News room

 

The “cloud” concept implies that it is best to make a separation between the owners of IT assets and the use of them by companies for business applications and services. The common analogy would be, for instance, the separation between power generation and consumption. The end user connects to the power “cloud” in order to get electricity and is in no way bothered by production concerns such as which turbine is working for him/her and what its energy efficiency is. These are the concerns of the power company’s technical engineers for whom there is no difference in what one customer or another uses the energy for. Overall,  both parties are committed to a service contract with fixed rates and payments according to consumption, and therefore, each party can focus on its field of expertise, aspiring to reach its optimal operational efficiency. But this analogy hides some less attractive facts. In contrast to the Israeli Electricity Company, whose service is regulated, the field of IT service clouds is open to all opportunists with no obligation for transparency or regulatory oversight. There are quite a few “rotten apples” in this field, and an innocent client could be unaware of the quality of a company’s infrastructure that provides them with IT service, and  they can’t be sure the service will be reliable at the moment of truth.

Moving to Cloud Service is an Entrance to the World of Enterprise

“What do you know about your cloud service provider before you sign a contract with him?”, asks Tomer Schwaitzer, founder and CEO of Y-tech, an Israeli cloud service that has maintained high international standards since 2006. "Many customers are not aware of the vast differences between the various service providers, where a client can encounter amateur opportunists who exploit the lack of knowledge of SMB customers or on the other hand, can employ Israeli cloud services at the highest levels. Moving to cloud, in fact, puts small business clients in a dilemma in the world of enterprise:  What are the minimum requirements of the customer for quality infrastructure, which will enable him/her to confidently build a long-term business plan  based on cloud service? And, unsurprisingly, it turns out that price does not reflect everything. A small business should not be put into a position of endangering its interests by dependence upon shaky IT infrastructures or improper service.”

 

The cloud must guarantee safety of its operation systems and absolute security protecting the data of an organization; it should have 99.9% availability and 24/7 accessibility from anywhere; offer optimal flexible architecture that enables scalability without any problems in adjustment; implement extensive redundancy that guarantees business continuity and immediate recovery from disasters;  have responsive management that adjusts its service according to the changing and dynamic needs of the customer without delay and fair pricing that reflects the level of consumption of its customer;  it should have a good “track record,” proving that the service provider works zealously to be on top of all technology concerning  constant  updates and implementing new capabilities.
 

Customers Vote for Y-tech by Signing Service Contracts

“The best proof that our commitment to lead the market in all the above parameters is not just saying so, it is the loyalty demonstrated by our veteran customers,” says Tomer Schwaitzer. “After 10 years of intensive work in the vertical market in Israel, none of our clients have left us. Each year hundreds of organizations join our service-- large and small, government and private, national infrastructure companies, and international hi-tech businesses.  And every client that has tried our service is now a satisfied and loyal customer, recommending us to everyone.”
 

Y-tech’s business strategy is built on three pillars, three areas of expertise that support each other to create an ensemble of products and services that enables us to take a traditional IT arrangement and move it confidently to cloud on schedule without delay at fair prices:

 

“The importance of the centralization of technical capabilities under one roof with shared responsibilities is clear to anyone who has encountered the ‘accusing finger’ syndrome, where everyone involved in a complex project points to someone else as the guilty party in any malfunction,” says Tomer Schwaitzer.  “Large organizations also find it difficult to cope with this problem, but it can be very damaging to small businesses when service providers don’t take responsibility for their mistakes. Our concept of business requires it to be holistic, including communication components,  data processing components and data storage all orchestrated together to work in perfect harmony. Therefore, in addition to establishing our Data Center to meet the stringent requirements of government regulators, customers in the banking industry, health institutions, etc., we made sure to get ISP certification from the Ministry of Communications so that our communication is a combination of a collective package solution with the standards of service and information security management according to ISO (27001).  In addition, we established a unique integration unit, focusing services for the SMB sector. "

 

Broadminded Business Partnerships

 

