Remote Access Management, Tools, and Systems

Managing a user’s remote access devices requires the same tools as managing network devices. The distinction is with the connection to the remote users’ laptops or desktops. While the end user is connected through a VPN tunnel into the corporate network, there is no distinction in management tools. Meanwhile, on the corporate network all the same access management tools and systems are in use.

The challenge occurs when the user cannot connect to the corporate network. How do you provide support in a secure manner? The answer is, it depends. The most common method is for the corporate help desk to securely remote into the user’s remote laptop or desktop. Two conditions have to exist for this approach to work:

1. The end user’s laptop or desktop must be functional to allow the end user to access the device; in other words, the problem is with the VPN connection and not the device.

2. The device must have Internet connectivity.

When both these conditions are met, the IT help desk has software available or preinstalled on the end user’s machine to allow for secure remote access by the IT help desk. A number of products and services provide this type of support, such as “RemoteToPC” and “FixMe.IT.” The basic idea behind this type of software and service is to use the Internet as an alternative connection to the remote computer. The connection is still encrypted and typically requires the remote user to grant permission to the device. Once the IT help desk has the access, they repair any configuration problems, including resetting passwords or reloading certificates needed to establish the normal VPN connection to the corporate network.

Corporate IT help desk for remote users’ personal phones tend to be more complicated. If the phone problem cannot be quickly resolved, a common approach is to simply reinstall the phone applications.