Sage 100 Hosting Options Expand With Summit Hosting and I-Business Network Combination

July 2, 2021 by Wayne Schulz

On June 30, 2021, Summit Hosting announced the strategic acquisition of the I-Business Network ( I-BN ) Cloud Hosting practice. This combination adds the I-BN hosting customer base which includes Sage 100 and SAP Business One to Summit Hosting’s cloud provider list of over 30,000 end-users.

About Cloud Hosting for Sage 100

While most Sage 100 users are running the program from their own servers an increasing number of companies have moved their servers to the cloud.

In December 2020, Sage unveiled a Sage Partner Cloud offering for qualified Sage Partners who then utilize Azure and Sage’s provisioning portal to act as a type of managed service provider ( MSP ) and migrate their customers to Azure. However, there are some limits to SPC, namely that it presently only works for Standard or Advanced ( no SQL ), has a limited number of supported ISV integrations and is primarily for hosting Sage applications.

As a follow-on to the Sage Partner Cloud offering Sage is testing a strategic hosting provider program that is closer to traditional cloud hosting except it requires an endorsement by the publisher. We have noticed some of the early participants advertising this solution which appears nearly identical in capabilities to the traditional cloud hosting.

Summit Hosting Expands Cloud Hosting Services with Acquisition of I-Business Network’s Cloud Services Practice

According to the press release:

Summit Hosting, the largest Sage Hosting provider, announced today that it has acquired I-Business Network’s (IBN) Cloud Services Practice. Another step in a 5-year acquisition plan focused on becoming the leading financial cloud hosting provider with cloud computing and Desktop-as-a-Service (DaaS). The expansion will immediately grow the Summit Hosting customer base and add a new practice area focusing on SAP Business One, further solidifying Summit Hosting as a leader in small and medium-sized business (SMB) hosting providers.

“We are excited about the IBN acquisition as we continue to expand our hosting expertise and solidify our place atop the list of cloud hosting services in the SMB marketplace,” says Stanley Kania, CEO at Summit Hosting. “We would like to welcome our newest customers and look forward to providing enterprise-level security and world-class customer support.”

Customers transitioning from IBN can expect improved security and satisfaction with state-of-the-art data centers and an enterprise-level security suite installed on each server, including 24/7 security monitoring. They will also have immediate protection from our dedicated 24/7 Security Operations team and access to our 24/7/365 U.S.-based support team.

“We searched extensively for a partner with expertise and experience to serve and support the needs of our customers and their business management software” said Gary Feldman, CEO at I-Business Network, who will join Summit Hosting and head SAP Business One growth and acquisition strategies. “Summit Hosting checked all the boxes with world class technology in its US and Canadian data centers, deep expertise in cyber security and a North American support team that understands the importance of system reliability and responsiveness to customer requests.”

Summit Hosting provides cloud-based hosting for Sage, QuickBooks, and presumably now SAP Business One. Their website indicates they have been doing so since 1986 when they began as myownasp and subsequently merged in 2017 with NovelAspect to become Summit Hosting.

According to a blog post on the I-BN website – I-BN customers can expect improved security and satisfaction with an expansion of choices with Summit’s state-of-the-art data centers and an enterprise-level security suite. Summit has a dedicated 24/7 Security Operations Team and a 24/7/365 U.S.-based support team. Joining forces with Summit will also provide a leading niche hosting provider to the SAP Canadian market. Gary Feldman will work with Summit to garner SAP Hosting Certifications and drive Summit’s SAP growth and acquisition strategy.

For more information on hosting Sage 100 in the cloud – contact Summit Hosting.

5 reasons NOW is the time to move Sage 100cloud to the cloud

April 3, 2019 by Darcy Boerio

If you’re still running Sage 100 or Sage 100cloud on a local server, here are five reasons why you might not want to wait any longer to move Sage to the cloud:

#1. Mother Nature.

Following a disaster, 90% of smaller companies fail within a year unless they can resume operations within 5 days.
FEMA (read more)

Flooding, fires, tropical storms. All of these unexpected events can put your business at risk. Don’t wait until Mother Nature is at the door to try to come up with a continuity plan. Having your applications and data hosted in a secure data center allows you to continue operations even if your offices become inaccessible.

Actual LinkedIn post from March, 2019 by a company hit by the massive flooding in Nebraska.

#2. Support for Windows Server 2008 and 2008 R2 will be ending on January 14, 2020. Read more on this here.

