Bringing Virtual Private Networks to Small BusinessBy: Dr. Bob Spencer Everybody knows what a VPN is, don’t they? A Virtual Private Network (VPN) is a way to connect remote users securely inside their organization’s network using security procedures (like L2TP) and data encryption to protect the network. Many small business consultants have been reluctant to take VPN solutions to their clients, because they perceived VPN implementation to be highly technical and not a service they were able to provide at reasonable margins. Well, today VPNs are becoming transparent and extremely viable for small business implementation – and an easily implemented solution for small business consultants. What a VPN DoesVirtual Private Networking has become so generic that, as a general term, it covers a wide range of computing needs. Most often, VPNs provide a secure “tunnel” by which the remote user can access data files, print reports remotely, or check electronic mail while away from the office. Originally, VPNs were not used to execute programs remotely, but now integrated with applications, such as Windows Terminal Services and Citrix; this boundary has been crossed as well.
It’s useful to distinguish between soft VPNs, which use software only to establish and maintain remote connections, while hard VPNs are created and managed by physical devices such as firewalls. The following provides best practice solutions for you to integrate into your practice. The Soft VPNSoft VPN solutions offer low or no cost alternatives to more expensive, and more complicated hard VPNs. Today, nearly all remote access software creates a VPN in order to create a remote connection. Hamachi is a great example of a soft VPN solution. Hamachi is a program that allows you to arrange remote computers into their own secure Internet based network just as if they were connected by a physical network cable. For a small business, Hamachi is an extremely cheap way to fill some basic technology needs. Hamachi is a free download and free to use. Setup time may be an hour or less, and in most cases, installations go faster as you acquire more experience.
Hamachi, and similar products, do require some technical expertise. Where there is no technical expertise, consultants should consider implementing packaged solutions, such as GoToMyPC , or Logmein. Logmein has been one of my favorites for the past few years. Reasonably priced at under $70 a year, Logmein allows users to easily connect to remote computers, and in most cases, works through a firewall securely with no technical expertise required. Logmein uses a high level data encryption to secure data traveling through cyberspace and is extremely reliable.
For Small Business consultants, I recommend they also try Logmein Reach, which allows consultants to manage & monitor client systems and servers remotely. Logmein Rescue allows consultants to connect to and support remote users without pre-installed software. This is called invitation to support. You can do more for your clients without having to leave your office and lose valuable billable time traveling.
Intuit’s QuickBooks Premier Accountant’s Edition has offered this service via an arrangement with WebEx for several years, yet less than five percent of my seminar attendees are even aware that the feature is available. (Click on Accountant and Remote Access to find out more. And, the first 12 months are free.) QuickBooks Remote Access works very similar to Logmein and GoToMyPC, and there is a premium plan that allows you to manage any workstation application, not just QuickBooks. Virtual Network ConnectorsFinally, for those with slightly more technical expertise (but no pocket protector), there are Virtual Network Connectors (VNC.) VNC is the technology upon which VPNs are created with and it is free for downloading. Use of VNC requires you to know certain technical information, such as open port addresses on firewall, IP network addresses, and system passwords for setup.
There are three major players in the VNC world and each has their own set of features. VNC solutions not only support remote connection for remote file and printer access, but allow you to monitor and manage remote workstations as well. For more information on free VNC solutions, visit http://www.realvnc.com/, http://www.tightvnc.com/, and http://ultravnc.sourceforge.net/ The Hard VPNBy hard, we do not mean hard to setup, but hard as in part of a physical device, usually a Firewall. Technically, all VPN solutions reside on hardware, as in servers and workstations, but here we are talking about VPN appliances (specialized boxes) and Firewall devices with VPN services built-in. Here are two of my favorites, but remember that Dlink, NetGear, and LinkSys all have similar solutions.
3Com has the OfficeConnect® VPN Firewall model 3CR870-95 designed for small businesses with multiple sites and remote workers. The 3Com® OfficeConnect® VPN Firewall can initiate and terminate up to 50 simultaneous VPNs for both site-to-site and user-to-site communication. The VPN Firewall allows up to 253 users to share secure access to the Internet through a single broadband connection. Starting at around $320, this small VPN Firewall is easy to setup and virtually no maintenance is required.
SonicWALL, http://www.sonicwall.com/, is one of the most highly respected vendors of Firewall and VPN appliances on the market. From small to large businesses, SonicWALL offers a complete product line. The nice thing about SonicWALL is that the small business consultants do not have to buy from a distributor, who often require minimal volume purchases to qualify, but can purchase units in quantities as small as one directly or via resellers, and then charge implementation and maintenance fees directly to the client. This is great for small business consultants because, as we all know, the real profit is in the service, not the hardware. SonicWALL solutions start with the SonicWALL TZ 170 for as low as $299. The Non-VPN VPNThere are a few VPN like solutions which allow for remote access, such as Windows XP Professional Remote Access. These solutions work well, but in a large professional computer environment, I am not comfortable with the level of security they provide.
True VPNs offer high levels of data and network security. The amount of security is tied directly to the cost of the hardware, software and implementation fees. More secure equals more costs – no cost equals no security. Even soft VNC VPNs described above require the implementer to add the protection during the installation by setting parameters. Setting up VPNs for Your ClientsFor very small entry-level businesses, implementation fees may begin around $300 and go up, depending on the number of users being setup and complexity. On average, a small VPN can be initiated in an hour or two. Once the initial unit is set up, the process is replicated on each machine accessing the VPN. This means margins improve as the number of users increase.
Everyone is concerned about data protection. Small businesses need security as much as large ones. As a trusted advisor, you are in a unique position to provide these services, and the more VPN installations you do, the faster you become. This means profit margins improve and clients are happy. I love happy clients! |
