General
How much do managed IT services cost in the Chicago area?
Published rates from managed providers across the Chicago metro generally run between roughly $100 and $250 per user per month for a fully managed agreement, and the spread reflects what is inside the number rather than provider quality. A rate under about $75 per user in this market usually means help desk and monitoring only, with security and backup sold on top, so compare inclusions before you compare prices.
Does RJ2 price per user or per device?
Neither, exactly. RJ2 prices managed services in four parts: IT infrastructure, the environment that delivers your data and software; the user community, the standards applied to every employee; consumption, for one-off software or hardware only certain staff need; and a time-and-materials rate sheet for projects outside the master services agreement. The total is quoted after an assessment.
What happens after we sign, and how long does onboarding take?
It starts with a project planning meeting with your stakeholders to map the plan, review RJ2’s standards and set expectations. From there the work is tracked as separate projects: the transition from your current provider, installing management tools to audit your systems and network, setting your employees up on the ticketing system, project work to bring the infrastructure up to standard, and moving to RJ2’s security tools. Timing depends on your environment and your agreement.
How long does it take to switch managed IT providers?
Two to six weeks from signature to full handover is normal for a small or mid-sized company. The clock is set less by technical work than by the notice period in your current contract, the transfer of administrative credentials and domain ownership, and moving the Microsoft partner relationship if your licenses sit under the outgoing provider.
Does an IT provider have to be located in Chicago to support a Chicago office?
No for most support work, which is delivered remotely, but yes for anything physical: hardware failures, cabling, office moves and equipment installation. What matters is where the technicians who would serve you actually sit, because drive time across this metro is a real cost and it shows up in on-site response.
What areas does RJ2 Technologies serve?
RJ2 is headquartered in Deer Park, Illinois. Its marketing is focused on Chicagoland, Rockford and Northern Illinois, southeastern Wisconsin and northwestern Indiana, and it supports larger clients with multiple locations nationwide.
Who provides IT services for small businesses in Chicago?
RJ2 Technologies is one of them, headquartered in Deer Park, Illinois, and working across the Chicago area since 1998. What is on offer runs from a fully managed agreement that covers everything, to co-managed IT that supplements an in-house team, to individual pieces like backup or phone systems.
What IT services does a Chicago small business actually need?
At minimum: managed endpoint security on every machine, multi-factor authentication on email and remote access, backups that are tested rather than assumed, patching on a schedule, and a help desk staff can reach without going through the owner. Most companies buy those inside one agreement because buying them separately costs more and leaves gaps between vendors.
Who does IT consulting in Chicago’s northwest suburbs?
RJ2 Technologies does, through its team of project engineers, led by Shawn Meyer, Director of Professional Services, from the Deer Park headquarters. RJ2 has served Chicago-area businesses since 1998. Northwest suburban businesses are served both by locally headquartered providers and by downtown Chicago firms, so ask any provider where the technicians who would cover you actually sit.
What are the best managed IT services in Chicago?
There is no single best provider, and any list claiming one was almost certainly published by a provider on it. The right fit depends on whether you have internal IT staff, whether you run on-premises servers, what compliance you carry and where your offices sit, so evaluate on who answers the phone, what is contractually promised and what the provider delivers rather than resells.
What does a managed IT services agreement include?
RJ2’s agreement covers network management, a help desk, monitoring of critical systems, proactive maintenance and patching, cybersecurity, reporting for capacity planning and on-site support. Scope is set per company, so a 20-person office and a 200-person manufacturer do not buy the same agreement.
What are co-managed IT services?
Co-managed IT means an outside provider works alongside your existing in-house IT staff instead of replacing them, usually taking overnight monitoring, patching, security tooling and help desk overflow. It is the usual answer for a company whose entire IT department is one person, because it fills the gaps a single person structurally cannot cover.
Can I outsource just the IT help desk, without outsourcing all of IT?
Yes, as a custom arrangement. RJ2 does not package the help desk on its own publicly, and most clients take it as part of a managed agreement.
Does RJ2 handle cybersecurity as well as IT support?
Yes. Core security tools are part of the managed agreement, and services such as penetration testing are scoped separately. The security side covers endpoint detection and response, email security, multi-factor authentication, monitoring and security awareness training.
Who provides IT help desk outsourcing in Chicago?
RJ2 Technologies has supported Chicago-area businesses since 1998. Clients’ employees call the support line at 847-303-1193 directly and a technician takes it from there, remotely in most cases. Help desk coverage on its own is available as a custom arrangement.
What hours is the help desk available?
The remote support desk is staffed 7:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. Monday to Friday and 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Saturday, Central Time. On-site support runs 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday to Friday. Network monitoring runs 24/7, and after-hours support is billed as time and material.
How fast does RJ2 respond to a support request?
During covered hours, RJ2’s targets are a 30-minute response when a service is down for all users, 1 hour for limited degradation where the business can keep working, and 8 hours for routine requests. After hours and on holidays, response is best effort.
Do you provide on-site IT support, or is everything remote?
