Most businesses want remote locations to have full access to the company network, for seamless communication and increased productivity. Until recently, small and medium-sized businesses had only two options for creating this access: a leased-line-based wide area network (WAN), or dial-in service. Now there is a less expensive and more flexible option: Virtual Private Networks (VPNs). VPNs are affordable because they operate on a portion of the public telecommunications infrastructure rather than on leased lines. Because a VPN uses the Internet, real-time access to the network is available for the price of local Internet access. VPNs are flexible because new users can be added quickly and easily, without the configuration required to add users to a private network. As technology has evolved, VPN security has increased. VPNs use encryption and tunneling to protect confidential information as it travels over the Internet. Increasingly robust and easy-to-administer firewalls and other security measures keep hackers out of a business network. The increase in VPN popularity is good news for small and medium-sized business owners because it has increased competition among Internet Service Providers(ISPs). These companies now offer guaranteed 99% uptime, credits for outages, and other services that provide the same level of reliability as leased lines.
Small and medium-sized business use of VPNs fall into three categories:
Extended intranets: Use of a VPN for smaller branch offices, franchise sites, and remote workers provides nearly the same level of connectivity and reliability as a private network. Costs are lower, because Internet connections replace expensive leased lines. More desktops can gain access to the network, because a VPN allows new users to be added almost instantly. This extends the reach of the corporate intranet, so all employees can take advantage of its information and resources.
Remote access: VPNs provide a cost-effective alternative to standard dial-in remote access to a company network. Users can connect to the network via the Internet, eliminating expensive long-distance or toll-free dial-in costs. An employee on the road can gain full network access simply by tapping into an Internet connection. Overseas offices can connect directly to the corporate database over local lines instead of a more expensive leased line.
Extranets: Extending a corporate network to include customers, suppliers and other business partners enables workers to research products, place and fulfill orders, and collaborate via a secure Internet connection. By involving customers and suppliers, a VPN smoothes the transition to electronic commerce and other forms of online ordering and fulfillment. Because this business-to-business communication is done via the Internet, connection costs are low. It can enable productivity-boosting applications such as EDI, and streamline business processes such as ordering, shipping and billing. With a varity of SonicWALL's family of Internet security appliances which provide the first line of defense against Internet security threats. This includes a ICSA-certified, stateful packet inspection firewall, IPSec VPN for remote access, IP address management features, and support for SonicWALL value-added security services.
How will a VPN Benefit Your Business?
VPN is a reliable way to maintain your company's privacy while streamlining operations, reducing costs and allowing for flexible network administration. Our VPNs are based on Sonicwall comprehensive portfolio of VPN products, from VPN-optimized routers and firewalls to dedicated VPN concentrators. The key benefits of a Sonicwall VPN include:
Lower cost
VPNs save money because they use the Internet - not costly leased lines - to transmit information to and from authorized users. Prior to VPNs, many companies with remote offices communicated through Wide Area Networks (WANs), or by having remote workers make long distance calls to connect to the main office server. Both can be expensive propositions. WANs require establishing dedicated - and inflexible - leased lines between various business locations, which can be costly or impractical for smaller offices.
Improved communications
A VPN provides a robust level of connectivity comparable to a WAN. Remote offices, mobile employees, clients, vendors, telecommuters and even international business partners can use a VPN to access information on a company's network. This level of interconnectivity allows for a more effective flow of information between a large number of people. The VPN provides access to both extranets and wide-area intranets, which opens the door for improved client service, vendor support and company communications. Customers can order equipment over the VPN. Suppliers can check on orders electronically. Employees can collaborate on project documents.
Increased flexibility
With a VPN, customers, suppliers and remote users can be added to the network easily and quickly. Some VPN solutions simplify the process of administering the network by allowing the system's manager to implement changes from any desktop computer. Once the equipment is installed, the company simply signs up with a service provider that activates the network by giving the company a slice of its bandwidth. This is much easier than establishing a WAN, which must be designed, built and managed by the company that creates it. VPNs also easily adapt to a company's growth. These systems can connect 25 people as easily as 2,000.
Security and Reliability
VPNs maintain privacy through the use of tunneling protocols and standard security procedures. A secure VPN encrypts data before it travels through the public network and decrypts it at the receiving end. The encrypted information travels through a secure "tunnel" that connects to a company's gateway. The gateway then identifies the remote user and lets the user access only the information he or she is authorized to receive. A secure VPN can be used for the authorization of orders from suppliers, the forwarding of revised legal documents and many other confidential business processes. Recent improvements in VPN technology have also increased the system's reliability. Many service providers will guarantee 99% VPN uptime and will offer credits for unanticipated outages.
