When file infrastructure becomes the bottleneck

Nobody sets out to build file infrastructure that makes employees less productive. Yet sensible technology decisions made years ago can leave organizations wrestling with systems that no longer suit how their teams work.

Take network-attached storage (NAS). It has long provided a dependable way to store and access files. But what happens when the people using those files are no longer sitting in the same building, or even the same country?

A project team can spend its morning waiting for a multi-gigabyte file to transfer over a VPN, then lose more time checking whether the copy they received is the latest. No single delay attracts much attention. Repeat that across projects and the cost starts to add up.

When shared access becomes difficult, employees find workarounds. They download local copies, duplicate folders, and transfer files between systems to keep projects moving.

Now imagine an architecture firm sharing a large building model between design offices. …