HSO Enterprise Solutions Limited

HSO Implementation Services - Azure Cloud Infrastructure

Microsoft Azure is a Cloud Service reducing the need for on-premises infrastructure and lengthy procurement processes, providing guaranteed uptime, secure and easily scalable. Implementations involve infrastructure, data, integration, analytics, machine learning, AI (Artificial Intelligence), and applications. HSO’s Microsoft Azure consultancy services include assessment, planning, design, implementation, support and licensing advice.

Features

• Utilise Microsoft Azure Active Directory for Identity management
• Microsoft Azure infrastructure and application performance monitoring
• DevOps and Developer tools
• Architect, design, integrate, govern solutions
• Microsoft Azure synchronous and asynchronous integration
• Machine Learning and Cognitive AI (Artificial Intelligence) service
• Microsoft Azure Gateway connector to on-premises infrastructure
• Data Lake and Data Factory services for data platform
• IoT (Internet of things) service platform
• Manage authentication and authorization for applications with Azure

Benefits

• Secure organisational data and gain central control
• Reduce implementation costs compared to on-premises equivalent
• Avoid expense and complexity of buying / managing physical servers
• Reduce implementation time with no procurement process need
• Improve stability with Microsoft Guaranteed up time
• Gain disaster recovery through multiple data centres for performance
• Protect, store, back-up and recover data cost-effectively and securely
• Future-proof by managing increasing/decreasing workloads with auto scale
• Make informed decisions using machine learning and AI
• Reduce cost and time to test and build applications

£600 to £1,600 a unit a day

Service documents

• Pricing document

  PDF

• Skills Framework for the Information Age rate card

  PDF

• Service definition document

  PDF

• Terms and conditions

  PDF

Request an accessible format

If you use assistive technology (such as a screen reader) and need versions of these documents in a more accessible format, email the supplier at UK-GCloud@hso.com. Tell them what format you need. It will help if you say what assistive technology you use.

Framework

G-Cloud 13

Service ID

526598571936327

Contact

Michael Lonnon
07849087668
UK-GCloud@hso.com

Service scope

• Service constraints: None - The HSO Support Contract will state what solutions are being supported and the agreed Service Levels.
• System requirements:
  • Users typically need an Internet connection (some apps work offline).
  • Access to an HTML5 Compliant Web Browser - supports BYOD.

User support

• Email or online ticketing support: Yes, at extra cost
• Support response times: HSO Support's Response times are dependent on severity of the case, starting from 15 minutes.
• User can manage status and priority of support tickets: Yes
• Online ticketing support accessibility: WCAG 2.1 AA or EN 301 549
• Phone support: Yes
• Phone support availability: 24 hours, 7 days a week
• Web chat support: No
• Onsite support: Yes, at extra cost
• Support levels: HSO provide various Support Level options, starting from an Essential Agreement which is provided by purchasing blocks of Support hours. Further offerings, both reactive and proactive, are available as fixed price agreements, with the ability to raise unlimited Incidents, with unlimited hours spent to resolve them. ; ; All Customers will be assigned a dedicated Service Delivery Manager who will be responsible for all services delivered under the Support Agreement.; ; Within these agreements, there is a comprehensive Service Catalogue where customers can choose, and therefore only pay for, the services that they require.
• Support available to third parties: Yes

Onboarding and offboarding

• Getting started: HSO can either tailor to client requirements or provide a standard, predefined solution, based on ITIL v3 processes and guidelines. Further information on request
• Service documentation: Yes
• Documentation formats:
  • HTML
  • ODF
  • PDF
• End-of-contract data extraction: We agree exit terms and processes at the time of contracting. The exact format turnaround and processes related to data extraction is determined at this point. Further details on demand. Subject to security controls, data can be exported using various methods including inbuilt data export tools and various third-party solutions.
• End-of-contract process: HSO will agree end of contract scenarios in advance with the Buyer and either tailored to client requirements or provide a standard, predefined solution, based on ITIL v3 processes and guidelines. Additional costs are determined on a case by case basis, dependent on size and complexities of activities.

