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      Preparing Your Corporate Network for Emergency Remote Work: Bandwidth, VPNs, Security and Notes for INAP Customers


      The global spread of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) has organizations large and small readying their office-based staff for temporary remote work. While it’s a wise move for achieving containment, this isn’t as easy as an email sending everyone home for two weeks. Many infrastructure and networking considerations must be accounted and planned for, not the least of which is additional bandwidth to ensure steady application performance.

      In a snap poll by Gartner, 54 percent of HR leaders indicated that poor technology and/or infrastructure for remote working is the biggest barrier to an effective work from home model. IT leaders play an essential role in abating that concern and making any telework policy a success.

      With that in mind, what are the top networking and security considerations for remote work?

      Check out the brief network FAQ below for the most essential points.

      How can I determine if my company needs additional bandwidth?

      Start by looking at your applications. What applications do workers need to effectively do their jobs? How and how often are these applications accessed?

      Good news: If the application is already hosted in the cloud via platform as a service (PaaS) or software as a service (SaaS), you may not have an issue. Workers using Office 365, for example, will still be able to access their important documents and communicate effectively with their teammates via related workflow tools like Microsoft Teams. But even if an application isn’t in the cloud, if workers are on a remote desktop program, the heavy lifting is done in the data center and won’t affect your network.

      Additional bandwidth may be needed if your organization runs frequently used, resource-hungry applications over the corporate network. Common examples are file share systems or home-grown apps that involve rich media or large data sets, like CAD software or business intelligence tools. Access to these will require a VPN, which in turn may require greater bandwidth. (See below) The net amount of new bandwidth needed will be determined by application access and traffic patterns.

      What considerations need to be made to support a greater number of VPN users?

      First, review your license capacity. VPNs are typically licensed per concurrent user. For example, an organization might choose a license for 50 users because the number of remote workers at one time would rarely if ever exceed the cap. With emergency plans, however, that number might suddenly jump to 250.

      Next, look at hardware specs. Firewalls have different capacities for hardware performance. They also have a hard number of users than be supported from a VPN. Check with your VPN provider to make adjustments.

      There are also hardware limits for how many users a VPN can handle. For instance, a new firewall license may be needed if your current limits are insufficient. To update the license, you would need to make a call to your firewall provider to update the number of seats.

      What recommendations should companies make for worker’s home connections?

      The biggest roadblock to smooth remote network connectivity may be largely outside IT’s control: Your end user’s home internet service. In this case, preparation is key. Before a mass migration to remote work, test a representative sample of current remote users’ access to applications to see where you might run into performance bottlenecks. If some employees don’t have access to high-speed internet, discuss business continuity contingencies with senior leadership. Can the company reimburse users for upgrades? If not, how can critical work be done offline?

      What security measures should be considered with sizeable move to remote work?

      While the VPN will provide a secure connection, two-factor authentication ensures the remote users are who they say they are. You should also configure your system to prohibit file storage on users’ home devices, and if possible, prevent VPN access to employees’ home devices altogether by providing company owned endpoints.

      For optimal network security, configure your VPN to prevent split tunneling, which allows for some traffic to route over the protected network and other traffic (such as streaming and web browsing) through the public internet. While this will make all endpoints more secure, preventing split tunneling will require more bandwidth.

      I’m an INAP customer and need more bandwidth. What’s the process?

      If you’re a current INAP customer and already have bandwidth with us, you can check your IP usage here. If needed, you can adjust your commit or your cap limit, depending on how your circuit is set up. Increasing your commits is easy as long as there are no physical changes being made.

      If you have a cap configuration, changes to the rate limit are also simple to make via a logical configuration. While you can remove the cap or increasing the rate limit, be cautioned that this isn’t the most fiscally beneficial move to make, as making a commit will get you a better price.

      If you need to change the physical network topology, such as making a move from a 1 GB to a 10 GB circuit, the process will take additional time. Contact INAP support or your account rep to start the discussion.

      Finally, if you’re an INAP Colocation customer and won’t be able to directly manage your environment at the data center, contact us for adding 24/7 remote hands support.

