SMB Tech Roll-up: iPad Gets File Access and Database Search, Microsoft Helps Cloud Migration

By David Roe (@druadh20) Jul 22, 2010

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This week in the SMB space there have been a number of releases for mobile workers that will give them access to files and databases through iPad, while Pravega offers free email marketing and CRM setup to small business users.

Egnyte Offers iPad File Access

A lot of SMBs are going mobile. A lot of SMBs are also going mobile without the ability to access business files securely, a fact that is hampering many in achieving the full potential offered by mobile business.

Egnyte, which develops cloud file server software, has come up with a solution to this problem with Egnyte Everywhere, a new mobile suite that allows business users to securely access and share their business files from their iPad as well as smartphones, including the iPhone, Android and Blackberry.

The iPhone app leverages iOS 4 in providing off-line access to files including support for iTunes file sharing. The announcement coincides with the release of a new national study on mobility and data access while on the road.

Apart from the intriguing fact that the study shows 53 percent of mobile professionals admitted to accessing data from their smartphone while in the bathroom, document apps appear to be a big hit with mobile business professionals with 36% saying document apps keep them the most productive while on the road.

Commissioned by Egnyte, the survey revealed that the number one thing mobile professionals miss most about not working in the office is easily accessing files from a file server.

The survey also showed that of those asked, 60% of mobile professionals favor the iPhone as America’s biggest winner edging out Android, which had 29%.To find out more check out the Egnyte website.

Database Access Through iPad

A second bit of news from the smartphone world that will also help SMB workers on the road is that FileMaker has just released FileMaker Go for iPhone and FileMaker Go for iPad which let users work remotely with FileMaker Pro databases on the iPhone or iPad.

With FileMaker Go — available as separate apps for the iPhone or iPad — users can view, edit and search for information in FileMaker databases and can access databases residing on a Mac or PC using a local wireless network or over the Internet via Wi-Fi or 3G. All changes are instantly updated in the hosted file.

It can also copy databases between desktop or laptop computers while databases may also be downloaded by email, popular file sharing sites or the web.

In fact, users will be able to do just about anything with FileMaker Go that they can do with the desktop version of the database app — add or change data, navigate through records, switch between layouts and open new windows.

Microsoft Helps SMBs to Cloud

Also this week, NetApp (news, site) announced enhanced integration with Microsoft (news, site) to deliver enterprise-class data protection solutions to cloud service providers.

Although enterprise-class data protection has historically been too expensive for most SMBs to implement themselves, NetApp and Microsoft now enable service providers to offer enterprise-class data protection to SMBs by leveraging the Microsoft Dynamic Data Center Toolkit for Hosters.