Irving Work from Home Employees Configuration Consulting Company

Expanding your remote workforce can have a major effect on network architecture, security, and company workflows. Progent has 20 years of background helping SMBs to plan, deploy, manage, optimize, and debug IT environments that support work-from-home employees. Progent can assist your Irving company to pick the right technologies and follow leading practices in building and maintaining a safe virtual solution for teleworkers that promotes teamwork and delivers top value. Progent can provide support services ranging from as-needed expertise for getting you past occasional IT roadblocks to comprehensive project management to help you carry out business-critical tasks.

Progent can assist Irving, Texas organizations to with any facet of building a high-functioning work-at-home ecosystem by providing network infrastructure configuration services, IP voice expertise, video conferencing integration, collaboration platform selection and deployment, cloud connectivity, Call Desk augmentation, endpoint security, data protection solutions, and streamlined management.

Infrastructure for a Remote Workforce
Integrating the physical and software infrastructure required to support an at-home work environment can be especially complex if you must manage a mix of worker-owned equipment like desktop computers and notebooks, routers, and wireless appliances from various vendors and with a mix of operating systems and firmware levels. Progent's experience providing remote help for both outdated as well as modern IT products in remote office solutions enables you to make cost-effective use of your existing network infrastructure and provides you with ready access to expertise for implement essential upgrades. Support services offered by Progent to assist your company to create a productive work-at-home infrastructure include:

• VPN technology allows you to create a safe connection for authenticated at-home workers to use IT resources located at your company datacenter or in the cloud. Progent's consultants can assist your company to deploy and manage VPN connections between your teleworkers and your key network resources by providing remote VPN configuration support. For businesses with Cisco's ASA security appliances, Progent's Cisco-certified ASA consultants can help your at-home workers to set up Cisco's popular AnyConnect client software to provide secure VPN tunneling for a broad range of devices such as Microsoft Windows, Mac, Apple iOS, Linux, and Google Android.
• Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) products allow a telecommuter to see and interact with a data center PC's desktop. This technology provides IT managers significant control over the digital environment of telecommuters and ensures them a familiar work experience. Progent's virtual desktop consulting services include Windows Remote Desktop support and Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops expertise.
• Routers attach home computer networks to the Internet and typically support VPN connections, home Wi-Fi networks, and firewalls. Progent offers top-tier online support for deploying home routers from a variety of vendors. See router integration support from Cisco-certified consultants.
• Home Wireless networks, typically supporting the whole family and guests, are frequently used by at-home employees to access their router for work. This can create performance and security issues. Progent can help businesses to mitigate these issues by providing expertise that include Aironet configuration expertise, Cisco-certified Meraki WiFi deployment expertise, and Ubiquiti WiFi AP integration assistance.
• Internet connectivity methods impact the performance and availability of connections between at-home workers and the company network. Vital applications may demand backup Internet access in the event the primary connection fails. Progent offers guidance for selecting service providers, selecting appropriate service bundles, and integrating redundant Internet connections. Refer to Internet access solutions.

IP Voice Integration for At-Home Workers
Expanding the business PBX system to include teleworkers is vital to supporting a productive at-home workforce. A variety of cloud-centric VoIP products are used by SMBs to server teleworkers. Many enterprises depend on Cisco's modern or older products for IP voice solutions. Progent can help organizations of any size to plan or tune a remote IP voice environment that delivers the flexibility, convenience and protection needed for telecommuters. Progent's Cisco-certified CCIE Voice consultants can provide advanced support to help organizations tune their existing Cisco IP voice environments to handle a growing remote workforce.

• Cisco Unified Communications Manager (CUCM) delivers enterprise IP telephony capabilities to devices like IP phones, media processing platforms, Voice over IP gateways, and multimedia apps deployed throughout the network. CUCM manages other mixed media services such as unified messaging, voice/video conferencing, and team collaboration networks. For more information about Progent's Cisco Unified CM or CUCM expertise, see CUCM expertise.
• CallManager is Cisco's legacy call-processing software and has been replaced by Cisco Unified CM or CUCM. Progent's consultants can help you to maintain your existing CallManager environment or migrate efficiently to Cisco's modern IP telephony products. For details about Progent's support services for Cisco CallManager and Cisco's other legacy IP voice platforms, visit Cisco CallManager consulting.
• Cisco IP Gateways enable integration with public telephony networks and with users working beyond the corporate firewall like telecommuters. Progent offers expert support for Cisco's earlier generation IP gateways like the UC520, UC540 and UC560 product lines and for modern Cisco SIP gateways. See Cisco Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) gateway configuration consulting.
• Additional VoIP Platforms supported by Progent's consultants include Vonage, RingCentral and 8x8. Progent can assist you to expand your wide area network architecture to support these VoIP solutions and deliver online configuration and debugging services.