Using the service

• Web browser interface: Yes
• Using the web interface: "The API for Dynamics 365 is comprehensive, however, all API services are typically agreed separately with customers in line with their requirements.; ; Dynamics 365 unifies the capabilities of CRM business software and ERP systems by providing intelligent applications that seamlessly work together in the cloud. Please see this link for more information regarding Dynamics 365 REST API's::; ; https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/rest/dynamics365/"
• Web interface accessibility standard: WCAG 2.1 AA or EN 301 549
• Web interface accessibility testing: "As a reseller of Microsoft products and not the author, HSO have not explicitly carried out any user accessibility tests. However, Microsoft take accessibility very seriously and have carried out tests. Further information from Microsoft re: accessibility of Dynamics 365 and other associated Microsoft products can be found here:; ; https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/compliance/regulatory/offering-WCAG-2-1"
• API: Yes
• What users can and can't do using the API: "The API for Dynamics 365 is comprehensive, however, all API services are typically agreed separately with customers in line with their requirements.; ; Dynamics 365 unifies the capabilities of CRM business software and ERP systems by providing intelligent applications that seamlessly work together in the cloud. Please see this link for more information regarding Dynamics 365 REST API's::; ; https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/rest/dynamics365/"
• API automation tools:
  • Ansible
  • Chef
  • OpenStack
  • SaltStack
  • Terraform
  • Puppet
• API documentation: Yes
• API documentation formats:
  • Open API (also known as Swagger)
  • HTML
  • ODF
  • PDF
• Command line interface: Yes
• Command line interface compatibility:
  • Linux or Unix
  • Windows
  • MacOS
• Using the command line interface: The Azure Command-Line Interface (CLI) is a cross-platform command-line tool to connect to Azure and execute administrative commands on Azure resources. It allows the execution of commands through a terminal using interactive command-line prompts or a script.

Scaling

• Scaling available: Yes
• Scaling type: Automatic
• Independence of resources: The service leverages the Microsoft Cloud Service. This is designed to meet the needs of operating a service at scale. Other key components include: robust security, scalability, performance, tenant isolation, serviceability, and monitoring.
• Usage notifications: Yes
• Usage reporting:
  • API
  • Email
  • SMS

Analytics

• Infrastructure or application metrics: Yes
• Metrics types:
  • CPU
  • Disk
  • HTTP request and response status
  • Memory
  • Network
  • Number of active instances
• Reporting types:
  • API access
  • Real-time dashboards
  • Regular reports
  • Reports on request

Resellers

• Supplier type: Reseller providing extra features and support
• Organisation whose services are being resold: Microsoft

Staff security

• Staff security clearance: Other security clearance
• Government security clearance: Up to Security Clearance (SC)

Asset protection

• Knowledge of data storage and processing locations: Yes
• Data storage and processing locations: United Kingdom
• User control over data storage and processing locations: Yes
• Datacentre security standards: Complies with a recognised standard (for example CSA CCM version 3.0)
• Penetration testing frequency: At least every 6 months
• Penetration testing approach: Another external penetration testing organisation
• Protecting data at rest:
  • Physical access control, complying with CSA CCM v3.0
  • Physical access control, complying with SSAE-16 / ISAE 3402
  • Physical access control, complying with another standard
  • Encryption of all physical media
  • Scale, obfuscating techniques, or data storage sharding
• Data sanitisation process: Yes
• Data sanitisation type:
  • Explicit overwriting of storage before reallocation
  • Deleted data can’t be directly accessed
• Equipment disposal approach: Complying with a recognised standard, for example CSA CCM v.30, CAS (Sanitisation) or ISO/IEC 27001

Backup and recovery

• Backup and recovery: Yes
• What’s backed up:
  • Virtual Machines
  • Databases
  • Emails
  • Configuration and Customisations
  • Files and Blobs
• Backup controls: Users can control, manually perform backups and define schedules through the Azure Portal.
• Datacentre setup: Multiple datacentres with disaster recovery
• Scheduling backups: Users schedule backups through a web interface
• Backup recovery: Users can recover backups themselves, for example through a web interface

