In News: iYogi Re-Defines Technical Support – BizTech2.com

Remote managed services are gaining a lot of attraction these days. Companies are looking to outsource the maintenance and monitoring of their IT infrastructure to a third party to improve efficiency and save costs. BizTech2.com caught up with Uday Challu, founding partner and CEO, iYogi, to see what the company has to offer in this space.

As far as Enterprise and SME customers are concerned, which verticals are you focusing on?

Our focus will mostly be on small companies with around five to 100 users and also firms that have multiple small branch offices like travel agencies, retail stores etc.

What kind of support services do you provide to your customers? What is the Green PC service?

iYogi provides the next generation of remote computer support services for consumers and businesses. For consumers, our live 24/7 support extends to technologies we use everyday, including hardware, software applications, devices, peripherals and networking equipment. iYogi also offers a full range of business IT solutions including managed monitoring, managed services, set-up and installation services, and incident-based services.

Green PC Service

With the current state of the global climate and increasing dependency on the computer, iYogi helps PC users reduce their carbon footprint and save money at the same time. iYogi’s Green PC service is the first in the independent computer support industry to offer customers a way to save money, conserve energy and protect the environment by optimising their PC’s efficiency. Consumers and businesses can save up to $200 per year, per desktop, in energy costs with iYogi’s Green PC application. This green application makes the computer environmentally friendly by reducing power consumption by almost 50 percent.

Our Green PC dashboard helps customise power settings and calculate power savings in kWh (kilowatt hour). The Green PC dashboard also gives a status on the reduction of CO2 and how responsible usage will benefit the environment by saving trees. A customised service that increases the energy efficiency of computers, undertakes the below-mentioned three primary initiatives:

- Computer assessment, analysing settings and PC energy use
- Customised efficiency planning geared specifically to the individual’s usage patterns
- Implementing setting changes to maximise the computer’s energy use

What are the technologies that allow you to offer 24/7 support and ensure there is no downtime at the client site?

We have invested significantly in developing a comprehensive monitoring and management tools stack. This enables us to manage and monitor all devices in the office network as well as for branch offices and mobile users. Our tools continuously monitor the customer’s network and notify our NOC (Network Operations Centre) in case of problems. Based on the set of events, tickets are automatically generated and escalated to corresponding teams. Over and above our proactive approach, the customer always has an option to call our 24X7 support line for issues that are not identified via the monitoring tools.

Please throw some light on your proprietary iMantra technology.

iMantra is a CRM system, which is tailor-made to suit the emerging business needs at iYogi. It allows for the formation of individualised customer relationships with the aim of providing personalised services to each subscriber. This tool is built on the latest java technology with a layered architecture that makes it scalable and secure. This architecture provides a seamless workflow and independent channels for various business needs: sales, support, quality and customer service. The entire system can be exposed in the form of secure APIs and Web services, which makes it a re-usable entity.

Your business model is similar to BPOs in India providing technical support to offshore customers. What unique values do you bring to this ecosystem that would help a potential client choose you over a competitor?

iYogi’s business model is different from traditional BPOs. Some key factors that differentiate iYogi include:

- Direct-to-consumer and -small business: iYogi delivers technical support services directly to consumers and small businesses and is a global technical support brand based out of India. Unlike traditional BPOs in India, iYogi does not provide any private label support and/ or work on behalf of large OEMs or software publishers.

- Optimised Processes: iYogi has developed proprietary processes for consistently delivering on a resolution rate of 87 percent, which is among the highest published benchmarks in the support industry, where averages hover in the range of 50 percent.

- Comprehensive technology platform: iYogi’s global delivery platform, iMantra, gets smarter with every customer interaction. It documents every problem, the solution and relevant hardware and software aspects, while capturing each customer’s demographic information and creating a behavioural profile. All of this information is at the fingertips of iYogi’s Global Tech Experts. This set-up combines a knowledge base with a comprehensive set of tools and technology expertise. iYogi offers a range of tools that complement its remote support services for helping customers maintain technology at peak performance levels. iYogi’s products include iYogi Smart PC Scan, iYogi Support Dock, iYogi Green PC and iYogi PC Optimisation.