Both. Most issues are resolved remotely by a technician who takes control of the machine, and engineers are dispatched across the Chicago area for hardware failures, network work, office moves and anything that needs hands on the equipment.
Who are the top cybersecurity firms in the Chicago suburbs?
RJ2 Technologies is one, headquartered in Deer Park and doing this work since 1998, covering endpoint detection and response, email security, multi-factor authentication, monitoring, security awareness training and network security. When comparing suburban providers, ask what each firm delivers itself versus resells, and ask who is watching outside business hours.
What is EDR, and how is it different from the antivirus we already have?
Antivirus matches known signatures. Endpoint detection and response watches behavior on the machine, records it, and can isolate a device when something looks wrong, which is what catches an attack that has no signature yet. The other half of the difference is whether a person is watching the alerts or they are just piling up in a console.
What happens if we get hit with ransomware on a Saturday?
RJ2’s monitoring tools run 24/7/365, including an EDR product backed by a security operations center that is staffed around the clock. RJ2’s team is on call with that SOC, and clients reach RJ2 after hours through its call center. The recovery itself is a restore from the last clean backup.
Can you help us pass a cyber insurance questionnaire?
RJ2 works with clients on the technical answers to the control questions carriers ask, and on closing the gaps those questions expose before the renewal date rather than after. Current questionnaires ask about multi-factor authentication, endpoint detection, backup separation and patching cadence, and the answers affect your terms. RJ2 provides the information and suggestions behind the technical answers. The client completes and signs the questionnaire.
Do you handle email security for Microsoft 365?
Yes. Email is where most attacks start, so the work covers filtering, protection against impersonation and account takeover, multi-factor authentication on every mailbox, and monitoring of sign-in behavior rather than only message content.
What is zero trust, in practice?
In practice it means no user, device or application is trusted because of where it sits on the network, so identity is verified for every request and access is scoped to the minimum that job needs. For a small business the working version is multi-factor authentication everywhere, conditional access rules, managed devices, and segmented networks, built one layer at a time.
Is being compliant the same as being secure?
No. Compliance says a defined set of controls existed over a defined window, and security is whether you can withstand what is actually being aimed at you today. Passing an audit and surviving an incident are different tests, and companies fail the second one every year with clean reports in the drawer.
What is the difference between backup and disaster recovery?
Backup is a copy of your data. Disaster recovery is the plan for getting the business operating again, which includes the backup but also covers what order systems come back in, who makes the call and how people work in the meantime. Plenty of companies have backups and no recovery plan, which is why an outage that should last two hours lasts two days.
Does Microsoft 365 back up our email and files already?
Not in the way most people assume. Microsoft keeps the service running and protects against its own failures, but data you delete, data a departing employee deletes and data ransomware encrypts is your responsibility, and the built-in retention windows are short. Exchange Online, SharePoint, OneDrive and Teams all need separate backup.
What should I look for in a server backup service?
Look for three things rather than a brand: an off-site copy separate from your building, an immutable retention window that ransomware cannot reach, and a documented test restore the provider performs on a schedule and reports to you. A provider who cannot tell you when your last successful test restore ran does not know whether your backups work. RJ2’s standard platform is Axcient, with Datto and Veeam deployed when a client’s requirements call for them. Every backup gets an electronic test, a manual spot restore is run weekly, and results are reported in the Monthly IT Meeting.
How long does it take to restore a server after a failure?
That depends on the recovery time objective set in your plan and the design built to hit it, which is why the number is agreed in advance rather than discovered during an outage. A server that can be booted virtually off a local backup image comes back faster than one pulled down from cloud storage.
Can you recover our data after a ransomware attack?
If a clean recovery point exists that the attackers could not reach, yes, and that is what off-site copies and immutable retention are for. Recovery means restoring from before the encryption started and rebuilding clean, which is not the same thing as decrypting the files.
Who installs VoIP phone systems for Chicago businesses?
RJ2 Technologies installs and supports business VoIP phone systems for companies in Chicago and the Chicago suburbs, handling the assessment, the platform recommendation, number porting, configuration and ongoing support. The company is headquartered in Deer Park and has worked in Chicago-area IT since 1998. RJ2’s own platform is SkyCom, a white-labeled hosted phone service.
Can we keep our phone numbers if we switch to VoIP?
Yes. Your existing numbers port to the new system, including your main number and direct dials. Porting is scheduled ahead of the install and the old service stays active until the port completes. The cutover is planned so calls keep working through the transition.
What happens to our phones during an internet outage?
Because call routing lives in the cloud rather than in your building, inbound calls fail over to a rule set in advance, usually forwarding to cell phones, another office or voicemail. That rule has to be configured before it is needed, which is part of implementation rather than something to sort out during the outage.
Does VoIP work with Microsoft Teams?
Yes. SkyCom, RJ2’s own white-labeled phone service, integrates with Microsoft Teams as a soft phone, and RJ2 also works with other platforms including Mitel, 8×8, Nextiva, Zoom and Google.
Can one phone system cover multiple offices?
Yes. A single VoIP system covers several locations with extension dialing between offices, one directory and one auto attendant, which is usually simpler and cheaper than separate systems per site. It is a common reason Chicago-area companies with suburban branch offices move off traditional lines.