Data-in-transit protection

• Data protection between buyer and supplier networks: TLS (version 1.2 or above)
• Data protection within supplier network: TLS (version 1.2 or above)

Availability and resilience

• Guaranteed availability: Microsoft guarantees High Availability - 99.9%.
• Approach to resilience: The Microsoft datacentres adhere to the Microsoft Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery (BCDR) standard. Detailed information is available upon request.
• Outage reporting: Outage reporting methods include, but are not limited to, Public Dashboards, APIs, Mobile App Push notifications and Email Alerts.

Identity and authentication

• User authentication:
  • 2-factor authentication
  • Identity federation with existing provider (for example Google apps)
  • Username or password
• Access restrictions in management interfaces and support channels: Provided by role-based security model which allows you to control and define what actions a user can perform and what records a user has access to.
• Access restriction testing frequency: At least every 6 months
• Management access authentication:
  • 2-factor authentication
  • Identity federation with existing provider (for example Google Apps)
  • Username or password
• Devices users manage the service through: Directly from any device which may also be used for normal business (for example web browsing or viewing external email)

Audit information for users

• Access to user activity audit information: Users have access to real-time audit information
• How long user audit data is stored for: User-defined
• Access to supplier activity audit information: Users have access to real-time audit information
• How long supplier audit data is stored for: User-defined
• How long system logs are stored for: User-defined

Standards and certifications

• ISO/IEC 27001 certification: Yes
• Who accredited the ISO/IEC 27001: British Assessment Bureau - Certificate Number 212127
• ISO/IEC 27001 accreditation date: Initial Certification: 23 April 2018, Latest Issue: 21 June 2021
• What the ISO/IEC 27001 doesn’t cover: N/A - Covers ALL HSO UK trading companies: HSO Enterprise Solutions, HSO CRM Solutions & HSO Customer Service.
• ISO 28000:2007 certification: No
• CSA STAR certification: No
• PCI certification: No
• Cyber essentials: Yes
• Cyber essentials plus: Yes
• Other security certifications: No

Security governance

• Named board-level person responsible for service security: Yes
• Security governance certified: Yes
• Security governance standards:
  • ISO/IEC 27001
  • Other
• Other security governance standards: "Cyber Essentials Plus; ; Note: HSO have answered this section from an HSO (reseller and implementer) only perspective.; ; Microsoft also holds both these certifications plus many more."
• Information security policies and processes: In formulating and implementing HSO security policies, HSO incorporates the following protocols; ; a. Identified reasonably foreseeable internal and external risks to the security, confidentiality, and/or integrity of any electronic, paper or other records containing personal information;; ; b. Assessed the likelihood and potential damage of these threats, taking into consideration the sensitivity of the personal information;; ; c. Evaluated the sufficiency of existing policies, procedures, customer information systems, and other safeguards in place to control risks;; ; d. Designed and implemented an Information Security Management System that puts safeguards in place to minimize those risks; and; ; e. Implemented regular monitoring of the effectiveness of those safeguards.

