All I Want for Christmas: A File-Transfer Wish List

Here’s a holiday wish list for what IT professionals are longing for when it comes to secure, timely file transfers to colleagues or customers.

File-transfer solutions shouldn’t just be different systems cobbled together—they should be functional, easy to use and have a clean user interface. The commonly used FTP protocol was originally written in the 1970s, when companies didn’t widely rely on technology or even computers. With virtually no user-experience design built into FTP, it’s time to upgrade to a new “toy”—a next-generation file-transfer solution.

To better serve customers with big data projects, cloud vendors partner with companies that specialize in SaaS large file-transfer technology. Because these SaaS solutions integrate with several major cloud vendors, a single subscription gives customers the flexibility to easily manage and switch between different cloud environments—an added gift to users hoping to avoid being locked in with a single cloud storage vendor.

When collaborating across time zones, you may wait up into the night making sure an important file transfers without being interrupted. Being able to hit send and know that the solution you’re using will work so you can turn your attention to other tasks may feel like a holiday miracle, but it’s possible with file-transfer solutions.

Making sure you have a secure file-transfer solution is also very important. The perfect tool has integrated layers of defense such as requiring the user to log in with password credentials. Some tools allow anyone to use them and begin transferring, but using a tool that has the added certainty of certificate-based authentication, including a configurable expiration cycle that requires users to change passwords periodically and minimum password strength validation, will keep your information from falling into the hands of someone on Santa’s “naughty list.”

With most standard file-transfer technology, email notifications aren’t built-in. So how do you know if your file made it to its correct end point? Modern SaaS file-transfer solutions have automatic email notifications that let you know when your file transfer has been completed, so you can sleep easy, without being woken up by a ghost reminding you of past file-transfer mishaps.

Sending a large file can be nerve-racking if you’re using an outdated solution. You’re not only worried about how long it will take to reach its destination; you’re worried if it will ever get there. Modern SaaS solutions not only ensure even the largest files reach their destination; they can send them up to 200 times faster than FTP and other standard methods.

With business activity happening around the globe 24/7, professionals need information as quickly as they can—if not in real-time—to effectively collaborate. Having a file-transfer solution that works as hard as you do ensures your team can quickly and securely import, export and send data assets into and out of the cloud as well as to and from team members anywhere they may be—even the North Pole.

Video file sizes have grown exponentially over the past decade, in step with imaging technology advancing from SD to HD to 2K to 4K. And in 2015, even 8K made a debut several times in professional sports broadcasting. Handing files as massive as the Rockefeller Center Tree is a regular challenge for media professionals. They need a solution that can move hundreds of gigs without slowing down or failing.