      I’m looking for a new high-performance bandwidth service. How can I get started?

      Our multi-homed bandwidth service, Performance IP®, is powered by our proprietary route optimization engine, which ensures your outbound traffic reaches end users along the lowest latency path.

      If you’re already collocated in one of INAP’s 100 Global POPs, the turnaround for a cross connect is typically achieved in 1-2 weeks. If a remote connection to your data center is required, contact us for a complimentary solution design consultation.

      Click here to check out our locations or chat now to get started.

      Interested in learning more?

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      Contributor: Paul Just, INAP Solution Engineer

      Laura Vietmeyer


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      The Flagship Series: INAP Data Centers


      Check out the complete list of blog posts on INAP’s flagship data centers and their surrounding markets:

      The Flagship Series: New York & New Jersey Data Center Market Overview

      The New York city metro area—the largest in the U.S.— requires a robust data center market to readily deliver service to 20.1 million people living in the area. INAP has seven data centers and points of presence in the New York/New Jersey metro area, with our flagship facility located in Secaucus, N.J., at 1 Enterprise Avenue. The 101,000 square-foot flagship data center is designed with Tier 3 compliant attributes and offers high-density configurations including cages, cabinets and suites.

      Learn more >

      The Flagship Series: INAP Dallas Data Centers

      Dallas is one of the top three data center markets in the U.S. And with favorable business taxes, low power costs, low risk for disasters and the availability of trained professionals, it’s no wonder why this market is so popular. Our INAP data centers in Dallas are strategically positioned to leverage the benefits of the region and to offer customers the connectivity they desire.

      Learn more >

      The Flagship Series: INAP Boston Data Center and POPs

      Boston is the east coast hub for colocation. Home to some of the nation’s most prestigious universities and at the forefront of research and development in a number of growing industries, Boston is a market for companies looking to colocate close to their users. Our Boston-area flagship is strategically located 10 minutes from downtown and Logan International Airport, outside of flood plains and seismic zones to help give you extra peace of mind.

      Learn more >

      The Flagship Series: INAP Atlanta Data Center Market Overview

      Atlanta is the southeastern data center hub and ranks in the top five markets for bandwidth access. Our Atlanta Data Centers—one located downtown and the other on the perimeter of the city—offer a reliable, high-performing backbone connection to Washington, D.C. and Dallas through our private fiber. INAP customers in these flagship data centers avoid single points of failure with our high-capacity metro network rings.

      Learn more >

      The Flagship Series: INAP Los Angeles Data Centers

      The Los Angeles data center market is in high demand. INAP has six data centers and points of presence in the Los Angeles metro area, with our flagship facility located in Redondo Beach at 3690 Redondo Beach Avenue. The 105,000 square-foot data center is designed with Tier 3 compliant attributes and offers high-density configurations including cages, cabinets and suites.

      Learn more >

      The Flagship Series: INAP Phoenix Data Centers

      Phoenix, Arizona’s data center market is among the fastest growing in the country, and favorable conditions indicate the boom will not slow down anytime soon. Located in the southeast sector of the Phoenix metro, INAP’s Chandler, Arizona, facility at 2500 W Frye Rd, is the most recent Tier 3-design data center to enter our portfolio of Flagships. Considering Phoenix data centers for a colocation, network or cloud solution? There are several reasons why we’re confident you’ll call INAP your future partner.

      Learn more >

      Laura Vietmeyer


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      INAP Executive Spotlight: Roberto Montesi, Vice President of Sales & Operations, International


      In the INAP Executive Spotlight series, we interview senior leaders across the organization, hearing candid reflections about their careers, what they love about their work and big lessons learned along the way.

      Next in the series is Roberto Montesi, Vice President of Sales & Operations, International for INAP. He also oversees international facilities, as well as web and VPS hosting provider, Funio, an INAP company.

      In our conversation, Montesi discussed what he loves about his role at INAP, his passion for life-long learning and why Montreal is a strong market for INAP’s business. Read on to learn about these topics and more.