Integration experts at Y-tech focus on business oriented solutions that remove the burden of management and maintenance of the IT system from the customer, starting from budgeting investments and including attention to operational dilemmas. Tomer Schwaitzer says, “Moving a client to cloud does not end with the implementation of what is written down in a contract , for the simple reason that customers expect the provider  to fulfill all the tasks of IT management, when their infrastructure migrates from their private servers to cloud, because they do not have the means or the people with in-depth knowledge in information systems management . The service that is required begins with running applications and monitoring user experience and continues with monitoring security events, regular updating of software protection, backup and assurance of business continuity through redundancy and duplication of resources and goes on further with recommendations for improvement and planning of the next steps in the development of the information system. For these reasons, it is very important for us to conduct face-to-face meetings, preferably in Hebrew, with the knowledge that decisions are made here together with the client and not somewhere overseas. Even huge companies such as Microsoft have learned to appreciate that proximity to the customer makes a difference in the competition for a cloud provider. This realization was borne out after close examination and favorable impressions of  Y-tech’s services were revealed and a strategic partnership agreement was signed with Azure, Microsoft’s cloud service in Israel. One should understand the difference between the partnership agreed upon between Y-tech and Azure,  a global giant, and mere distribution agreements. Being a partner with Azure means taking part in Microsoft cloud services which includes all the standards they require with all their other partners around the world. There are not many companies in Israel that can pass this test.” The depth and breadth of knowledge and experience of the experts at Y-tech brought about the selection of our company to represent Israel in global standards organizations such as ISO and IEC, and especially in the technical committees that set standards for cloud issues for the entire world.

 

Sleep Soundly Because There is Someone Looking Out for You

 

The bottom line is--  selecting a cloud service provider is determined by the confidence it engenders as a business partner . “It is not a contract for life, but the last thing you want to find out a year or two later is that you have to replace a provider ," says Tomer Schwaitzer.  "Most customers move to cloud because they want to have peace of mind as far as their IT is concerned.  Besides their search for fair costs, they want to know that the system works flawlessly , that the work processes flow from end to end , and that solutions are easily adaptable to changing conditions. Customers need monitoring of user experience, to be certain that the level of performance does not impair the competitiveness of their organization, to know that someone takes care of updating versions, adding new infrastructure as the number of users increase, including addition of new services, and a technologies provider that employs experts that can be relied upon to answer complex questions such as how to protect themselves from cyber-attacks and how to analyze data for use of services that will be best suited for their business objectives. In big businesses, this job is taken on by the CTO, but small business organizations do not always have a person in this position. That’s why we offer our alternative to outsourcing on all IT services-- on our cloud, on our network connection, under the responsibility of our integration team. And as our veteran clients can tell you, “That’s why we sleep soundly—and wake up every day to a new and more promising morning.”

 

Y-tech is pleased to announce that we have joined the RIPE NCC organization, a logical step for a professional organization that provides advanced communication services (ISP- licensed by the Ministry of Communications) for our customers. The RIPE NCC is an independent, non-profit organization which advocates for regulation of internet infrastructure and particularly in registration of international internet resources in Europe, Central Asia, and the Middle East.

Membership in RIPE is intended for local internet service providers (ISPs), telecommunication organizations, and large business concerns located in the areas of the organization’s activities.

 

Membership in this organization gives Y-tech the rights to unique IP addresses (under our ownership) which can be moved according to the needs of our customers in Israel and abroad and facilitates the establishment and transferal of complex and sophisticated DR systems between various computer centers with the ability to save IP addresses and identical connectivity of these systems, regardless of their geographical location. 

In addition, we are pleased to announce that Y-tech is among the few service providers in Israel to implement the Ipv6-based communication systems, a new address technology --IP that will replace the current version 4. And the Implementation of these systems will allow us to provide reliable infrastructure for distribution of technologies (Internet of things) including allocation of multiple IP addresses and flexible geographic roaming capabilities for every device.

 

We are pleased to announce that Y-tech has joined as a partner to Microsoft’s global network Cloud OS Network, the expansion of our company’s  Data Center, and the completion of the integration and automation systems based on Azure Pack. 

 

Y-tech  is expanding  the company’s Data Center by adding more server systems and storage at an estimated cost of  5 million shekels. This move is part of Y-tech’s preparations for increasing capacities after joining Microsoft’s Cloud OS Network.

 

Y-tech chose Dell technology to build the new Data Center. Acquisition of the systems as part of the Data Center alone is expected to reach 1 million dollars within two years. Implementation of this project includes high-performance servers and storage systems, innovative technologies and hundreds of thousands of IOPS SSD-based servers, which will be located on a server farm in Israel with DR capabilities that Azure server farms all around the world possess.

 

Shlomi  Koartreller, CEO of Dell Israel, says “We are pleased to reinforce our professional partnership with Y-tech and provide them all the  end-to end solutions in servers and storage systems that Dell has to offer. The combination of Dell’s advanced technologies that will be integrated into the Data Center for professionalism and Y-tech’s knowledge and experience will enable Y-tech to continue to provide its customers and partners innovative solutions, leading the market in its field.”

 

At the same time, Y-tech has been selected as a strategic partner for Microsoft’s Cloud OS Network (COSN) and will provide Y-tech’s business partners with cloud service through Azure Pack management  interface. The COSN program is a prestigious, strategic  program with a global network of innovative cloud solutions.

