Not all SMB server solutions are alike. Open-source is tempting with its low-to-no initial investment, but there may be problems with support or security down the line. Choosing a proprietary SMB implementation comes with the benefit of a dedicated product technical team. Dive in with us into why top-tier technical support for your enterprise SMB server is critical at every step of the way from deployment to maintenance.
There are technical considerations to make and configurations to fine-tune when implementing, integrating, and maintaining an enterprise-grade SMB server. This makes reliable, responsive support crucial to the success of your entire data-handling pipeline.
And by support, we mean everything from technical help to SMB protocol compatibility, and new product features. It also means having access to comprehensive R&D support including integration, testing, benchmarking, reports, and product- and platform-specific optimizations – all of which can save significant amounts of time and cost.
Our support is a good reason for you to consider us for your SMB server solutions. Here’s why:
1. Community support for SMB is geared for desktop environments
When it comes to support, you are looking for someone to answer questions, troubleshoot issues, and give advice tailored to your needs – all the while, doing it quickly and accurately, right?
There are no guarantees of the support you will receive from open-source forums. Samba, for example, is generally geared towards home and desktop environments. It’s also shaped by the project community’s vision, and might not align with your needs.
Samba configuration can also be complex. While the community is normally eager and friendly to help, any single enterprise’s specific and challenging needs are not their primary concern. For these reasons enterprises usually hire experts or buy the support from 3rd parties when they choose an open-source solution, which may end up less of a cost-savings than predicted in the initial choice of going with an open-source solution.
2. Optimization and continuous development
Performance is one of the main features businesses look for in their SMB solutions. To achieve performant systems, you need reliable partners who can customize your system to optimize processes according to your requirements and workloads.
Optimization aside, there is always the pressure of the future bearing down on us. You will need support for your future developments – and versatile advisors for when things don’t go as planned. Having a reliable, dedicated support network which already knows your environment, upkeeping and developing the proprietary solution towards your technology roadmap means time saved and predictability along the way.
3. SMB security testing
Unfortunately, in some cases open-source SMB implementations can be prone to security vulnerabilities. Tackling security vulnerabilities with an open-source option can mean time wasted on chasing manual patches (with bugs and vulnerabilities potentially still lingering), or serious exploits slipping through. This can result in costly data loss and service downtime.
Some of the most popular open-source enterprise networking options also tend to have SMB-protocol support limitations. Not all open-source solutions have been developed at the same pace as Microsoft’s SMB – particularly SMB 3.0 and up.
Having access to responsive technical support plays a vital role in ensuring SMB network security and data protection. A good provider advises your enterprise on implementing appropriate security measures for your solution or data workflows, such as encryption and access controls. You can also expect guidance on best practices to mitigate security risks as well as an immediate response to breaches. Case and point, Tuxera’s enterprise storage experts discovered a security vulnerability in SMB1 during testing, and rapidly reported it to Microsoft – which prompted them to release a security update to fix it.
4. Timely troubleshooting and issue resolution
Time is money, and when something comes up to put a wrench in the schedule, valuable time is lost. If your company is data-dependent and needs access to the data reliably and rapidly across a network, any downtime or inaccessibility is hugely problematic. You need tech support who are skilled in diagnosing and resolving networking and file sharing issues promptly. Tuxera provides guidance and troubleshooting steps to resolve problems efficiently – minimizing disruptions and maximizing productivity.
Our support team is highly responsive. We are there for you all the way from product implementation to service maintenance and through all the hiccups you may encounter – and our experts are on-call in every time zone.
5. Tailored SMB server support
Tuxera’s track record extends to supporting Fusion File Share adoption in the global public cloud, Platform as a Service (PaaS), as well as in the leading software-defined storage solutions as featured in the Gartner Magic Quadrant.
Our networking solution supports SMB 3.1.1 as well as previous versions. It works reliably with all SMB/CIFS protocols to ensure file-sharing interoperability across any network. And of course, we are continuing to develop the implementation.
Final thoughts
With the growing performance and availability needs in enterprise network file-sharing, service updates and patches (while crucial) aren’t enough. Quality support for an SMB implementation means having dedicated experts who are responsive and quick to act when downtime threatens critical workloads. The result? Time freed up from waiting and more time to put towards the stuff that really matters.
So, if you rely on data being accessible, accurate, and readily available across a network, Tuxera’s SMB implementation might be your answer.