News in the Channel - issue #23

PERIPHERALS

between the office and home securely while, at the same time, giving them a secure location to create their own local data backup which can be stored off-line when not in use to provide an element of self-reliance and resilience as part of a 3-2-1 data backup strategy – keep at least 3 copies of data on at least 2 different types of media with at least one copy offline and ideally encrypted.

“As more employees started to work outside of the security boundary of the

internal network, there becomes a trade-off between facilitating and securing. What might be acceptable as a peripheral in the office might not be so at home – internet connected devices without any corporate controls that can access/process company data, for example.” Wi-Fi solutions Another peripheral that is gaining in traction is faster WiFi solutions and WiFi 7 especially, says Rachel Rothwell, senior regional director, UK and Ireland, Zyxel Networks. “Significantly, we are also seeing a lot for WiFi upgrades in the workplace, which underlines the point that, while yes, hybrid is here to stay, the workplace – where teams can come together and interact – remains the principal and most important focus for IT investment,” she says. “We’ve also seen sales of 5G/LTE routers soaring over the past few months. These are being used in the home and in remote locations. With WiFi 7 and 5G/LTE, the technology really is there now and with the solutions we offer, customers can have enterprise-class performance at SMB prices. “Cybersecurity has also been boosted by hybrid working. We’ve had a fantastic response to the release of our USG LITE 60AX unified security appliance, which provides built-in protection at the gateway and has an eco-friendly design, with 95% of the casing made from PCR plastic. It’s a WiFi 6 device but that will be good enough for most users and with VPN capability and the extra protection and flexibility it provides, it’s ideal for serious hybrid workers. “Resellers need to impress upon customers that, if they really do want to be as effective working at home as they are in the office, then they need to invest in the right connectivity products, because without that speed and security, you just can’t get as much done.” Overlooked This is an important point – peripherals can help hybrid workers to be as productive as

Ross Turner peripherals director, UK

Jon Fielding managing director, EMEA

Lawrence Savage marketing director

uk.tdsynnex.com

exaclairlimited.com

apricorn.com

possible wherever they are and shouldn’t be overlooked by resellers when putting packages together for customers. Jon agrees that peripherals can be overlooked. “Hybrid working revealed an untapped market that resellers had overlooked, partly due to the mistaken believe that storage would move wholeheartedly to the cloud,” he says. “Cloud can’t offer the same level of flexibility. In fact, that coupled with costs and concerns over data sovereignty is seeing something of a return to localised as well as remote storage, which is seeing demand grow. “Storage needs to be a belt and braces approach, so that there are local copies and copies stored offline as well as in the cloud. That cloud-based storage can and should be supplemented by local storage because it provides peace of mind and enables the business to recover far more rapidly and return to BAU following a breach. That control over that data is becoming more of an issue due to companies no longer being able to control where their data is stored – earlier this year we heard Microsoft warn that it cannot guarantee data will remain on UK soil, for example. But ultimately, there should be a laser focus on ensuring anything a reseller proposes ticks two boxes – it helps the employee with their day-to-day work without compromising security.” Mike agrees that many resellers probably don’t make enough of the potential to drive sales of peripherals sales for hybrid workers. “And maybe we could do more to highlight that opportunity ourselves,” he says. “I am sure that, given the right kind of focus, it would yield positive results.”

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Hybrid working revealed an untapped market that resellers had overlooked, partly due to the mistaken believe that storage would move wholeheartedly to the cloud,

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