How do you plan to move up the value chain in the times to come?

The growing use and penetration of the Internet and new Web-based applications has consequently opened the door to threats and vulnerabilities, which affect the system performance and ultimately lead to degrading performance. If the threats are diagnosed early on, the impact on efficiency can be minimised considerably. Currently, a user only realizes that he needs technical support once the damage has occurred and reactive methods of support are used to recover from the loss.

At iYogi, we are developing our capabilities to not only provide support when demanded, but to also monitor, pre-empt and fix threats before they can cause any damage to the computer. This will be possible only by combining technology with processes that are capable of re-defining the way technical support is delivered today.

What is your India strategy?

Technically, we are capable of servicing any geography including India. At this stage, we are looking for the right kind of partners to find access to potential customers and provide them a consolidated, 360-degree solution and services for issues relating to hardware, software, network etc. We aim to launch our India services in the coming six to eight months. Our services will offer clients a one-stop solution for all their business needs.

Error message when you start Windows Vista: "The Windows Boot Configuration Data file is missing required information"

When you start Windows Vista, you receive the following error message:

File: \Boot\BCD
Status: 0xc0000034

Info: The Windows Boot Configuration Data file is missing required information

This error occurs when either of the following conditions is true:The Windows Bo...
This error occurs when either of the following conditions is true:

- The Windows Boot Manager (Bootmgr) entry is not present in the Boot Configuration Data (BCD) store.
- The Boot\BCD file on the active partition is damaged or missing.

To resolve this problem, use the following methods in the order in which they ar...
To resolve this problem, use the following methods in the order in which they are presented.

Method 1: Repair the BCD store by using the Startup Repair option
You can use the Startup Repair option in the Windows Recovery Environment to repair the BCD store. To do this, follow these steps:

1. Put the Windows Vista installation disc in the disc drive, and then start the computer.
2. Press a key when you are prompted.
3. Select a language, a time, a currency, and a keyboard or another input method, and then click Next.
4. Click Repair your computer.
5. Click the operating system that you want to repair, and then click Next.
6. In the System Recovery Options dialog box, click Startup Repair.
7. Restart the computer.


Method 2: Rebuild the BCD store by using the Bootrec.exe tool
If the previous method does not resolve the problem, you can rebuild the BCD store by using the Bootrec.exe tool in the Windows Recovery Environment. To do this, follow these steps:

1. Put the Windows Vista installation disc in the disc drive, and then start the computer.
2. Press a key when you are prompted.
3. Select a language, a time, a currency, and a keyboard or another input method, and then click Next.
4. Click Repair your computer.
5. Click the operating system that you want to repair, and then click Next.
6. In the System Recovery Options dialog box, click Command Prompt.
7. Type Bootrec /RebuildBcd, and then press ENTER.
- If the Bootrec.exe tool runs successfully, it presents you with an installation path of a Windows directory. To add the entry to the BCD store, type Yes. A confirmation
message appears that indicates the entry was added successfully.
- If the Bootrec.exe tool cannot locate any missing Windows installations, you must remove the BCD store, and then you must re-create it. To do this, type the following
commands in the order in which they are presented. Press ENTER after each command.

Bcdedit /export C:\BCD_Backup
ren c:\boot\bcd bcd.old
Bootrec /rebuildbcd

8. Restart the computer.

Patch Tuesday heads-up: Critical Windows, IE fixes coming

Microsoft plans to ship 10 security bulletins next Tuesday (June 9, 2009) with fixes for a wide range of code execution vulnerabilities affecting Windows, Microsoft Office and Internet Explorer. Six of the ten bulletins will be rated “critical,” Microsoft’s highest severity rating.

This month’s batch of patches will not include a fix for the DirectShow vulnerability that’s currently being used in drive-by download attacks against Windows Media Player.

You may have noticed that we are not announcing an update for the DirectShow vulnerability addressed in Security Advisory 971778. Our security teams are working hard on a security update that addresses this issue to protect customers, but we do not yet have an update that has reached the appropriate level of quality for broad distribution. We continue to monitor the situation closely and suggest customers follow the guidance provided in the advisory.

