|
WORKING FROM HOME
Working from home offers businesses productivity gains, thanks to the greater flexibility enjoyed by staff. In addition, a home-working capability can help businesses to maintain levels of service in the event of unforeseen circumstances, such as illness, strike, etc... However, home-working is a source of complexity when it comes to workstation management, as some people will need access to laptops in order to use in-house applications. Home-working also represents an additional security risk if staff are allowed to log on to the company network from a home computer which, by its nature, cannot be relied on and is beyond the company's control. Workstation virtualization offers a very attractive alternative to meet the challenges posed by these two situations. Just as it is possible to connect to a virtual PC via a thin client from within the company, it is equally easy to connect to a virtual PC from outside, so long as a connection is available; every home computer contains a thin client (available in all issue of Windows) and a web browser. Using a secure access solution such as SSL VPN, companies can offer their staff an easy-to-use access to the company network (via a browser), then restrict the data flows to only those required for the display forwarding needed to access a virtual PC. This means that the user is able to work in exactly the same way as if s/he was on the company premises, and all data remains confined between the servers and the virtual PC. There is no possible way that data can leak directly between a virtual PC and the user's home computer. |
