BOTHELL – Keeping a computer network humming along productively, a critical function for many businesses, doesn’t seem to get easier as technology advances.

The online age, when most networks are hooked up to the Internet, has made them additionally vulnerable to everything from viruses to hacking. Which is why Datanode LLC’s work is never finished.

“It has always been a very difficult challenge to keep them secure,” said Doug Barlow, chief executive officer of the Bothell company. “Now, the attacks are more frequent, but the challenge remains about the same.”

Datanode has specialized in maintaining and securing computer networks, especially for businesses unable or unwilling to hire a full-time computer expert. Call it “an IT person in a box.”

“We do it for them, so they don’t have to,” said Gary Castleman, Datanode’s sales and marketing director.

He added that one survey of companies that have information technology managers showed that up to 95 percent of them don’t regularly monitor their own networks. Many are too busy with daily computer glitches and other work.

Datanode’s flagship service offers a business owner help that includes filtering out spam and viruses, managing a company’s e-mail account and monitoring the firewalls and general performance of a computer network.

It also can keep track of details such as which Web sites employees are visiting and how much time they’re spending on those sites, Castleman said.

When a problem does occur, from a firewall breach to a server malfunction, Datanode can page the business owner, manager or information technology expert instantly.

In the past, companies haven’t relied much on outside services to maintain or monitor computer networks.

By the end of this year, however, a majority of companies will rely on outside firms to monitor at least one of aspect of their networks’ security, according to The Yankee Group, a technology-oriented analysis firm. It also predicted the outsourcing market for computer network monitoring will grow strongly in the near future.

All of which would be good news for Datanode. So far, Barlow said, many of the firm’s clients are regional companies, though it does have some international clients.

Because its service is Web-based, Datanode can offer its services virtually anywhere, Castleman pointed out.

One of Castleman’s challenges is to convince potential clients to think about their network security before something happens. Most don’t look for solutions until after a hacker, virus or other problem occurs.

“Instead of reacting to disaster recovery, this is proactively working to prevent them,” Castleman said.

He also encounters resistance among information technology managers who are resistant to outsiders such as Datanode, partially out of self-preservation. But Barlow and Castleman insist their service can help, rather than always replace, a business’s in-house computer expert.

In addition to courting small- and medium-sized businesses, Datanode is talking to school districts and government agencies, which often don’t have lavish resources for network security.

With recent security breaches at big financial institutions and increasing virus and spyware attacks, most businesses are at least aware of the need for network security these days, Castleman said. Added to that is that new laws, including the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, require stricter electronic information security measures.

All that makes him optimistic that demand for the 18-year-old company’s services will continue to grow.

“This is like the perfect timing,” Castleman said.

Reporter Eric Fetters: 425-339-3453 or fetters@heraldnet.com.

Datanode LLC

Headquarters: Bothell

Number of employees: 10

Founded: 1987

Web site: www.datanode.com