      The interview has been lightly edited for clarity and length.

      Tell us about your education and career path. Did you take any detours to get where you are today?

      Technology and IT have been a part of my life since a very young age. I would jump at the opportunity to go help someone having desktop computer problems, so it makes sense that my first part time job was in technical support at a call center. As my career progressed, I took on leadership roles quickly, as my enthusiasm for the job would get noticed. These leadership roles have allowed me to spread my passion for this work and have my employees perform amazing customer service.

      After a few years managing technical teams, I decided to continue my career in management, but focused on touching multiple departments, including retention, sales, dispatch center, finance and collections. At the same time, I decided to also invest in revenue properties and start a restaurant with a couple of business partners. But those stories would lead us way off track. After a few years of managing and building call centers, I decided to go back into technology at iWeb Technologies, Inc. The smaller sized company allowed me to get to know everyone quickly, and I was excited to go back to managing a team of highly technical CSR.

      After a few years of building up the team and center of expertise, my passion for our products grew—specifically, colocation. I look at it as similar to owning property and leasing an apartment, except we lease space and power. At that time, during a re-organization, the sales team and collections team were reporting to me temporarily while we hired a new director. Once he was in place, he proposed that I move on to the sales organization as a senior account manager, focusing on our top customers. From there, after the INAP acquisition, I am now leading the International teams.

      Where are you seeing the most momentum and opportunities within the international business unit this year?

      We have seen some great breakthroughs in Montreal with VFX, and our new London Region for Cloud and Colocation has helped to build traction on pipeline growth. The gaming sector is also still very attractive to us, as is Ad Tech.

      What’s a typical day like for you?

      Since I oversee sales and operations for our international markets, I would say no two days are the same. In operations, we find ourselves reacting to plans that need to be either moved up faster or delayed to prioritize something else. On the sales side, my days start by looking at the forecast and pipeline to see where the team might need my support. My one-on-ones planned with my team members are crucial to help me organize my future schedule around their needs.

      What do you enjoy most about your role at INAP? What do you think is the best part about being in the data center and cloud industry?

      I have been a part of the company for 11 years, and what keeps me on board and engaged are the customers. Seeing how we support customers as they grow and meet their objectives is what makes me love my job. Also, the amount of technical learning I get on data centers, solutions, network and future technology. Why wouldn’t you want to be working for us?

      With the roles you’ve held at INAP and iWeb, what have been the most exciting changes over the years? What’s been a constant – something you’re glad has stayed the same?

      Having worked for three very different CEOs, it’s great to see Pete looking outside the box on strategy. He wants to grow the company and brings many ideas to the table while surrounding himself with a great executive team of people he trusts. I think we are well positioned to hit our targets and keep growing the company. On the operations side, we execute well. I’m happy to see leaders staying on with us over five or more years, still working hard to ensure we deliver to our customers. Without a great operations team, it would be hard to be the provider so many customers trust.

      Out of the qualities you possess, which do you think has had the greatest influence on your success?

      Again, my hunger to learn more and never back down from a challenge. To have the trust of so many in the company and being allowed to lead such an important part of the business, it’s an amazing feeling. But I do have to say I love winning a new customer. That feeling of beating your competitors never gets old.

      You’re based in Montreal, a city that loves to tout its bona fides as major Canadian tech hub. Why do you think it’s an ideal market for our industry?

      Montreal/Canada has a great relationship with the U.S. It’s an easy extension for any American to come up to Montreal and have access to so much great talent in our industry. I can say that data centers are growing fast here because of the very low cost on power and land taxes, but also the colder temperatures that permit us to run free cooling up to 10 months a year. We also have fiber rich density coming up from Ashburn and Europe. This makes us a great location for customers looking for Edge locations.

      What are some of the big lessons you’ve learned in your career?

      Surround yourself with great leaders who understand ownership. We are all interdependent to make this a successful journey while we are here. Don’t try to do it alone. It doesn’t scale. And lastly listen to your managers and other executives, they are my mentors even if they don’t know it.

      Laura Vietmeyer


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