Conducting an IT Security Audit helps you determine if there are security issues in your network. But what do you get from the audit itself? How do you use its findings to improve network security? A good audit will give you an action plan...and here's what it includes.

Do your network cables look like spaghetti cascading down from the racks? If there's an issue, disorganized and unlabeled cabling can cause even more trouble. This month's Tech Tip gives tips on how to organize & manage network cables.

Does your office use a consumer-grade wireless router (like D-Link or Netgear) in the office? You may have trouble with your connections. Read our Tech Tip for the reason why.

"Magpie, if I don't trust online storage sites, what should I use instead? What's the most secure way to share files outside my network?" For most files, sites like Dropbox are just fine. But if you want secure file sharing, I have three suggestions.

"Should we upgrade to SQL Server 2012? Will the new release help us?" If you're looking for better performance out of your database server, then yes, an upgrade to SQL 2012 is one to go for. Magpie tells you what to expect!

"Magpie, how do I find a good web designer in Silicon Valley?" I'm a little biased toward MY company, but if you want qualifications, then look to third-party reference lists. I have one here that shows the top 150 Web Designers in Silicon Valley, in fact.

Magpie, when you need to hire IT workers, what's a good average to figure on between IT employees to all employees? Is there an 'ideal ratio' for certain business sizes?" Debate varies widely on an ideal number of IT workers, but there are some good rules of paw to follow.

Magpie, we think someone's stolen our web content & put it up on their site. What do we do? Report them! You can report stolen content under the DMCA. We have instructions here, and what you'll need to do to save your content.

"Magpie, how would we go about giving remote access (securely) to QuickBooks?" The answer is, by using a Remote Desktop service in Windows Server. Read today's Ask Magpie to see how it works.

"Magpie, we have no idea what to do with this new SharePoint system! What should we use SharePoint for? We keep hearing about all the things it can do!" Would some videos help make things clearer? I found a bunch!

"Magpie, is it possible for someone to hack into my social media accounts? And post things as me?" Unfortunately, this is a reality - yes, they can. No account is 100% safe online. It's up to you to take some (pretty simple) steps to safeguard your social media fun.

"Magpie, all this malware talk is making me nervous. What's the best way to tell if a mobile app is safe BEFORE I download it?" The app stores are vulnerable to malware infection, sadly. But there is a way to tell if an app's safe...or it isn't.

"Magpie, when's the best time to upgrade major servers?" Pick a time when you have flexibility in your annual schedule, both before and after. You'll be more comfortable, and have more time to fix any problems. My recommendation is...

"Magpie, we want to 'start over' with social media (new employees), but we have some accounts still out there. How do we get rid of those?" There's a tool called the Web 2.0 Suicide Machine that can help.

"Magpie, what are the top browsers right now?" Internet Explorer, Firefox, Google Chrome and Safari. You might think that's all you need to know...but that's just the start. Let me point out something important to all the business readers.

"Magpie, which virtualization software should we use?" Rule of Paw for Virtualization: Always use the software that works best with the server apps you run now. Let me cover the popular virtualization apps, and which platforms they work best with.

"I keep hearing about 'local search.' Would signing up for local search help us?" Sure it would. If your business serves a certain area, a local search listing for that area will display your information to people searching nearby.

"Should I be worried about all the different smartphones we're using? Will Exchange let them all connect?" Chances are it will, so long as the phone supports Exchange ActiveSync. Here's a few that do.

"Magpie, which is the best browser to use for HTML 5?" The W3C Standards Group – the people responsible for HTML 5 technology – released their first HTML 5 browser test recently. Guess which Web browser came out on top?

"Magpie, why should we pay for big-name IT? We could use open source software and save a lot of money." Well, you do get what you pay for. Open-source has done a lot of good...but there are big risks if you use it in a business setting.