E-N Computers

04/11/2026

Find out: https://www.encomputers.com/2023/09/outsourced-it-services-cost-vs-hiring-staff/

03/11/2026

I want to thank all of you who let me know that my daughter Lucy was in your thoughts and prayers. We completed her eye surgery to correct her “crooked eye” successfully a few weeks back. Her eyes have recovered and she is doing well and is back to a normal happy kid. She is doing well enough we posted her photos in a cute kid picture contest!

Born on December 7th, 2023, Lucy is a little bundle of pure sunshine and non-stop energy! Whether she is lighting up the room with her big, infectious smile, chasing bubbles around the backyard, or bouncing away on the trampoline, she brings endless joy to everyone around her. Lucy l...

02/11/2026

Building a new dental office? Bring your IT team in before the walls go up.

Dental practices pack a lot into a small space. Most offices are divided into tight exam rooms, and each one has to hold equipment, plumbing, and people who need room to work.

Some of that equipment works against your computers. Compressors give off heat. Extra water lines run through the building.

“Water lines are usually not your friend when it comes to computer equipment,” said Ian MacRae, president of E-N Computers.

When your builder and your IT vendor plan together, cables and lines stay out of each other’s way. Screens and keyboards end up where dentists and hygienists can see and reach them during a procedure. You skip the rework that comes from fixing it after construction is done.

In our experience, the best time to plan your IT is while the building is still on paper. That’s when moving a cable run or a workstation costs nothing.

In the full video, Ian walks through the other systems that compete for space in a dental office and how to lay out each room so your staff can do their jobs comfortably.

https://youtu.be/yPi98BHo9VM

30/10/2026

If you’re budgeting for a first IT hire, the salary covers only about 70% of what that person will cost you.

The rest comes from costs outside the paycheck. Payroll taxes and health coverage come first. Your IT person also needs monitoring and security software to do the job, and that’s billed per computer every month.

For an IT support specialist in the Shenandoah Valley, those extras add $17,000 to $25,000 a year.

The role you hire matters too.

An IT support person helps your employees with their devices. They reset passwords and get new laptops ready.

A systems administrator does that work and also runs your servers and network security. In the Valley, that role costs about $21,000 more in base pay.

Many owners hire the support person to save money. That leaves the server and security work with no one assigned to it.

With either hire, you still have one person. When they take a vacation or call in sick, nobody else is there to cover.

Our new article puts the full numbers side by side. It compares both hires in three Virginia markets against a managed IT contract for 25 users.

Read the full cost breakdown here: https://www.encomputers.com/2023/09/outsourced-it-services-cost-vs-hiring-staff/

Compare all of the costs, complexity and long-term advantages of outsourced IT services versus hiring staff (with cost calculator).

26/10/2026

When a business leaves its IT provider, it’s usually after months of small problems that pile up.

Ian MacRae, hears this often from business owners who are thinking about switching MSPs. The details change, but the pattern stays the same.

“It’s usually a lot of little frustrations, maybe with a capstone big one,” Ian said.

The small problems look like this:

- Waiting a long time for a quote

- A bill nobody can explain

- One plan this week and a different plan next week

- Not knowing who is in charge of your account

The final straw is often bigger. A project goes wrong and brings downtime and extra charges. Or a failed audit leaves the owner feeling alone with their compliance.

Ian also points out that this isn’t only an MSP problem. An in-house IT employee who can’t produce a yearly technology plan, or who has a growing ticket backlog, loses trust in the same way.

At E-N Computers, we work to fix those small problems before they add up. Routine work is included in the monthly fee, so the bill makes sense. Each client also has a dedicated account manager and quarterly planning sessions, so the advice stays consistent from one week to the next.

Lost trust has changed how people shop for IT. Buyers now come to the table with more questions than ever.

Watch the full video to hear Ian explain why IT buyers ask more questions now: https://youtu.be/yPi98BHo9VM

21/10/2026

In June, a defense contractor in Alabama posted a near-perfect score on its cybersecurity self-assessment. But the score didn't hold up when the Department of Defense checked the work.

The company ended up paying to settle a False Claims Act case with the Department of Justice.

That case matters more now. In July, DoD suspended CMMC Phase 2. The third-party audits planned for November are on hold, and no new date has been set.

For now, your own self-assessment takes the place of the audit. A senior leader at your company signs off on it every year. That signature is a statement to the federal government, whether or not an assessor ever visits.
The security rules in your contracts haven’t changed. Contracting officers still look up your SPRS score before they award or extend a contract.

Virginia and the DC area feel this more than most places. Many defense contractors and CMMC assessors are based here.

Our updated guide explains what you still owe DoD during the pause. It also covers what to do if you already booked an assessment.