In the absence of that fix, Windows users should immediately consider disabling QuickTime parsing to thwart the ongoing attacks. This KB article provides fix-it button that automatically enables the workaround.

Microsoft also announced that an Office for Mac fix will be coming this month to address vulnerabilities already fixed in May’s MS09-017. Microsoft originally shipped fixes for Windows users but the Mac patches were not ready in time.

The image above captures the essence of this month’s fixes. Windows users should treat the IE and critical Windows patches with the utmost priorities. Businesses considered at high-risk of targeted attacks should immediately test and deploy the Microsoft Office patches.

The Windows patches will be available all versions of the operating system — Windows 2000, Windows XP, Windows Server 2003, Windows Vista and Windows Server 2008.

Microsoft fixes Bing bug

Microsoft today said it had fixed a bug in Bing that had infuriated Internet Explorer 6 (IE6) users when they discovered that the company's new search engine had hijacked their browsers.

"Last night, we corrected the issue with Bing on machines running IE6," a Microsoft spokeswoman said Wednesday in an brief e-mailed reply to questions.

Starting Monday, when Microsoft took Bing live, IE6 users began complaining that although they had previously set other search engines as the default, searches typed into the browser were instead directed to Bing.

"Woke up this morning to discover that Bing had hijacked [my IE6 address bar search]," said a user identified as "clmerc" on a Google help message forum. [I] can't change it via search/customize on the IE tool bar."

"Bing seems to have hijacked many user-programmed search preferences away from Google," echoed "Jimpobg" on another help thread. "Since I didn't know what Bing was, I really thought my computer was infected with malicious software. Well, actually....it WAS. Sounds like classic Microsoft behavior."

Microsoft's spokeswoman ignored Computerworld's questions about the root cause of the problem, but one user on the Google forum explained that IE6 uses a Windows registry key to parse unknown text, such as a search phrase, that's typed into the address bar. "The problem is, Microsoft developed their URL SearchHook to do one thing: Take the unknown text from the address bar and add it to the URL http://auto.search.msn.com/response.asp?MT=text+from+addressbar&srch=4&prov=gogl&utf8," said "Kilyo" on the same thread as clmerc. "But Bing stopped acknowledging [search] provider requests."

Some users were clearly unsympathetic, and blasted the complainers for running an ancient browser. "If you use IE6, you deserve as much pain and suffering as humanly possible," said someone labeled "positrongoo."

IE6 debuted in August 2001, about two months before Microsoft launched Windows XP. According to U.S-based metrics vendor Net Applications, IE6 accounted for 16.9% of all browsers used last month. Rival StatCounter, however, pegged IE6's share over the last 30 days at a slightly-higher 21.6%.

Microsoft may have agreed with positrongoo. Yesterday, when it first acknowledged that Bing had hijacked the search preferences of IE6, it urged users to ditch the old browser. "We apologize for any inconvenience [this] has caused," Microsoft said in a statement Tuesday. "In the meantime, we encourage customers to upgrade to IE8."

Today, Microsoft again implicitly pushed people to upgrade. "This issue did not impact IE7 and IE8 users," the company spokeswoman said.

A Google employee confirmed that Microsoft had, in fact, fixed the Bing bug. "We've been monitoring [this] very closely and are pleased that Microsoft is now reporting that the problem should be fixed," said "Jaime" early Wednesday on the two Google help forums. "If anyone is still having this problem, I'd very much appreciate your posting here to let me know."

As of late Wednesday, no one had stepped forward on the threads to report they were still seeing Bing rather than their preferred provider.

Net Applications noted that Bing surged to a 6% share of the search market within hours of going live, but said most of its traffic came at the expense of Microsoft's legacy search engines, MSN's search and Windows Live Search. Both of those services now automatically process search requests using Bing.

Vista Wireless Connection Is Periodically Lost

When you try to use a wireless network adapter to connect to a Microsoft MN-500 or MN-700 Wireless Base Station, you may notice that the wireless connection drops periodically. This issue may occur at seemingly random intervals, from several minutes to an hour or more.