Operational security

• Configuration and change management standard: Supplier-defined controls
• Configuration and change management approach: HSO has a dedicated Information Security Manager (ISM) and Information Security Management System. ; ; Configuration and Change Management processes at HSO include, but are not limited to: ; 1. Published processes, and education / training- new starter induction and ongoing refresher training.; 2. Use of system tools to capture request, obtain approval and record outcome / actions, e.g. DevOps registers.; 3. Steering committee review and approval needed for changes.; 4. Regular review and audit of our configuration and change management processes during our ISO 27001 (Information Security) and Cyber Essentials Plus audit and ongoing certification renewal.
• Vulnerability management type: Supplier-defined controls
• Vulnerability management approach: HSO has a dedicated Information Security Manager (ISM) who is responsible for out Information Security Management System and all underlying Policies within HSO UK. ; ; Vulnerability Management processes at HSO include, but are not limited to: ; 1. Published processes and education / training - new starter induction and ongoing refresher training.; 2. Regular internal vulnerability tests, e.g. through use of dummy phishing emails looking to capture user details.; 3. Regular vulnerability tests by external Security specialists.; 4. Regular review and audit of our vulnerability processes during our ISO 27001 (Information Security) and Cyber Essentials Plus audit and ongoing certification renewal.
• Protective monitoring type: Supplier-defined controls
• Protective monitoring approach: Protective monitoring processes at HSO include, but not limited to: ; -Published processes and education/training - new starter induction and ongoing refresher training.; -Azure AD's security, logging and audit-related capabilities such-as Multi-factor authentication, regular review of access-logs / exceptions across applications.; -Use of various system alerts to notify IT of any unusual behaviour. HSO'S internal IT department has dedicated Incident Case types for employees/users to report all suspicious activity against, phishing emails, etc.; -Regular review/audit of our protective monitoring processes as part of ISO 27001 (Information Security) audit and ongoing certfication renewal.; -As per 4. fro Cycber Essentials Plus certification too.
• Incident management type: Supplier-defined controls
• Incident management approach: HSO has a dedicated Information-Security-Manager responsible for all underlying Policies, working closely with an HSO-Group ISM to share best-practices.; ; Protective monitoring processes include: ; -Published processes and training/new-starter induction and ongoing training.; -Incidents investigated immediately, assessed and reported to appropriate internal, and/or external parties, including necessary notifications to customers/suppliers/partners.; -Once resolved, lessons-learnt review performed to ensure mitigating risk of similar incident happening again. Perform internal Risk Mitigation reviews to ensure constant review and improve resilience to accidental or malicious security and data incidents.; -Regular review/audit of proactive monitoring processes during ISO27001 (InformationSecurity) and Cyber Essentials Plus audit and ongoing certification renewal.

Secure development

• Approach to secure software development best practice: Conforms to a recognised standard, but self-assessed

Separation between users

• Virtualisation technology used to keep applications and users sharing the same infrastructure apart: Yes
• Who implements virtualisation: Third-party
• Third-party virtualisation provider: Microsoft are responsible for hosting in their Azure cloud.
• How shared infrastructure is kept separate: Microsoft runs and operates a large number of global datacentres, each located in different geographical regions. The customer can choose which is their primary datacentre, e.g. for most of HSO's UK-based customers, this is one of the UK datacentres. ; ; Each customer has their own Microsoft Tenant and can specify and control what environments they need to have available within this, whether Production or Non-Production (e.g. for test, data migration, or other purposes).; ; Through the use of virtual servers, hardware and servers within the chosen datacentre are shared, including for Disaster Recovery capabilities.

Energy efficiency

• Energy-efficient datacentres: Yes
• Description of energy efficient datacentres: Microsoft’s datacentres in the UK and EU are designed to yield major gains in efficiency and sustainability in accordance with their commitment to the EU Code of Conduct for Energy Efficient Datacentres.

Social Value

• Fighting climate change:

  Fighting climate change

  HSO take responsibility for their social, economic, and environmental impact and in 2021 were awarded the Carbon Footprint Standard; an internationally recognised standard for demonstrating low carbon credentials as an organisation. We are actively engaged by investing in projects that reduce or store carbon including UK tree planting and a Wind Power Project in Thailand. This engagement can be seen at an employee level as a number of our staff volunteered to plant nearly 400 trees at two schools. It of course poured down but was still a fabulous day!; All our initiatives are shared with partnerships, and we encourage using best practice within the client sites, to increase and enhance our Corporate Social Responsibility.; In a global context, adopting greener new technologies such as Microsoft Azure Cloud based SaaS (D365) can promote a greener economy which is linked to decarbonisation and global climate emergencies.
• Covid-19 recovery:

