The picture you see here is the exhaust system of VISI’s new Caterpillar 2250kW diesel generator. These loud and very large pipes will be keeping your servers and other systems online if there were ever a Utility failure affecting our Saint Paul Data Center.

VISI has completed installation of the generator we showed being dropped into the sub-basement of the Saint Paul Data Center.

Here are some quick specs on the generator:

- 16 Cylinder Engine (most cars have just 6)
- 1,800 RPM
- 3,285 HP
- Consumes up to 156 gallons/hour of diesel fuel

(thankfully we don’t have to run this very often)

We have performed full load tests to ensure the generator can handle everything we throw at it. We’ve also run extensive tests with Parsons Electric so that the generator, transfer switches and UPS systems will work seamlessly to ensure continuous power to the data center in the event of a Utility power failure. In our testing the generator was able to spin up and provide power within 11 seconds of being signaled to start.

Because the generator is there to guarantee your systems and data stay online we installed it with redundancy in mind. There are dual coolant pumps, heat exchangers and fuel pumps to make certain the generator will stay up even if one of those parts fails. Constant monitoring of those items will also alert us to any failures allowing us to act quickly if the need arose.

We’re proud to announce that Robert Stephens, the founder and Chief Inspector at The Geek Squad and VP at Best Buy, is the keynote speaker for VISION 2008.  Robert will elaborate on how technology innovations are changing the ways businesses work.  The Geek Squad is now North America’s largest technology support company offering phone, in-store, and in-home support.

As a special offer to our blog readers, I’ll give a free pass ($100 value) to the first 10 IT professionals that e-mail me at gary.elfert (at) visi.com with the subject “free VISION 2008 pass”.

You’re invited to join us at our technology conference on November 13th entitled “VISION 2008: Technology Innovations That Drive Business.”

You’ll have the opportunity to interact with industry leaders, tour the VISI Data Center, learn of the latest IT innovations as well as attend seminars to prepare you for what’s next.

Below are a few of the 12 sessions that will be available:

Virtualization – VMware will describe how to make the case for virtualization when ROI isn’t enough.
Green Computing – Intel will discuss today’s technologies for business which include virtualization, multi-core, client management and Green IT.
Disaster Recovery – Emergent Networks will present three types of data replication; host, fabric and array.
Network Security – Alert Logic will go beyond the firewall and present three ways to secure your internal network.
Collaboration Software – Olson Thielen Technologies with demonstrate how to improve team productivity with Microsoft SharePoint. 

Details on the conference are available at www.visi.com/vision2008/.

Also, there will be plenty of food, drinks, games, and prizes throughout the day. 

Hope to see you there!

Arriving home after work one day a few months ago, my 4-year old son greeted me at the door as he usually does and exclaimed with great excitement, “Papa, there’s a package for you! Can I open it?” Although I was just as eager to tear into the box, I calmly replied, “Sure buddy. Have at it.” Inside was a shiny new tech toy . . . (ahem) I mean a business tool to help enable increased productivity and organization – a Windows Mobile 6 Smartphone. Ok, I know I’m a little late to the game, but thought I would share a few thoughts about my experience for those who have yet to experience the bliss of always being connected and in the know.

Like any good company, we’re consumers of our own products. For me, this means Microsoft Exchange and SharePoint. Microsoft CRM is another invaluable tool and integrates nicely with both Exchange and SharePoint.

As someone who is on the road regularly, here are some scenarios regarding how these tools make my life easier and give me comfort when I’m away from the office.

- Incoming email hits my Outlook desktop client and my phone at the same time. Messages I reply to sync back to my desktop (i.e. sent items folder).

- Meetings and calendar items sync nicely. Example: I’m in a meeting and need to schedule a follow up meeting. A quick glance at my phone shows me my calendar. I create a new meeting on my phone which syncs with Exchange and therefore my Outlook client. When I get back to the office and view my calendar in Outlook, the meeting I scheduled is already there.

- Contacts: If I’m out of the office and my sales partner wants me to call a new prospective customer he can enter the contact info into Microsoft CRM and send me an email asking me to call ”Joe.” A quick search for Joe on my phone pulls up address, email, phone number, and any other info my partner entered into CRM as it syncs back to Exchange and gets pushed to my phone in real time.

- SharePoint: Documents I share with others internally can all be centrally and securely stored online. SharePoint integrates into my Outlook client and is accessible via a browser when I’m away from my laptop.

Life is busy enough as it is. Having the right tools have allowed me to do more with the time I have and be more responsive to my clients and co-workers. For me, the seamless integration between Microsoft’s Exchange, SharePoint, and CRM products have paid huge dividends in helping me manage and exchange (pun intended) information with business partners. My new smartphone is one more way to tap into all this valuable data without ever getting out of sync.

One last closing note… while in my case I personally opted to purchase a Windows Mobile 6 device, I have many friends and co-workers who use Blackberry devices with the same results. And with the recent announcement that the iPhone will now be supporting ActiveSync, Apple fans can share in the love too.

Below is an article originally printed in The Informant, summer 2008 edition, with additional links provided.

With the price of gas rising every day, wouldn’t it be great to give up your daily commute? Many people have. Telecommuting or teleworking is an arrangement in which employees can work from home, or coffee shops, or libraries, or wherever they can use mobile telecommunications technology.

All you need is a computer, a phone, some network support and you’re off!

Typically, a telecommuting arrangement allows the employee to work one to three days at home. In rare cases, the employee works from a remote location all the time and rarely interacts with co-workers and managers. is becoming more and more popular with employees and with companies who can see its benefits in attracting and retaining skilled employees.

According to data released by the U.S., Census Bureau, “Americans spend more than 100 hours commuting to work each year.”(1) That’s a lot of traveling time and a lot of petroleum use.

If more companies supported telecommuting, Americans could significantly cut our dependency on foreign oil, save gas, and reduce greenhouse gases. Not to mention having more time at home.

Working from home can save time and money and can help increase productivity. Studies show that working from home can reduce stress and increase job satisfaction. Because the employee has more control and more flexibility with family, he or she has more hours in a day to get the work done.

Telecommuting isn’t for everyone or every type of job. Working from home requires high levels of motivation and time management skills.

But if you’re tired of high gas prices and think that you can do your job just as well at home, below are some more articles to help you make a case.

Who knows, you may just have what it takes to join the more than 12 million teleworkers in the U.S.

Work At Home

Five Telecommuting Myths Revealed

Telecommuting a win-win situation, study finds

The Rise of the Web Commuter: Citrix Survey Reveals 23% of Americans Are “Working from Anywhere” — 62% Wish They Could

1. U.S. Department of Commerce. (March 30, 2005) U.S. Census Bureau News Press Release. Americans Spend More Than 100 Hours Commuting To Work Census Bureau Reports. Retrieved June 10, 2008, from the World Wide Web:http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/www/releases/archives/american_community_survey_acs/004489.html