If you’re currently using one of these versions, you will no longer receive regular security updates. And once Microsoft support ends for these operations systems, Sage will also stop supporting Sage 100 and Sage 100cloud running on these unsupported platforms.

If you’re faced with a server upgrade, it’s a great time to consider cloud hosting. Summit Hosting can provide you with a modern server environment with minimal IT effort on your end.

Chances are you aren’t the only one facing this deadline, so don’t wait until the last minute to ask for help! Contact Summit Hosting today.

#3. Remote work is becoming the norm, but some IT departments aren’t prepared for it.

Are you seeing an increase in requests from your team to work remotely? As remote work becomes more commonplace, some argue that remote workers are outperforming office workers. As the trend continues to grow and the workforce becomes accustomed to remote work, companies will find that offering some level of flexibility on this will be key to attracting and retaining talent.

Even if your business isn’t conducive to remote work on a large scale, there is still great benefit to providing employees with the tools they need to be productive while traveling for work.

But with it comes a whole new set of technology and security concerns that go beyond what you need to manage when your server resides down the hall in your own building. Hosting companies like Summit Hosting understand the infrastructure necessary to keep your data secure, yet easily accessible.

Hosting also solves the problem of “BYOD”. Users, remote or on site, can run Sage on a mobile device, iPad, or even on a Mac, if that’s their device of choice. You can also give access to your Sage partner, making it that much easier for them to provide remote assistance.

#4. “Right size” your IT.

Hosting allows you to scale your IT as your company’s needs change. Planning on a growth spurt? With hosting, you don’t have to worry whether or not your IT infrastructure can accommodate it. Or if you’re facing a potential downsizing situation, you don’t need to overspend on technology that is overkill for your future situation.

With hosting, you can easily add and remove users and storage space as needed.

And that 3rd party add-on that you’ve been eyeing? No need to stretch your existing servers to accommodate it. Because they specialize in Sage hosting, Summit Hosting has experience hosting all the major third party solutions for Sage 100.

#5. Cybersecurity is a moving target for your IT people.

More than 50% (of Chief Information Security Officers) believe they don’t have enough budget or do not have the resources to deal with the growing threat of cybersecurity attacks as they struggle to spot existing vulnerabilities within their business.”
Forbes.com – Cybersecurity Fears Drive CISOs to Drink Amid Serious Mental Health Concerns

Hosting companies like Summit Hosting are dedicated to keeping up with the latest cyberthreats. You can rest easy knowing that the burden of preventing cyberattacks isn’t on you or your team. Your hosting company has you covered.

While 62% of IT people believe that the biggest security threat comes from “well meaning but negligent end users”, hosting still helps mitigate that risk by offering an additional layer of security called 2 Factor Authentication that can prevent breaches even if passwords have been compromised.

Ready to move Sage 100 / Sage 100cloud to the cloud? Contact Summit Hosting to learn more. Don’t forget to mention “Schulz Says” for special pricing!

www.summithosting.com

5 Things Your Cloud Host Isn’t Telling You

March 12, 2019 by Darcy Boerio

Making the decision to move to a cloud host seems like it should be a simple thing. In most cases, it is. Unless you’ve overlooked these five key questions.

Cloud hosting requirements are often more complex than you may initially believe. Once you move your server outside the walls of your company office there are many important things you should consider.

Here are 5 important questions to ask your cloud hosting provider

How Frequently Do You Backup?

You’ll want to have at least a week’s worth of daily backups just in case a file needs to be recovered.

Some cloud hosts charge a fee for recovering files. If you need to frequently recover deleted files it’s best to find out the policy up front.

Ask how quickly your files can be recovered. Is support available after-hours and on weekends?

What Security Is Available For My Login

Two-factor or multi-factor authentication is one of the best ways to secure a login. Instead of just a password to login, what multi-factor uses is both something you know (your password) and something you have – typically an authentication tool which generates a one-time use code.

Combine that code with your password and you have security which a hacker cannot easily breach.

There are many different multi-factor tools available. Be sure to ask which toll your cloud provider works with.

Am I Sharing Server Space With Other Companies?

In many cases dozens of companies can be hosted on the same server. Multiple users on the same computer can cause issues in a few ways.

Performance slowdowns
Security risks from virus or crypto malware
Increased risk of downtime

Are You SSAE 18 Certified?

Many organizations such as nonprofit organizations, government entities, financial service companies, IT, transportation companies, health care providers, construction companies, insurance agencies, manufacturing, real estate, and trucking now require statements of compliance for their auditors.

Make sure you first ask your auditors what their requirements are before choosing a hosting provider.

