• Online Armor ++ Firewall
• HiJackFree
• Anti-Dialer

pceggheads is proud to partner with one of the most respected and elite anti-malware solutions available at this time.

How safe is your PC really?

To put it succinctly: Why signature-based security software is not enough

Normal security software recognizes Malware using Signatures, a type of digital fingerprint. What is problem with this? No fingerprint means no recognition. This means that the Malware must first be known to the manufacturer of the security software before it is possible to create a fingerprint allowing it to be recognized. The fingerprint database on your PC is then updated online on a daily basis. Only then can the Malware be recognized.

You are probably now thinking: “What about new Malware that manufacturer of the security software has never seen? They have no way of making a fingerprint of this…”. Exactly!

This is where the behavior-based Malware defense of Mamutu comes into play. It does not use a fingerprint to recognize dangerous software but rather on the basis of the behavior of the software. This allows Mamutu to recognize new Malware long before the signature databases have been updated. These types of Malware attacks are known as Zero-Day attacks. In addition to this, behavior-based Malware recognition is the only efficient way of recognizing Malware that has been built for a single specific attack, e.g. for industrial espionage.

One question our customers ask quite frequently is “what is cloud computing”?  I try to answer this in the best way I can, but it’s not always so easy.  The problem with defining cloud computing is that each and every company who offers some kind of cloud computing product defines what cloud computing is in a different manner.

The following are examples of cloud related products:

• vCloud Express (by VMWARE)
• Panda Cloud Anti-Virus (by Panda Security™)
• OpSource Cloud (A Virtual Private Cloud Offering)
• Google Apps (Google Docs, Google Spreadsheets, etc)
• SalesForce CRM

So what do you notice?  I named products that don’t really have much to do with eachother.  Two products that offer some type of cloud environment, one CRM product, a productivity suite, and one anti-virus product.  So what do they all have in common?  They all reference the term cloud computing, or, run in ‘the cloud’.

First and foremost, there is no ‘one cloud’; meaning that, just because you’re using one cloud-based solution from Salesforce, does not mean that if you use a cloud-based solution from Panda Security that all the processing is being done in a central location.  It simply means, that some, or all, of the processing or storage that the product needs to work, is not being done on your computer, but on the service providers computers (or Servers).

Some people define the cloud as a service that provides virtual machine (VM) instances.  Others define it as a productivity suite that can be opened anywhere within a web browser.

The general consensus regarding cloud computing is this:  whatever the product, or service offering, the data, and the processing of that data, is being completed on servers not owned/leased by the end-user (you), but by the person or company providing the service or product.

I hope this helps some of you understand what cloud computing is.  It’s not that easy, so don’t blame yourself if you don’t get it… just ask your egghead engineer for some more information the next time they’re helping you with your computer.

Stay safe,

pceggheads

We come across it all too often.  A computer walks in, and sadly, it finds itself overly fragmented.  The solution to this is to use a defragmenting solution on a consistent basis; without consistently completing a defragmentation, it can take over eight hours to defrag.

One solution that our egghead engineers find most helpful is a free (yes, free) tool by Piriform called Defraggler.  It runs on all Windows Operating Systems and is a very good solution for defragging your system.

As always, our egghead engineers are here to help.  If you would like us to perform a system defrag at your next visit, simply let the engineer know, and we’ll take care of it.

Stay Safe,

pcEggheads

One of the things I’m learning while doing this business is that a lot of people are still using Internet Explorer as their primary browser.  From benchmarking, security, and almost every aspect, Internet Explorer should be the last browser of choice.  Two excellent browsers that make our list are FireFox and Google’s Chrome.  These browsers are fast, ruthless, and much better at patching security holes than Internet Explorer.

So leave IE in the past where it belongs and come to 2011 with Firefox or Chrome.

Questions?  email us!

–Adam

Recently, I’ve been doing a lot of testing of security products.  I’ve come across two products, that in combination, provide a very comprehensive and secure solution.  By using Panda in conjunction with Malwarebytes Anti-Malware (MBAM) (with active protection enabled), I have benchmarked over 100 known viruses and malware infections, and all have been blocked, stopped, and neutralized by this combination.  While I cannot guarantee that this solution will be the ultimate solution for everyone, it certainly is a good solution to try out against your current solution.  For MalwareBytes, check out malwarebytes.com.  For Panda, check out the link below!