This issue may occur if one or more of the following conditions are true:

- There is a problem with the firmware for your base station.
- IEEE 802.1X authentication is enabled.
- Your universal serial bus (USB) wireless adapter is experiencing problems that are related to the USB bus.
- Your Internet is a DSL connection that uses Point to Point over Ethernet (PPPoE) authentication.

To determine and resolve this issue, use the following procedures in the order they are presented. After you complete each procedure, test to see whether the problem is resolved. Continue to the next procedure if it is not.

Part 1: Disable IEEE 802.1X Authentication

Examine each computer that is experiencing the symptoms described in this article, and disable IEEE 802.1X authentication. To do this, follow these steps:

1. Click Start, and then click Control Panel.
2. Click Network and Internet, click Network and Sharing Center, and then click Manage network connections.
3. Right-click the network that you want to disable 802.1X authentication for, and then click Properties.
4. Click the Security tab, and then, in the Security Type list, click No authentication (Open).


Part 2: Update Firmware
To update the base station firmware, follow these steps.

Connect to your base station and to the Internet to follow these steps, if the following conditions are true:

- If you lose your connection only after a long time, follow these steps while your connection is working.
- Use a network cable to connect to your base station.

1. In the Broadband Network Utility (BNU), on the Tools menu, click Base Station Management Tool.
2. Type your user name and password to log on to the Base Station Management tool.
3. In the menu pane, point to Management, and then click Upgrade Firmware.
4. Under Current Base Station Firmware Version, note the version and date listed.
5. Follow the steps that are listed under To upgrade the base station firmware.


Part 3: USB Wireless Network Adapters

If you have a USB wireless network adapter, you may experience problems that are related to the limitations of USB. If you have multiple USB devices, the USB network adapter may share data bandwidth, power, or both to a degree that it causes you to experience the symptoms that are described in this article.

To resolve this issue, try the following suggestions:

- If your computer has more than one USB bus (two USB ports typically share one USB bus), connect the wireless network adapter to its own USB bus. Connect your other USB devices to a different USB bus.
- Disconnect any unused or unnecessary USB devices.
- Use a powered USB hub to connect the network adapter to the computer.

Disadvantages/ Drawbacks of Windows Vista

Since windows vista is released in the market for home and business world , windows vista was not able to capture the market due to some of the some of the Disadvantages/ Drawbacks associated with this .

1. Requirements high,
Windows vista consumes a lot more resources than its predecessor windows XP. For vista Aero to work, you need to invest something more than what you would have expected to invest before. The graphics card requirement is quite high. The graphics card must be of DirectX 10 supported. The required minimum graphics memory on the graphics card is 128 MB. For better performance, graphics memory must be of 256 MB. The minimum hard disk space required is 20 GB for installation of Windows Vista. Processor speed is also expected to be high for Aero to work smoothly without causing any hiccups. The memory requirement for Windows Vista system is high. The system will work smoothly when one has got RAM of about 2 GB installed. Totally, I would like to say that, Windows vista eats up lot of resources, than its predecessor, the Windows XP.

2. Issue with the Drivers compatibility :
One of the common issue with the windows vista is that the ,device drivers compatible for windows vista are not released by all the manufactures of the hardwares ,so many of the device such as graphics card and webcam had compatilbility issue with the windows , before purchasing any new device we need to check out for Vista compatible or Vista ready logo, which is put up on the device.

3. Regarding price :
The price for Windows Vista editions are also high. Ordinary users cannot thus, have a look into all the features of Vista, which is only available in the Ultimate Edition. Microsoft seems to be not so interested in country wise markets. The prices are set according to the US market. However these prices are on higher side for developing asian countries. Microsoft should set the price of Vista as per the market.

Some of the key features of the windows vista are .

1 Windows Search 4.0 for faster and improved relevancy in searches
2 Bluetooth 2.1 Feature Pack supporting the most recent specification for Bluetooth Technology
3 Ability to record data on to Blu-Ray media natively in Windows Vista
4 Adds Windows Connect Now (WCN) to simplify Wi-Fi Configuration
5 Windows Vista SP2 enables the exFAT file system to support UTC timestamps, which allows correct file synchronization across time zones.