 

Paula Jusid, director of cloud partners at Microsoft Israel, said “the selection by Y-tech to acquire Microsoft’s cloud platform will allow flexibility and business continuity, including hybrid solutions for customers with a variety of needs. Y-tech implements Microsoft’s vision of a cloud platform which is the connection between the client, service provider and the Microsoft Azure platform.”

 

The field of knowledge in IT domain has gone through many changes throughout its history, from its earliest days from about 1940, when huge computers were introduced (with huge storage capacity and minimal information processing) till today where there is virtual data processing and storage. As it was then and today, resources in hardware, software and telecommunications were the basis for IT activity. In recent years, technological developments that take place daily redefine the relationships between hardware and software. This is true for the IT field, too.

 

Computer systems today are composed of layers of servers, switches, routers, Firewall systems and more, and every piece of hardware, software and interface has its own management and unique settings. Constant changes in the systems’ settings such as increasing/decreasing resources, and adding new service require manual updating of most of the components. In recent years, momentum is gaining for the concept of using one software system to coordinate and manage all system settings and IT components.

 

The concept of Software-Defined Data Center, which is gaining momentum in recent years, is stripping down IT systems, and transforming components to a single system with a uniform architecture, which operates as a single body and is able to communicate with all hardware components and all interfaces. It is a single IT system that will be efficient and not a set of components that operate separately.

 

According to the SDDC, hardware resources and their use, including system components, will be managed with centralized software that will enable efficient, optimal architecture which will reduce operating costs. This system will enable faster performance, which will be more dynamic and flexible, also helping the CIO and benefiting the whole organization.

 

This can be compared to the structure of the human body where the “control center” like a brain allows one to direct and activate muscles when they are required. So what’s the news? For the first time, hardware components with different functions will become unified tools with flexibility to perform multiple functions that allow the utilization of resources and organization systems to be more efficient and effective.

 

A recent study done by the company, Marketwatch claims that in 2015 the size of the market for Software-Defined Network (SDN) alone will reach $20 billion. This estimate was based on a study of various organizations and forums which evaluated different projects, including Openflow. It seems that the SDCC is gaining a significant place in IT divisions of large business organizations around the world and has also begun to permeate into smaller organizations.

Today, most major hardware vendors  have management software for a data center,  which supports all components of the system when it is based on the hardware from the same vendor.

When the time comes that we can apply SDDC independently from  home hardware  and its  system’s components, we will enjoy true flexibility, a new groundbreaking world that not only reduces operating costs and the establishment of  these new systems, but will also make the IT system more efficient and fast, adapting itself automatically and perfectly for the goals of the organization, not the opposite way around.

For the full Hebrew article press here.

The field of knowledge in IT domain has gone through many changes throughout its history, from its earliest days from about 1940, when huge computers were introduced (with huge storage capacity and minimal information processing) till today where there is virtual data processing and storage. As it was then and today, resources in hardware, software and telecommunications were the basis for IT activity. In recent years, technological developments that take place daily redefine the relationships between hardware and software. This is true for the IT field, too.

 

Computer systems today are composed of layers of servers, switches, routers, Firewall systems and more, and every piece of hardware, software and interface has its own management and unique settings. Constant changes in the systems’ settings such as increasing/decreasing resources, and adding new service require manual updating of most of the components. In recent years, momentum is gaining for the concept of using one software system to coordinate and manage all system settings and IT components.

 

The concept of Software-Defined Data Center, which is gaining momentum in recent years, is stripping down IT systems, and transforming components to a single system with a uniform architecture, which operates as a single body and is able to communicate with all hardware components and all interfaces. It is a single IT system that will be efficient and not a set of components that operate separately.

 

According to the SDDC, hardware resources and their use, including system components, will be managed with centralized software that will enable efficient, optimal architecture which will reduce operating costs. This system will enable faster performance, which will be more dynamic and flexible, also helping the CIO and benefiting the whole organization.

 

This can be compared to the structure of the human body where the “control center” like a brain allows one to direct and activate muscles when they are required. So what’s the news? For the first time, hardware components with different functions will become unified tools with flexibility to perform multiple functions that allow the utilization of resources and organization systems to be more efficient and effective.

 

A recent study done by the company, Marketwatch claims that in 2015 the size of the market for Software-Defined Network (SDN) alone will reach $20 billion. This estimate was based on a study of various organizations and forums which evaluated different projects, including Openflow. It seems that the SDCC is gaining a significant place in IT divisions of large business organizations around the world and has also begun to permeate into smaller organizations.

Today, most major hardware vendors  have management software for a data center,  which supports all components of the system when it is based on the hardware from the same vendor.

When the time comes that we can apply SDDC independently from  home hardware  and its  system’s components, we will enjoy true flexibility, a new groundbreaking world that not only reduces operating costs and the establishment of  these new systems, but will also make the IT system more efficient and fast, adapting itself automatically and perfectly for the goals of the organization, not the opposite way around.

press releaseFor the full Hebrew article press here.