  Covid-19 recovery

  HSO is committed to supporting Covid 19 recovery. Our solutions and services can support local communities to manage and recover from the impact of COVID-19 faster. We facilitate hybrid working, allowing remote working where agreed and possible, and provide support for returning to work in a safe and balanced environment. We recognise that doing business remotely and returning to work safely will help drive economic growth and support jobs to build an innovative economy that is viable and resilient.
• Tackling economic inequality:

  Tackling economic inequality

  HSO believe economic opportunity can and must be inclusive. That's why we invest to help individuals, organisations and communities access pathways to growth and opportunity. When each of us succeeds, we all succeed. Social Value is core to our business. Through our Digitisation Projects, HSO helps develop a skilled and well-educated population in an economy which generates wealth and provides employment opportunities without barriers, allowing people to take advantage of the wealth generated through securing decent work.; • The digital skills gap and shortages across the UK can be addressed through the upskilling in latest Microsoft technologies with recognised qualifications and knowledge sharing elements of our Project and Support services ; • HSO are keen to support local initiatives such as Enterprise 4 Education (E4E) and commit to activities to help improve employability and provide a larger pool of home-grown talent for local employers; • We seek to hire apprentices from local areas to participate in the projects and build a career; • HSO will incorporate employment and training opportunities as part of our contract delivery, particularly at entry levels. To this end, HSO has a dedicated Learning & Development (L&D) team focussed on delivery of functional, technical, industry and soft skills training, made available to Buyer teams including:; o HSO Masterclasses - Our Learning Management System provides access to over 120 online training courses; o HSO Academy – A 3-week bootcamp provide focuses on both soft and technical skills; o Certifications – HSO are regarded by Microsoft as one of the most certified partners in the channel; o Training Conference - Annual two-day Learning & Development conference for all our employees and open to Buyer Teams; o We also run lunch-and-learn sessions on D365 and other relevant topics for Buyer employees and local third sector organisations.
• Equal opportunity:

  Equal opportunity

  HSO actively seeks to promote a society that enables people to fulfil their potential no matter what their socio-economic background and circumstances.; • HSO operate by an equal opportunities policy; • We monitor our diversity and work on improving this with our Diversity and Inclusion team initiatives; • Our employees and management work within the HSO Mental Health Policy; • We are passionate about how digital transforms lives, mitigating challenges that the less privileged in society face.; Working with Microsoft we are innovators in Accessibility. We will assist the Buyers to fulfil their legal requirements in Accessibility, by offering guidance, expertise, and delivering IT services that enable inclusion and reduce the digital skills gap for those with physical (e.g., visual, auditory) or neurological (e.g., cognitive, learning, behavioural) impairments. Furthermore, our solutions support those for whom English is not their first language, using, e.g., LinguaSkin (www.linguaskin.com) to work seamlessly with our Microsoft solution and provide multi-language access.
• Wellbeing:

  Wellbeing

  HSO actively promote improved health and wellbeing for a society in which people’s physical and mental wellbeing is maximised and in which choices and behaviours that benefit future health are understood. ; ; HSO currently have an extensive wellbeing program, focussing on Mental and physical wellbeing which we can also extend to Buyer teams.; ; HSO employees and management work within the HSO Mental Health Policy.; ; HSO will work with Buyer teams to support improved community cohesion. We seek to do this through our project solutions, approach, and methodology as an enabler for a well-connected ecosystem supporting the community. Throughout Project engagements, HSO will positively challenge the Buyer’s program team to ensure the solution design is simple and easy to use (user first approach), adheres to the highest level of data protection in line with GDPR and is accessible in an 'always on' connected state for seamless operations across the organisation.

Pricing

• Price: £600 to £1,600 a unit a day
• Discount for educational organisations: No
• Free trial available: No

Service documents

• Pricing document

  PDF

• Skills Framework for the Information Age rate card

  PDF

• Service definition document

  PDF

• Terms and conditions

  PDF

Request an accessible format

If you use assistive technology (such as a screen reader) and need versions of these documents in a more accessible format, email the supplier at UK-GCloud@hso.com. Tell them what format you need. It will help if you say what assistive technology you use.