After much review, but certainly not much convincing, we have decided to partner with Panda Security as our preferred solution for providing Anti-Virus and Internet Protection services.  Panda Security is the leader in preventive technologies and has some of the most technologically advanced laboratories for analyzing threats.  A cloud based solution, Panda Security provides some of the most advanced security solutions available today.  It provides an unparalleled level of integration at the Managed Services level, that allows pcEggheads to better serve our customers.

Why Panda Cloud Protection?

• Next Generation Cloud-based SaaS Solution
• Panda Cloud Protection is extremely light, as all operations take place in the cloud. It minimizes resource consumption, and clients don’t need to provide any of the infrastructure.
• Panda Cloud Protection offers immediate protection against the latest viruses and spam, thanks to the scans performed on PandaLabs’ servers.
• Panda Cloud Protection is extremely simple to use. Its Web console allows remote security management at any time, from anywhere.
• Panda Cloud Protection offers proactive anti-malware protection for endpoints, email and web traffic. Signature files are updated continuously and automatically, leveraging Panda Security’s Collective Intelligence knowledge base. It provides firewall protection (in personal or managed mode), as well as cloud-based anti-spam filtering.
• The solution requires no investment in infrastructure or specialized personnel, as everything is hosted by Panda Security. It reduces unnecessary email traffic on the network and maintains optimum protection levels, even during peak traffic times.
• The solution uses technologies that minimize resource and bandwidth consumption. The peer-to-peer endpoint updates save bandwidth. It also eliminates non-productive traffic in the perimeter, thereby reducing server workloads.
• The endpoint protection (Panda Cloud Office Protection) Web console enables service providers to manage all clients centrally and effectively. This ensures that companies can outsource security management to specialized service providers.

pcEggheads is proud to announce its partnership with Panda Security.

When you purchase Panda Anti-Virus through pcEggheads, we have the ability to manage your definitions real-time, ensure protection, and monitor threats.  Contact pcEggheads for more information!  (571) 451.2300 or email [email protected]

I hear a lot of people who don’t like to use Anti-Virus because it’s too heavy, or uses too much system resources.

This is possibly the number one complaint Ihave heard about anti-virus, and the unfortunate truth is, many anti-viruses do take a lot of system resources, specifically memory.  But surprisingly, some of the best anti-viruses are not only light-weight, but free as well.  Between Microsoft Security Essentials, Avira, Panda, and AVG, there are so many solutions available that are lightweight and free.  The worst possible thing you can do is not be protected.  So if you’ve have a bad experience with one AV solution, don’t be afraid to try another– and remember, just because it’s the most expensive does not mean it is the best solution.

Let us know what solutions you prefer!

Stay Safe,

Adam

TrafficLight from bitdefender is currently in beta, which means it is free!  It’s lightweight, works with multiple browsers (IE, Opera, FireFox, Chrome, and Safari).  It works to protect against Phishing, Viruses, and Spam Advertisements.  We’ve tried it, it does work against some of the threats we’ve tested it against.  But, we’d like your opinion!

Check it out and let us know how it performs!

–Adam

Today I’m not recommending any particular brand or product. But I did want to discuss the choices we make when it comes to buying a new desktop or laptop.  Today there are so many brands out there when it comes to our personal computer needs, and that brings us to the question, which one is best?  This question has been asked of me so many times.  People want to know what the best brand is to buy and why.

The answer is very simple and complicated.  There is no right answer.  What computer is best for you depends on your needs, how much you’re willing to spend, and ultimately what you’re looking for in your system.

Personally, I am a fan of apple.  But that doesn’t make it the ultimate solution for everyone.  If you need a powerful system, for a cost balanced price, HP and Dell both have great systems to fit your needs.  For Business users, Apple, Lenovo, HP, and Dell are all great choices.  Of course for all you video editors, music editors, photo lovers, and serious techies you really must consider Apple.

The staff here at pcEggheads is always here to help you find the right solution.  From netbooks to notebooks and iPads to computers, we’re here to find the right solution for your needs.  Talk to your egghead today!