Video Conferencing for Remote Workers
A broad selection of video conferencing products from major technology companies support virtual discussions, video and voice conferencing, chat, and content sharing for both onsite users and telecommuters. Many companies use a mix of conferencing products to accommodate their various partners and clients. Progent can assist you to manage your existing conferencing environment and optimize the experience of your remote employees.

• Skype for Business is Microsoft's popular communications platform that enables real-time presence, instant messaging, voice and video conferencing plus the transparent integration of these capabilities within Office desktop and Microsoft 365 applications including PowerPoint, Word, Excel and Outlook. Progent offers the expertise of Microsoft-certified specialists who can help you to set up and maintain Skype for Business client software to support your remote employees. To learn more about Progent's support services for Skype for Business, visit Skype for Business consulting services.
• FaceTime is Apple's multiuser video calling platform for iOS and Mac devices. FaceTime runs on Wi-Fi or cellular Internet connections. Newer versions of FaceTime allow up to 32 concurrent users for voice/video sessions. For details about Progent's support expertise for Apple FaceTime, visit Progent's FaceTime configuration expertise.
• Webex Meeting Center supports remote conferencing for virtually all desktop or mobile devices. Offered via Cisco's Webex Cloud platform, Webex services include sharing granular content or computer screens, presentations that incorporate rich media such as Microsoft PowerPoint and Flash videos, network-based recording, plus editing and playback for future reference. To learn more about Progent's consulting services for Cisco Webex and for other video conferencing products from Cisco, visit Progent's Webex Meeting Center support services.
• Teams is Microsoft's next-generation replacement for Skype for Business. Teams acts as a hub for conferencing, contacts, and information with features that include video calling, persistent threaded chat, plus data sharing. For details about Progent's consulting services for Microsoft Teams and for other Microsoft 365 apps, visit Progent's Microsoft Teams consulting services.
• Additional Voice/Video Conferencing Apps supported by Progent include Google Meet, Amazon Chime, Zoom, and Slack. Progent can deliver configuration and debugging expertise for these products and assist you to tune your WAN architecture to host them.

Microsoft Integrated Collaboration Platforms for Teleworkers
Microsoft's collaboration platforms are tightly integrated with Microsoft's popular Office families, offering a powerful ecosystem of productivity apps that deliver a cohesive user experience for sharing data and ideas across a corporate network and on a wide selection of endpoints. Progent has provided remote consulting services for Microsoft SharePoint and Exchange since their initial releases and can assist your company to configure these critical collaboration products to optimize the productivity of your remote workforce.

Microsoft's collaboration platforms are tightly integrated with Microsoft's popular Office suite, providing a rich ecosystem of applications that deliver a consistent user experience for sharing information across multiple sites and on a wide variety of endpoint devices. Progent has provided remote consulting services for SharePoint and Exchange since their initial releases and can help at-home workers set up and use these flagship collaboration platforms to maximize productivity.

Microsoft Teams works with Microsoft 365 and integrates with third-party cloud services to deliver real-time collaboration. Developed as a replacement for Skype for Business Online, Microsoft Teams can support chat, video meetings with screen sharing, calling, cloud voicemail, group email, plus file and app sharing. Teams is closely integrated with Microsoft 365 and relies on Exchange Online, SharePoint Online, OneDrive for Business, and Microsoft Entra (formerly called Azure Active Directory) for delivering its complete range of features. To learn more about Progent's consulting services for Microsoft Teams and Teams Premium, see planning and configuration consulting for Microsoft Teams.

SharePoint utilizes web entities to allow collaboration and information delivery by providing policy-based access to content, workflow, and tools for looking through enterprise-wide business data. SharePoint allows you to build protected portals that enables remote workforce to see and update aggregated business intelligence by means of Wikis, Blogs, social sites, and Web Parts (Widgets). For details about Progent's SharePoint consulting expertise, refer to SharePoint configuration and development expertise.

Exchange and Exchange Online offer secure collaboration features including public folders, shared mailboxes, and shared calendars and contacts. Progent's Microsoft certified Exchange experts can show you how to activate and utilize these features for your at-home workers. To learn about Progent's Exchange support services, see integration consulting services for Exchange Server.