Do You Support VPN (Virtual Private Networks)?

A VPN encrypts your Internet traffic from point to point. This means that even if someone were snooping in on your data, the information would be fully encrypted and unusable.

Some companies, especially those in highly secure industries such as finance or healthcare, require that all employees use a VPN when connecting to their servers remotely.

The team at Summit Hosting have been hosting Sage 100 and most of the popular third-party add-ons for over 10 years. If you’re considering moving Sage 100 / Sage 100cloud to the cloud, contact Summit Hosting to learn more. Don’t forget to mention “Schulz Says” for special pricing!

Sage 100c Cloud Hosting Questions and Answers (FAQ)

November 15, 2016 by Wayne Schulz

Sage 100c is the next generation of Sage 100 accounting. Initially, Sage 100c’s primary difference is pricing – with Sage 100c being sold on subscription instead of requiring an often larger up-front payment for the initial purchase. There has been some confusion over what the “c” in Sage 100c means. Some users conclude that the “c” stands for cloud. While that is a popular belief, in reality, the c simply distinguishes a new updated look for Sage 100. You’ll hear some people refer to it also by the name “c-line”.

Interested in taking your Sage 100c to the cloud? Here are answers to many questions that we’ve received about the new “c-line” of Sage 100 accounting software as it pertains to hosting the software in the cloud.

What’s new with Sage 100c?

To start with, beginning January 1, 2017, Sage will sell only Sage 100c to new and off-plan customers (those off plan for greater than three months under the Sage guidelines). Sage 100c is only sold based upon subscription which means purchasing requires less upfront payment than any prior version.

Click here for a free PDF download of What’s New In Sage 100 2017 (no registration)

Sage 100c also features a modern user interface and offers the availability of integration to Job Ops (aka Sage 100c Manufacturing), Sage Inventory Advisor Basics (requires Gold+ maintenance) and additional Sage Inventory Advisor licenses (requires Gold+ maintenance).

Does the “C” In Sage 100c Mean I Can Run It In The Cloud?

Yes. Although prior versions of Sage 100 had similar capabilities. The Sage 100c product wasn’t expanded to include added cloud functionality although the use of the “c” in the product name seems to be primarily to open customer’s minds to the possibility of hosting Sage 100c.

If you choose to host Sage 100c in the cloud you’ll do so by either creating your own cloud server or using the services of a cloud hosting provider who typically have experience with the setup and maintenance of Sage 100c in the cloud.

Can I Still Host Sage 100c Even If My Company Uses Enhancements or Third-Party Integrations?

In almost every case the answer is yes. Whether you are using Starship, Scanforce, Scanco, ACS Group Multi-Bin, DSD Business System Enhancements or a wide variety of other third party integrations you will be able to host your Sage 100 in the cloud.

Third-party cloud hosting providers can typically accommodate almost any configuration of Sage 100c. Be sure to ask whether they have experience with Sage and if so, how much.

How Much Does Hosting For Sage 100c Cost?

Pricing is dependent on the configuration and number of users. Expect a starting price of about $65 per user per month (min 5 users) for basic hosting which includes the server, configuration, backups, maintenance and support for your cloud access questions. You’ll pay more if you require Microsoft Office licenses.

Your Sage 100c subscription is in addition to your hosting cost.

Cloud hosting makes the most financial sense for:

Companies with multiple small office locations that lack IT resources to manage a server
Security-conscious companies who want to split off the accounting from the company servers
Companies that are already committed to hosting their applications in the cloud for easier access from anywhere

Are There Other Benefits To Hosting Sage 100c In The Cloud?

The two biggest benefits are:

Easy access to your accounting system from anywhere at any time provided you have reliable Internet
Tighter security – by off-loading the backups and anti-virus / malware protection your accounting system will not be as widely exposed to a system failure as it would if it was sitting on a company local server sharing resources with dozens of non-accounting users.

Perhaps the biggest advantage cloud hosting offers is that you can migrate on and off relatively easily. If you’re not happy with the performance of on-premises or cloud – you can easily switch between on or the other.

For more information and detailed pricing on Sage 100c hosting you may want to contact Robert Eppele ( robert.eppele@gotomyerp.com or 877-888-5525 x704 ). Robert has been a great source of help in assisting Sage 100c users with moving from on-premises to the cloud.

Free Conference Call: November 16, 2016 1pm ET

Join our conference call on Nov 16, 2016 at 1pm ET where we’ll discuss this topic in much more depth (https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/5244428949689535490register here)