IT Glue: Holding the Keys of Your IT Kingdom Together
At Anderson Technologies, your business’s IT security is our highest concern.
To that end, last year we implemented a documentation platform called IT Glue after recognizing the benefits of storing critical information in a single, organized repository. Our team consolidates knowledge, building a shared, encrypted library that helps address your needs better than ever before and ensuring your network isn’t reliant on how well one person can remember details.
What Is IT Glue?
IT Glue is an efficient documentation repository that keeps your relevant IT information readily at hand in a customizable environment. Documentation platforms help managed service providers maintain their internal processes and client credentials.
The website securely stores configurations, domain expirations, contacts, locations, passwords, security specifics, wireless data, backup schedules, and documents in its easy-to-access dashboard. Information is updated as needed by various team members, but controlled access allows the data to be viewed by the client via separate accounts as well.
Another helpful feature of IT Glue is that it easily integrates with other tools IT consultants use—like their PSA (Professional Services Automation) application—with two-way retrieval of data. This ensures information entered in one is automatically synchronized to the other. Too often, clients that Anderson Technologies inherits from other managed service companies arrive with minimal or outdated records. Documentation platforms make record keeping easier and more integrated while strong security implementation keeps the data safe.
Keeping Your Sensitive Information Locked Down
Multifactor Authentication
To login to the secure documentation platform, users must activate multifactor authentication (MFA). After entering a username and password, MFA requires the use of a third-party app configured on a mobile device to generate a single-use, six-digit code that expires after 30 seconds. Once the code is entered, the user is granted access.
Multifactor authentication provides an important added layer of protection to keeps accounts secure by preventing unauthorized logins. If someone has the password but not the MFA device, any login attempt will be unsuccessful. The concept is similar to showing your ID when using a credit card in a store. Secondary verification mitigates the chances of a thief taking your stolen credit card on a mall shopping spree.
Passwords
IT Glue organizes passwords so users can easily access the multiple accounts for websites, email addresses, computer logins, and applications clients use every day. Credentials are organized in a user-friendly way, and URLs can be launched with the passwords populated. This saves valuable time, whether you’re monitoring servers and firewalls or updating a web page. IT Glue allows for granular permission levels as well as user-based permissions and group permissions, allowing contributors to specify who should be able to access each addition to the system.
Legal Compliance
SOC 2 compliance means that IT Glue is audited by a third party and its security and best practices are verified. Among other things, this helps companies comply with HIPAA—an essential for those providing IT consulting services to health organizations.
IT Glue’s website says, “To pass the audit for SOC 2 compliance, IT Glue had to demonstrate best security practices in terms of its physical infrastructure, the software that it uses, the personnel involved in governance, both automated and manual processes used, and data. The audit can only be passed when each of these areas of IT Glue’s system are compliant with SOC 2 standards.”
Organization Equals Efficiency
Efficiency for our IT team means your IT service is more capable with these shared resources – providing resolutions faster and reducing your frustration and down time.
IT Glue’s dashboard allows for speedy access by keeping track of recently accessed data. It also offers two types of searches—organizational and global—which helps our IT professionals quickly find information with just a couple keystrokes. Instant indexing of all uploaded data helps expedite the process for troubleshooting and problem solving.
Anderson Technologies tracks client domains within the system to keep DNS records readily at hand and has configured the platform to send an email alert if a domain is expiring. Our team documents license keys for apps and programs, allowing us to quickly install programs on new computers. IT Glue logs all user access as well as deletions and revision history within the app, providing a full access log for each team member. By combining this data with a robust feature set, the platform gives us the ability to thoroughly document client information for more efficient service.
The key to achieving the full potential of a process documentation platform is to realize it only manages as much information as you provide it. This means it works best if clients help keep it updated with any changes, such as passwords and other credentials that may be needed in the future.
Elena Estrada, Anderson Technologies’ IT Support Coordinator says, “Whenever we’re notified of a change in the client’s environment, we add that information into IT Glue. Keeping us up to date is essential. When clients fail to share updates with us, it can get confusing. The information stored in IT Glue is only helpful when it’s accurate and current.” An important feature for documentation repositories is input of information by users.
Anderson Technologies is committed to efficient, accurate, and professional service. Using IT Glue as a documentation repository is one of the ways to serve you better. If you would like more information on IT consulting services, call 314.394.3001 or email us info@andersontech.com.