OneDrive is Microsoft�s collaborative cloud storage service, comparable to GoogleDrive. At-home users can save files to OneDrive, and co-workers can access them securely via a browser. Included with Office 365, OneDrive allows home workers to co-edit files. Edits made offline are uploaded when you reconnect to the Internet. To learn about Progent's support services for OneDrive, refer to Microsoft Onedrive integration experts.

Public Cloud Integration for Teleworkers
Progent offers advanced online support for enabling businesses to create, manage and optimize cohesive hybrid network models that combine internal data centers, telecommuters, branches, and public cloud resources. Progent offers expertise for all modes of cloud service including Infrastructure as a Service, Platform as a Service (PaaS), and Software as a Service. Progent can help telecommuters fix problems with public cloud connectivity, authentication, and cybersecurity.

Microsoft Azure is a popular platform for cloud software and services that enables you to utilize infrastructure, servers, and key apps hosted on Microsoft's massive cloud. Azure offers more than 100 services services such as the ability to host Windows and Linux-powered VMs, on-demand cloud storage, messaging, application development with Visual Studio, and backup/restore. Progent can assist you to deploy virtual machines on Azure Virtual Machines, integrate storage on Azure Storage services, streamline identity control with Azure AD, and design backup and recovery solutions with Azure Backup. Progent's cloud experts can also show you how to create secure access to Azure services for telecommuters by setting up and troubleshooting firewall appliances and VPN IPsec tunnels. To learn about Progent's expertise for Microsoft Azure, see Microsoft Azure expertise.

Microsoft 365, formerly branded Office 365, is Microsoft's popular suite of client productivity applications and cloud-based services available by subscription. Office applications and services are provided in a selection of plans designed for users ranging from students and households to large corporations. Progent can provide fast and easy online contact with experts knowledgeable about Microsoft 365-compatible devices running Windows, Mac, iOS, and Google Android operating systems. Progent's experts can help you to evaluate the various subscription bundles offered with Microsoft 365 and deploy 365 apps for your teleworkers in a way that delivers top business value. For information about Progent's expertise for Microsoft 365, refer to Microsoft 365 integration expertise.

Exchange Online is one of the most widely used applications in Azure-hosted Microsoft 365 product line. Exchange Online offers the advantages of lower spending for data center infrastructure, simplified management, on-demand scaling, high availability, and other advantages associated with public clouds. Microsoft has designed Microsoft 365 Exchange Online to operate seamlessly with on-premises Exchange environments, enabling you to build hybrid information systems. Progent's Exchange consultants are available for occasional assistance to get you through tough IT bottlenecks and also offer end-to-end project management services to ensure your teleworkers have convenient and safe access to your Exchange Online environment. For details Progent's support services for Microsoft 365 Exchange Online, see Microsoft 365 Exchange Online configuration and troubleshooting expertise.

Amazon Web Services (AWS) is a pioneer in the public cloud computing market and is the world's biggest provider of cloud-based services. Progent can provide rapid and affordable online contact with cloud integration consultants who can assist your organization to design, implement, maintain, and debug hybrid IT networks that incorporate Amazon AWS cloud services with local data centers and with other popular cloud platforms such as Microsoft Azure. Progent also can provide the skills of Cisco-certified CCIE networking consultants to assist your company to create a high-availability network model so your employees have a consistent computing experience regardless of whether they are working from your headquarters, a branch office, at home, or on the move. To learn about Progent's support services for Amazon AWS, go to Amazon AWS consulting services.

Google Cloud Platform (GCP) is a leading collection of public cloud services that provides Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS) and Platform-as-a-Service products. Progent's Microsoft, Linux, and Cisco experts can help your organization to expand your existing IT assets with the Google Cloud, and Progent's DBA experts can show you how to make your key apps cloud ready so your telecommuters can take full advantage of Google Cloud Platform services. Progent can help you to deploy VMs on GCP Compute Engine, design a cost-effective storage system with GCP Storage services, and simplify identity management for remote workers with Google Cloud Identity. Progent's experts can also assist you to use GCP's management tools to control and track your GCP ecosystem. For information, go to Google Cloud Platform (GCP) integration services.

Help Desk Call Center Support for Remote Workers
An emergency, company-wide switchover to a from-home business model, which could be activated by a pandemic or as an element of a disaster recovery/business continuity preparedness plan, can overstretch even a high-performing internal Help Desk. Progent's Help Desk Call Center services allow organizations of any size to outsource or supplement their Help Desk Call Center by using Progent's online Technical Response Center services.

