Stratas is a UK-based specialist in document automation, finance automation, and intelligent document processing (IDP). Its solutions help organizations automate processes underpinned by documents and improve control across finance and operations.
Stratas needed a new, secure, and scalable data storage solution after notification that its remote storage provider planned to discontinue services.
Richard Webb, the company’s Professional Services Technical Consultant, explains: “We weren’t confident that the physical servers were being properly maintained. Our provider was using older machines and running Windows Server 2012, which presented us with reliability and security challenges. If we had continued with our arrangement, things would have had to change.”
Solution
After considering several options, Richard and his team selected Node4’s Virtual Data Center (VDC) offering – the company’s managed, hosted Infrastructure as a Service platform.
As the first step in deployment, Node4 set up a bespoke landing zone to assist Richard with data migration from his organization’s legacy servers. Node4 also configured VDC access via a secure, high-speed VPN.
Public cloud solution
“We told Node4 from the outset that we wanted a managed, hosted environment. We’re a lean business with no physical premises and didn’t want the overheads and complications of managing physical servers,” Richard comments.
“On paper, a public cloud solution might have seemed logical. But we run several niche applications with specialized workflow and process requirements. Node4’s VDC was a better fit – we got the scalability and flexibility of public cloud without the complexity and administration headaches. But we also benefit from Node4’s support and expertise. It’s the best of both worlds.”
Node4’s data center
“We also wanted our data to remain in the UK on servers owned by a UK company,” he acknowledges. “That’s important for GDPR compliance and data sovereignty."
"It was also a bonus that Node4’s data center is just down the road from us, so we’re hyperlocal, I guess. It all adds to the feeling that we’re not dealing with some faceless conglomerate – that there are real people on hand with a genuine interest in helping our business to thrive.”
Results
Stress-free migration
With the landing zone operational and VPN connectivity established, Richard and his team began migrating applications and clients to their new Virtual Data Center.
“Clients using our invoicing and accounting service can’t be offline for a long time – especially around month-end. So, although it was slower for us, we migrated one customer at a time at a rate of about five per week,” he explains.
“Node4’s landing zone also allowed us to test migrations to ensure everything worked as expected before going live. This kept downtime to an absolute minimum and reduced many of the risks associated with migration to hosted environments.”
Enhanced backup, recovery, and resiliency
Richard and his team immediately benefited from switching to Node4’s virtual data center. “Our previous provider offered only basic backups, and their infrastructure lacked resiliency,” he recalls. “We could start work on a Monday and, without any prior warning, find half our servers were down. Switching to Node4’s virtual data center with modern, resilient servers – alongside built-in comprehensive backup and disaster recovery – improved our day-to-day operations and customer experience right from the outset.”
Richard admits that the connectivity and reliability improvements far exceeded anything he’d hoped for. “It’s amazing! Even basics like logging in are easier. On our old system, it would take several attempts, and there was always a chance you’d get kicked out after a couple of hours. Getting online first time probably saves each of us around ten minutes a day. That may not sound much, but it quickly adds up as the weeks and months go by.”
Advanced, integrated security
Richard also notes that the VDC offers a range of security benefits, including firewall defences, DDoS protection and secured instances.
“We’re planning to introduce multi-factor authentication to access our VPN. It’s a vital identity management tool for all businesses,” he comments. “But especially ones like ours with a 100% remote workforce.”
Consumption-based model: Pay for used compute, network, and storage
Richard is also keen to highlight the advantages of a consumption-based model. “The VDC is fully self-service. We can adjust compute, network, storage, and services on demand with just a few clicks – giving us complete control over our environment and costs."
"This is important right now and also helps us plan ahead; for example, we can now see a pathway to rolling out AI and advanced automation in the coming years.”
Transparent pricing
“I like the fact that VDC pricing is transparent,” Richard admits. “We did our due diligence and looked at a few other companies. Their project and operational costs seemed lower. But there were lots of gotchas – like fixed data charges and data limits – hidden in the small print. So, when we weighed it all up, Node4, with its consumption-based pricing, was far better value and a much better organizational fit.”
He concludes: “What does that mean on a day-to-day basis? Currently, we’ve scaled requirements as we’re carrying out some server consolidation work. But all that extra capacity is still there for us. And while we’re waiting, we’re not being charged for it. That’s a huge benefit. It helps us remain competitive and responsive to changing market and economic conditions.”