If you’re not sure your score would hold up under a DoD review, read the full article: https://www.encomputers.com/2026/07/cmmc-phase-2-suspended-what-to-do/

21/10/2026

Dental standards vs. IT standards
full video: https://youtu.be/yPi98BHo9VM

Your dental office may have been designed by the same company that sold you the chairs.

Many practices get their office layout from a large dental supply company or a distributor that designs dental offices. Some of these companies also sell the technology that goes inside. One vendor plans the space and the systems, which makes the buildout simpler.

The problem is the standard they design to.

“They don’t really use IT standards. They use dental standards,” said Ian MacRae.

In Ian’s experience, those designs often set a very low bar for the technology side of the office. The computers, network, and patient data in your practice may have been planned by people whose main job is dental equipment.

If a supply company designed your office, it’s worth asking which rules your IT was built to follow.

At E-N Computers, we plan and manage technology for healthcare practices to IT standards from the start. We explain every recommendation in plain English, so you know what you have and why.

In the full interview, Ian explains how dental standards and IT standards differ and what that gap means for your practice: https://youtu.be/yPi98BHo9VM

19/10/2026

The price tag on a retail store laptop is only part of the cost.

Buying your own computers sounds simple. Pick a model, pay at the register, carry it back to the office.

Then the real work starts. Someone has to handle:
▪️ Research on which models fit your business
▪️ Ordering and tracking delivery
▪️ Setup and configuration
▪️ Support when something goes wrong
▪️ Replacement when the computer gets old

When you buy it yourself, all five land on you. That usually means a time-consuming headache for someone whose real job is something else.

Here is how it works when we handle it:
▪️ Your account manager builds a quote in one to three weeks
▪️ We place the order within five to ten business days after you approve
▪️ We erase the drive and do a fresh Windows install, so there is no bloatware slowing things down
▪️ Most computers are ready in two business days once they reach us

We also set a replacement schedule with you during quarterly reviews, so new hardware never shows up as a surprise.

Our advice is to skip the retail store and let us handle procurement. You get a good deal on the hardware and a lot less frustration.

Buying new computers on a regular schedule protects your business. Here's what you can expect from us when buying new computers.

15/10/2026

The price tag on a retail store laptop is only part of the cost.

Buying your own computers sounds simple. Pick a model, pay at the register, carry it back to the office.

Then the real work starts. Someone has to handle:

▪️ Research on which models fit your business

▪️ Ordering and tracking delivery

▪️ Setup and configuration

▪️ Support when something goes wrong

▪️ Replacement when the computer gets old

When you buy it yourself, all five land on you. That usually means a time-consuming headache for someone whose real job is something else.

Here is how it works when we handle it:

▪️ Your account manager builds a quote in one to three weeks

▪️ We place the order within five to ten business days after you approve

▪️ We erase the drive and do a fresh Windows install, so there is no bloatware slowing things down

▪️ Most computers are ready in two business days once they reach us

We also set a replacement schedule with you during quarterly reviews, so new hardware never shows up as a surprise.

Our advice is to skip the retail store and let us handle procurement. You get a good deal on the hardware and a lot less frustration.

Who handles computer purchases at your company right now?

Read our full guide on what to expect when buying new business computers: https://www.encomputers.com/2026/09/what-expect-buying-new-computers/

Buying new computers on a regular schedule protects your business. Here's what you can expect from us when buying new computers.

13/10/2026

You asked about response times, pricing, and security tools. Did you ask who owns the MSP?

Most articles on choosing an IT provider stop at the checklist. Our president, Ian MacRae, hears something different in his conversations with prospects:

"I find that usually the buyers are so focused on the technology, to the point where they're missing that this is also a relationship."

A few questions tell you more about fit than any feature list:

→ Who owns the MSP, and does the owner plan to sell or retire?

→ Will you have a dedicated account manager, or does one person do everything?

→ Does the quote list ten separate tools, or build on licensing you keep if you leave?

→ Can they show you real, hands-on audit prep experience?

Response time promises deserve the same scrutiny. Ian compares it to calling Comcast. You always reach someone, but nobody owns your problem. A fast SLA means little if a different person answers every time.

For defense contractors, that last question matters most. Audit evidence has to reflect your systems as they are today, with nothing older than 90 days. At E-N Computers, audit prep takes about 40 hours of focused work.

Our full article walks through each question, plus what to expect on pricing and ballpark estimates.

What's one question you wish you had asked your MSP before signing?

Read the full article: https://www.encomputers.com/2026/09/questions-to-ask-msp-before-signing/

MSPs get asked technical questions all the time, but questions about their business and operations will reveal whether they're a good fit.