• Progent's Standard Call Desk services leverage Progent's nationwide network of online IT support specialists combined with world-class ticketing and tracking software to offer an economical, state-of-the-art Help Desk Call Center. Progent's Standard Help Desk Services provide a comprehensive solution that handles all aspects of remote Level 1 desktop technical support from service requests through ticket generation, screen sharing, issue resolution, and reporting. A browser-based User's Service Portal enables teleworkers to monitor or revise their active trouble tickets, enter information, and append screenshots and relevant files. Support services are provided at a significant discount off Progent's ordinary Level 1 desktop service charges, and Progent offers the option of fast hand-off to Level 2 and Level 3 support specialists to deal with advanced issues. For more information, see Progent's Standard Helpdesk Services outsourcing for small and mid-size businesses.
• Progent's Help Desk Call Center Supplemental Service allows you to supplement your current Help Desk Call Center organization by sharing responsibilities for Support Desk services seamlessly between your in-house IT support organization and Progent's extensive pool of PC support technicians and subject matter experts. Progent's co-managed Help Desk service is based on a co-sourcing support model based on the number one PSA tool for handling service requests and trouble tickets, establishing ownership, tracking progress, and producing management reports. For details about how Progent's Call Center Supplementation Services can enable your company to deliver best-in-class desktop support to your telecommuters, see Progent's Call Desk augmentation Services.

Security for Telecommuters
At-home workers commonly utilize their own devices and often operate in an unsecured physical space. This situation increases their vulnerability to cyber threats and calls for judicious deployment of firewalls, AV tools, multi-factor authentication, remote monitoring, intensive end-user education, and the development of security policies built on leading practices. Progent's seasoned roster of cybersecurity solutions consultants can help you to design, configure and manage an effective cybersecurity solution that protects critical IT assets in environments that include remote workers.

Firewalls allow you to create a network that can be securely accessed by local users and by an at-home workforce, mobile employees, vendors, clients, and other stakeholders. Next-generation firewall appliances permit you to assign and manage appropriate access rights to various classes of users and to scale your IT network and adjust your security as your company evolves and as network attacks become more sophisticated. Progent supports both current and older firewall appliances from all leading manufacturers including Cisco, Palo Alto Networks, Check Point, Juniper, SonicWall and Fortinet. For more information about Progent's firewall configuration expertise, visit firewall configuration and support expertise.

Remote Endpoint Security Monitoring makes it easy to watch over the various devices utilized by at-home workers and either block or identify and respond to modern threats such as ransomware. With ProSight Active Security Monitoring (ASM) services, a lightweight software agent is installed on every protected endpoint, monitoring all activity and using advanced machine learning from SentinelOne to detect new threats on arrival. When a cyberattack is discovered, ProSight Active Security Monitoring instantly isolates the impacted device from the network to quarantine the malware. Because the ProSight Active Security Monitoring software agent is autonomous, endpoints remain protected even if they are offline. Progent is a SentinelOne Partner, dealer, and integrator. To learn more about ProSight Active Security Monitoring, go to remote endpoint monitoring for remote workers.

Progent's Duo authentication Managed Services utilize Cisco's Duo technology to protect against password theft by using two-factor authentication. Duo supports single-tap identity verification on iOS, Android, and other personal devices. With 2FA, whenever you sign into a protected application and give your password you are asked to confirm your identity on a unit that only you have and that is accessed using a separate network channel. A wide selection of out-of-band devices can be used for this added form of ID validation including a smartphone or wearable, a hardware/software token, a landline telephone, etc. You may designate multiple verification devices. For more information about ProSight Duo identity authentication services, see Duo MFA two-factor authentication (2FA) services for remote workers.

Security Audits can assess the vulnerability of your information system to all types of external and internal security threats for a network that incorporates an at-home workforce. Progent can run online, automated cybersecurity inventory scanning for quickly and affordably detecting a wide variety of security holes that can be found over the Internet. Progent's security assessment consulting services, which can be managed by data security professionals with top certifications including CISA, ISSAP, and GIAC, can assist you to audit your operations and policies and review your IT infrastructure to enable you to implement top-level protection for your telecommuters.