Microsoft’s decision to end support of Windows server 2003 is further proof—for those who have been in denial,  that it’s time to stop relying on a manufacturer’s software and move to a cloud-based service.

 

In contrast to Microsoft’s announcement of ending support of its XP operating system, accompanied by intensive media coverage, the software giant’s move to end its support for Windows server 2003 was hardly mentioned in the media. Despite this, starting on July 14, hundreds of Israeli organizations who base their operations on this operating system will stop receiving updates or technical support for potential problems in security breaches in code, and will be exposed to cyber-attacks and malware.

 

This means that on “the Day of Judgment” the operating system will work, but cessation of support may pose an immediate danger to an organization’s systems and critical applications. The expected dangers posed by outdated servers are numerous and varied, and all directly undermine the proper and ongoing operation of IT systems in an organization, and they open up a whole world of problems, difficulties and unnecessary threats. In a world where IT systems provide a supportive base for business operations and serve organizations to prosper and grow, neglecting the migration of domain servers to newer operating systems may cause real harm.

 

Security threats include hacking servers, data theft, taking over servers and attacks from them on other servers, data loss and more. In addition, regulated entities will be unable to meet basic regulatory requirements and thus their business activities may suffer.

 

Hardware systems, software and new applications are likely to encounter difficulties and integrative failures when working with an outdated operating system, which may lead to many hours of unnecessary work or directly impair ongoing operations and progress of a company.

 

There is no debate as to the benefit of changing an enterprise’s server to a newer operating system, but this change is not enough to benefit an organization. Instead, this should be seen as a real opportunity for enterprises to disconnect from “the old world” and look at the possibilities of a cloud environment.

 

Organizations that are wise enough to take advantage of the above-mentioned crosswords in favor of moving to cloud would benefit twice. One benefit would be the fact that working with professional cloud service providers includes regular software updates as part of the service, and therefore the organization will benefit from the most advanced work models at all times. The second way in which these organizations will benefit is the range of additional advantages that accompany the cloud computing services. Microsoft’s announcement, to a great extent, symbolizes “the old era” in the usage of operating systems, not just in terms of software itself, but how we consume and apply the software in an organization.

 

In fact, organizations that have acquired licenses for software are committed, in light of the move from Microsoft,  to bear the considerable economic  costs to migrate  and undergo adaptations in other computing software (for example, ERP  or CRM systems) for a new operating system, including training, hours of downtime, etc. In other words, great expenses in economic terms and in human resources. 

 

Beyond the savings in user costs, the cloud model transfers full responsibility for updates and adjustments to the software provider, whether in IAAS operating systems or updating applications for SAAS service. On his part, the customer does not need to worry about downloading updates and new adaptations to software for the need of the organization. In this way, the problem of cessation of technical support and updates by the supplier is no longer relevant, and this responsibility is undertaken by the cloud service provider. Its job is to make sure that all the systems required to carry out monitoring and control of communications lines and servers in the cloud are in place 24/7, that the cloud systems have complete redundancy, maximum uptime, and of course professional and accessible staff that provide the customer with peace of mind and allow them to focus on the core of their business without any worries.

 

Congratulations! You’ve decided to open a new branch, and suddenly you discover your communication lines don’t reach your new location. You start to worry; you cannot afford to be disconnected, not even for one moment. Relax… We developed Y-tech mobile services just for these circumstances.

Y-mobile service provides solutions in communication for sites that do not have infrastructure for land lines (Hot, Bezek) or for sites where only one line is available and there is a need for a backup communication line.

This service allows convenient and secure connections for personnel out in the field, who by using a computer and SIM card can directly connect up with the organization’s network (not through the internet).

In addition, the service allows direct connection between mobile phones and tablets to servers so that all devices are included in the organization’s internal network.  This service guarantees monitoring and complete control over internet ports through these devices and on the access to the organization’s servers and branches.

You get immediate connection, there is no need to wait for ordering and installation of infrastructure - the service works from anywhere anytime.

Y-mobile is a communication line which is connected to Y-tech’s closed, internal network, using a mobile SIM card. It is an APN connection based on MPLS, connected to the customer’s private network.

Y-mobile service is supported by all cellular networks, and so it can deliver the optimal communication solution for any site.

Y-mobile’s backup service uses an active-active configuration, and therefore constitutes a monitored and reliable solution.

The Y-mobile solution ensures optimal uptime. The line is always active and regularly monitored and controlled from the control room at all times. When needed, the cellular backup line takes over and replaces the wired communication line, enabling business continuity for your organization, and all this is done under automated, tight control from Y-tech’s control room.