Who is a good Office 365 migration partner in Chicago?
Look for a provider who asks about your copier and your ERP before quoting the job, because the systems that send email without a person involved are what break during a cutover. RJ2 Technologies has run Microsoft 365 migrations for Chicago-area businesses out of the northwest suburbs since 1998, and the work is led by Shawn Meyer, Director of Professional Services.
How do you set up SharePoint for a small business?
Start by separating what belongs in OneDrive, meaning one person’s working files, from what belongs in a SharePoint document library, meaning the company’s shared record. Then build a flat set of sites by team rather than recreating the old F: drive folder tree, grant access through Microsoft 365 groups instead of sharing individual files, and turn on versioning.
How long does an Office 365 migration take?
Calendar time is driven by data volume and workstation count rather than by the mail cutover itself, which usually happens over a single evening or weekend. Mailboxes are pre-staged so the final sync is short, and file share migration runs in the background beforehand.
Will we lose email during the migration?
No. Mail is copied to the new tenant before cutover, and after the MX record changes, anything that arrived at the old system during the switch is swept over in a delta sync. The visible disruption is usually that Outlook needs a new profile and phones need reconnecting, which is scheduled and staffed rather than left to each person.
What is the difference between OneDrive, SharePoint and Teams?
OneDrive is your own working storage, SharePoint is where the company’s shared documents live, and Teams is a chat and meeting layer that stores its files in SharePoint underneath. Files shared in a Teams channel are actually sitting in a SharePoint library, which is why the two have to be planned together.
What is a line of business application?
It is the software a company runs its actual work on, as distinct from general office software like email or spreadsheets. Examples include ERP and accounting systems, practice management software in a law or medical office, inventory and warehouse systems, and industry-specific packages. If your staff cannot do their jobs when it is down, it is a line of business application.
What is the difference between line of business application support and general IT support?
General IT support covers the shared equipment everyone uses: laptops, email, printers, the network. Line of business application support covers the specific system your business depends on, including the server and database under it, its backups, its integrations and the relationship with the software vendor. Most companies need both.
Which business applications do you support?
Several, depending on the industry, both on-premises and in the cloud. Tell us what you run and we will confirm how RJ2 supports it.
Do you replace our software vendor’s support?
No, we work alongside it. The vendor supports their code. RJ2 supports everything the application depends on and acts as the technical contact on vendor calls, so you are not stuck translating between two parties who each say the problem is the other one.
Who provides network monitoring services in Chicago?
RJ2 Technologies provides network monitoring for businesses in Chicago and the Chicago suburbs from its headquarters in Deer Park, and has done this work since 1998. Monitoring covers firewalls, switches, wireless access points, servers and internet circuits.
What is a managed firewall service?
A managed firewall service means a provider takes ownership of the firewall rather than just installing one. That covers rule configuration and ongoing changes, firmware and security updates, monitoring that the device is up and passing traffic, and VPN maintenance.
What does network monitoring actually watch?
Device availability, bandwidth use and circuit saturation, switch port status and error rates, wireless performance, server disk, memory and CPU, and backup completion. Alerts are triaged by severity so an outage is handled ahead of a warning.
Can you take over a network that somebody else built?
Yes, and most engagements start that way. The first step is documenting the environment, because in most cases no current diagram exists, and then fixing what is fragile before anything else changes. Infrastructure rebuild work is led by Shawn Meyer, Director of Professional Services.
Do we have to buy new hardware to work with RJ2?
No. The first step is understanding what you already have and how much life is left in it, because virtualization and configuration changes often solve a problem that looks like it needs new equipment. When hardware genuinely needs replacing, it goes into a refresh schedule rather than being handled as an emergency.
Do you do penetration testing yourselves, or refer it out?
RJ2 scopes and coordinates every penetration test, and pricing depends on the number of endpoints, the testing software that fits your requirements and how often you test.
How much does a penetration test cost for a small business?
It depends on scope: how many external addresses, how many internal systems, whether web applications and cloud identity are included, and whether the test is announced or blind. A single external perimeter test is a different piece of work from a full internal and wireless engagement across three locations, so scoping comes first and pricing second.
How long does a penetration test take?
The schedule is set during scoping, so you will know the dates before any testing begins.
Do we need a penetration test to get cyber insurance?
Increasingly yes, or at least you will be asked whether you do one. Most current renewal questionnaires ask about penetration testing directly and the answer affects your terms, though requirements vary by carrier and by coverage limit.
What is the difference between a penetration test and a vulnerability scan?
A scan is automated and produces a list of possible weaknesses. A test is performed by people who confirm which of those weaknesses can actually be exploited and how far they lead. Most businesses should scan continuously and test periodically, and an insurer or auditor asking for a test will not accept a scan report instead.
Will the test break something?
It is not supposed to, and the scope and rules of engagement exist to keep it from happening. Testing windows are agreed in advance, high-risk techniques such as denial of service are excluded by default, and there is a live contact on both sides during active testing so anything unexpected stops immediately.