Horizon3.ai's NodeZero Penetration Testing Platform is a cutting-edge penetration test (pentest) product family that can deliver autonomous threat assessment of your at-home connectivity solution and your internal and perimeter networks so you can identify, rank, fix, and verify cybersecurity vulnerabilities before threat actors can take advantage of them. Progent's pentest experts can assist you to use NodeZero to carry out comprehensive pentests of your perimeter and your internal network in order to evaluate your current security posture. Progent can also help you to harden your existing network security and can help you to plan and implement a cohesive cybersecurity strategy that streamlines management and provides maximum protection for on-premises, multi-cloud, at-home, and perimeter IT resources. To learn additional information about Progent's threat assessment solutions based on on NodeZero's PEN test platform, visit Consulting Services for NodeZero's Pentest Products.

Download White Paper: Protecting a Work-From-Home Network
To read or download a white paper about critical areas to focus on for protecting an IT environment that includes work-from-home staff, click:
Securing a Work-From-Home (WFH) Network White Paper. (PDF - 2.4 MB)

Data Protection Solutions for Telecommuters
Data Protection involves backing up and recovering critical data so as to avoid data loss and reduce recovery time and effort in the event of storage system failures resulting from hardware breakdowns, software glitches, user mistakes, cyber attack, or any other reason. Dependable data protection solutions can be particularly challenging to architect and maintain in hybrid environments that incorporate local data centers, public clouds, and at-home workers.

• Backup/Recovery solutions for telecommuters must cover diverse types of user-owned endpoint devices. Progent offers quick online help from consultants familiar with a wide array of platforms for protection Windows, Apple Mac and Linux/UNIX powered servers and desktops as well as notebooks, iPads and handhelds. Popular backup/recovery products maintained by Progent's data protection experts include Barracuda Backup, Azure Backup, Symantec Backup Exec, CrashPlan, Retrospect, and Time Machine. To protect resources spread across a wide area network, Progent offers ProSight Data Protection Services, a backup/recovery service that utilizes cloud storage and features fine-grained restore and unified management capabilities.
• Disaster Recovery/Business Continuity (DR/BC) plans often envision scenarios that require a rapid changeover to a work-at-home environment. Progent's expert disaster recovery preparedness consultants and business continuity planning consultants can help you to produce, document and test a DR/BC plan that addresses the process of switching to telecommuting.

Unified Management for Remote Workers
Microsoft has renamed and reshuffled its endpoint management platforms under the name Microsoft Endpoint Manager, which encompasses Intune for cloud management of remote devices and Configuration Manager for managing local computers. Microsoft Endpoint Manager offers a centralized platform for safeguarding critical information by controlling onsite, mobile, and home-based endpoint devices.

Intune
Intune is part of Microsoft's Endpoint Management suite that also includes Configuration Manager. Intune is a cloud-based service for managing and protecting mobile devices and applications. Remote endpoint computers can be user owned or business owned. Network administrators managing the enrolled endpoint devices of at-home workers can utilize Intune to provision and authenticate applications on devices, push updates and certificates, set up policies for permission to access information and networks, manage passwords, create VPN connections, control how telecommuters share information, set up threat protection, ensure security compliance, and delete sensitive information from lost, stolen or decommissioned devices. Microsoft Intune can be used with Apple iOS, Android, Windows, and macOS/OS X devices. To find out about Microsoft Intune and how Progent can help you to use Microsoft's Endpoint Management to administer the devices of your at-home workforce, go to Intune telecommuter device management consultants.

VMware Workspace ONE
VMware Workspace ONE is a feature-rich centralized Mobile Device Management (MDM) platform that allows network managers to keep offsite endpoint devices up to date and secure. Workspace ONE uses VMware AirWatch technology for centralized endpoint management combined with VMware's Horizon virtual software delivery technology for identity control, application management, and setup management of endpoint devices. Workspace ONE runs with devices based on Windows 10, macOS, iOS, Google Android, Chrome OS, or popular distributions of Linux. VMware Workspace ONE is available by subscription as a cloud service or as an on-premises deployment through a perpetual license. Key features of Workspace ONE include rapid remote deployment of new laptops, quick onboarding of new employees, policy set up and enforcement for all classes of devices, aggregated reporting and analytics, an email encryption gateway, and integration with Microsoft applications and cloud products. For information about Progent's support services for VMware Workspace ONE, go to VMware Workspace ONE mobile device management expertise.

Contact Progent for At-Home Worker Expertise
To contact Progent about building and maintaining an efficient telecommuter solution for your Irving, Texas company, phone 1-800-993-9400 or visit Contact Progent.