The Challenge
A publishing company in Winesburg, Ohio had built its technology environment organically over many years. While the systems continued to function, the infrastructure had grown increasingly difficult to manage, scale, and secure.
The company's file storage centered around a Mac Mini functioning as a file server, connected to an aging four-bay storage device. As the business grew, the gaps became harder to ignore:
The Solution
Travis Lehman Tech designed and implemented a complete infrastructure modernization project focused on reliability, performance, security, and business continuity — all with minimal disruption to daily operations.
The aging Mac Mini and four-bay storage device were replaced with a five-bay Synology NAS purpose-built for business file storage.
- 43.6 TB of raw storage capacity — room for current needs and future growth
- 931 GB NVMe SSD cache for accelerated file read/write performance
- Centralized file storage replacing the workstation-dependent environment
- Purpose-built storage platform with improved reliability and redundancy
All company data was migrated to the new platform with minimal disruption to business operations.
Shared credentials were replaced with individual user accounts for every employee.
- Individual authentication for each employee — no more shared passwords
- Permissions scoped to each role — employees access only what they need
- Improved visibility into who is accessing company resources
- Simplified onboarding and offboarding — account access managed centrally
- Reduced risk exposure when employees leave the organization
Bitwarden was deployed as the company's centralized password management solution, replacing inconsistent credential practices across the organization.
- Secure, encrypted password vault for all business credentials
- Shared credential management with granular access controls
- Strong password generation — reducing reuse and weak passwords
- Leadership visibility and control over company-owned accounts
The residential networking equipment was replaced with a full UniFi network deployment designed for business operations.
- UniFi Dream Machine Pro — enterprise firewall and gateway replacing consumer hardware
- 24-port managed network switch for full visibility and control over network traffic
- Three business-grade wireless access points providing complete facility coverage
- Centralized network management and monitoring through the UniFi controller
- A scalable foundation ready to support future technology initiatives
Protecting business data was a core objective of the project. An automated off-site disaster recovery solution was implemented to ensure critical files are protected against hardware failure, ransomware, natural disaster, or other unforeseen events.
By combining the reliability of the new local NAS platform with automated off-site backup, the company now has a significantly stronger business continuity posture than was previously available.
Before & After
| Area | Before | After |
|---|---|---|
| File Storage | Mac Mini + aging 4-bay storage — single point of failure | 5-bay Synology NAS, purpose-built for business |
| Storage Capacity | Limited, aging hardware approaching end-of-life | 43.6 TB raw capacity with room to grow |
| Storage Performance | No caching or acceleration | 931 GB NVMe SSD cache for faster file access |
| User Accounts | Shared server credentials used by all employees | Individual accounts with role-based permissions |
| Access Controls | No user-level accountability or restrictions | Employees access only what their role requires |
| Password Management | No centralized solution | Bitwarden deployed org-wide |
| Firewall / Gateway | Residential-grade equipment | UniFi Dream Machine Pro enterprise firewall |
| Network Switch | Unmanaged / consumer-grade | 24-port managed switch with full visibility |
| Wireless Coverage | Single access point, limited range | 3 business-grade APs, full facility coverage |
| Network Monitoring | None | Centralized UniFi management and monitoring |
| Disaster Recovery | No off-site strategy — data loss risk was high | Automated off-site backup protecting all critical data |
The Outcome
The company now operates on a modern IT foundation built to support growth, improve security, and reduce operational risk. Every major single point of failure identified at the start of the project has been addressed.
- A modern, business-grade file storage platform — no longer dependent on a consumer workstation
- 43.6 TB of storage capacity with NVMe caching for fast, reliable file access
- Every employee on individual accounts — shared credentials eliminated entirely
- File permissions scoped by role — employees only access what they need
- Bitwarden in place for secure, centralized password management across the organization
- Enterprise-grade firewall protecting the network perimeter
- Full network visibility through a managed switch and centralized UniFi controller
- Reliable wireless coverage throughout the entire facility
- Off-site disaster recovery protecting against hardware failure, ransomware, and natural disaster
- Multiple single points of failure eliminated throughout the environment
- A scalable infrastructure platform ready to support the company as it grows
Is your business running on aging storage, consumer networking, or shared credentials?
Many small and mid-sized businesses carry the same risks — and most are straightforward to fix. Whether you need to replace legacy file storage, modernize your network, implement password management, or build a real disaster recovery strategy, we can help.
Schedule a Free Assessment