But its a big question mark on use of windows vista , after the release of windows 7 having some of the enhanced features .

iYogi Acquires Clean Machine Inc.

Larry Gordon, Founder of Clean Machine appointed as President Global Channel Sales at iYogi

New York, NY, May 11th, 2009 : iYogi, a global direct to consumer and small business remote technical support provider, today announced it’s acquisition of Clean Machine Inc, a provider of remotely administered PC security and performance management services. Clean Machine will operate as a separate brand under the iYogi services umbrella along with the recently lunched Support Dock (www.supportdock.com) and its comprehensive range of 24/7 technical support services for computers, printers, MP3 players, digital camera, routers, servers and more than 100 software applications. Larry Gordon, Founder of Clean Machine is appointed as the President of Global Channel Sales for iYogi.

iYogi will integrate technology and innovation that Clean Machine Inc. has developed for delivering an enhanced service experience by proactively managing the health and security for PC's and Apple Computers. This acquisition also broadens iYogi's access to key markets through Clean Machine's existing partnerships. Larry Gordon's past experience and successful track record will accelerate iYogi's expansion through his focus on global alliances.
Commenting on the acquisition of Clean Machine Inc., Uday Challu, CEO & Co-founder of iYogi, said,

"This acquisition will help iYogi to enhance our customer experience and extend our market reach to the millions of consumers that are challenged by the increasingly complex technology environment. Clean Machine's proactive maintenance and management of PCs in home and small business environment will be our launch platform for building the next generation of managed services for consumers."

"We are delighted to have Larry spearheading partnerships and global alliances for iYogi. His incredible experience in marketing, sales and building global alliances will help forge partnerships with retailers, multiple service operators, software publishers, original equipment manufacturers (OEM) and other such companies that are at the frontlines for managing tech support issues for consumers and small businesses",

added Challu.

With more than 20 years of experience, Larry Gordon has played a variety of strategic roles in marketing, sales and building alliances. Larry was the Executive Vice President at Capgemini and Kanbay. He was also VP of Global Marketing for Cognizant (Nasdaq: CTSH), a leader in global IT services and Director of Marketing for New York based Information Builders.

"I am excited to join a company that shares a common mission to Clean Machine in creating a global brand for delivering the best technical support to consumers and small businesses. We also share a common approach of utilizing highly skilled talent with leading edge tools, thereby delivering services at incredible price-points, with high margins for our partners",

said Larry Gordon, the newly appointed President of Global Channel Sales at iYogi.

ABOUT IYOGI

Headquartered in Gurgaon, India with offices in New York, USA, iYogi provides personalized computer support for consumers and small businesses in United States, United Kingdom, Canada and Australia. IYogi's 24/7 phone and remote technical assistance, spans across a comprehensive range of technologies we use every day from a wide range of vendors. Utilizing its proprietary technology iMantra , and highly qualified technicians, iYogi delivers amongst the highest benchmarks for resolution and customer satisfaction. iYogi is privately held and funded by SAP Ventures, Canaan Partners, and SVB India Capital Partners. iYogi was recently awarded the Red Herring Global 100 Award, recognizing it as one of the 100 most innovative private companies driving the future of technology. For more information on iYogi and a detailed list of technologies supported, visit: www.iyogi.net.

ABOUT CLEAN MACHINE

Clean Machine Inc. is a NJ-based and incorporated company that helps consumers and small business owners easily manage and protect their computing environments safely and cost effectively. The company is has a unique, powerful and inexpensive PC concierge service. Specifically, each customer is assigned a highly-trained tech concierge who remotely examines their computer system on a scheduled and very secure basis. The PC concierge will immediately fix software-based problems and prevent new threats to the customer's computing environment including offensive pop-ups, browser redirects and slow performance, and then provides a detailed report. Clean Machine's proprietary Radar(TM) technology (Remote Access Detection Audit and Repair) allows its expert technicians to remotely resolve any problems, eliminating the need for customers to go through the frustrating process of speaking with a tech support expert, and still having to do the work themselves. In other words, the Clean Machine PC concierges do it all. For more information on Clean Machine please visit www.pccleanmachine.com.