Atlanta Remote Workforce Configuration Support Partner

Expanding your remote workforce can have a major impact on IT infrastructure, security/compliance, and corporate workflows. Progent has two decades of background helping SMBs to design, configure, manage, optimize, and debug IT environments that support at-home workers. Progent can assist your Atlanta company to select the appropriate technologies and adhere to best practices in building and operating a secure virtual office solution for telecommuters that promotes teamwork and delivers top business value. Progent offers support services ranging from on demand guidance for getting you over occasional IT roadblocks to comprehensive project management to help you carry out business-critical tasks.

Progent's consultants can assist Atlanta, Georgia companies to succeed with any aspect of building a high-performing work-at-home environment by providing infrastructure configuration services, IP voice troubleshooting, video conferencing support, collaboration platform selection and deployment, cloud connectivity, helpdesk services, cybersecurity, backup/restore solutions, and centralized management.

Network Infrastructure for Teleworkers
Configuring the network infrastructure required to support an at-home workforce can be particularly complicated if you have to manage a mix of worker-owned equipment like PCs and laptops, Internet routers, and Wi-Fi appliances from different manufacturers and with a variety of OS software and firmware levels. Progent's background delivering online help for both outdated as well as modern IT products in remote office solutions enables you to make cost-effective use of your available infrastructure and offers fast access to top-tire consultants for making necessary upgrades. Support services available from Progent to help your company to create a productive telecommuting ecosystem include:

• Virtual Private Network (VPN) connectivity allows you to create a safe tunnel for authenticated remote workers to use IT assets situated at your company data center or in a public cloud. Progent's consultants can assist you to configure and manage VPN access between your teleworkers and your key network resources by providing online VPN integration support. For businesses with Cisco's ASA security appliances, Progent's Cisco ASA consultants can help your telecommuters to utilize Cisco's AnyConnect client software to provide secure VPN tunneling for a broad selection of devices including Windows, Mac, iOS, Linux, and Android.
• Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) products enable an at-home worker to see and use a data center PC's desktop. This provides network managers substantial control over the computing environment of telecommuters and offers them a consistent and more productive work experience. Progent's VDI services include Windows Remote Desktop integration and Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops VDI consulting.
• Routers connect home networks to the Internet and typically support VPN tunnels, home wireless networks, and firewalls. Progent can provide expert remote support for setting up home routers from all major manufacturers. See router integration services from Cisco-certified consultants.
• Home Wireless networks, typically shared by the whole family and guests, are commonly used by at-home employees to connect to their Internet router for work. This can cause performance as well as security issues. Progent can assist businesses to resolve these problems by delivering expertise that include Cisco Aironet integration expertise, Cisco Meraki WiFi deployment expertise, and Ubiquiti Unifi wireless access point integration assistance.
• Internet access methods impact the speed and reliability of connections between telecommuters and the company data center. Vital applications might demand redundant Internet connections in the event the normal connection fails. Progent can provide expertise for identifying Internet service providers, selecting appropriate service packages, and setting up fault-tolerant Internet access. See Internet connectivity integration services.

IP Voice Solutions for At-Home Workers
Extending the corporate phone system to include teleworkers is critical to maintaining an effective at-home workforce. A variety of cloud-centric IP voice platforms are popular with SMBs to support telecommuters. Many enterprises depend on Cisco's current or legacy products for IP voice solutions. Progent can assist businesses of any size to plan or tune a telecommuter IP voice environment that provides the versatility, transparency and security needed for at-home workers. Progent's Cisco-certified CCIE Voice experts offer advanced support to assist businesses optimize their current Cisco VoIP systems to handle a growing remote workforce.

• Cisco Unified Communications Manager (Cisco Unified CM) delivers enterprise telephony capabilities to devices such as VoIP phones, media processing products, Voice over IP gateways, and multimedia applications used across the network. Unified Communications Manager manages other combined media services such as messaging, video conferencing, and team collaboration networks. For details about Progent's Unified Communications Manager support, see Cisco Unified CM expertise.
• CallManager is Cisco's earlier call-processing agent and has been replaced by CUCM. Progent can help your company to maintain your existing CallManager deployment or upgrade efficiently to Cisco's modern IP telephony products. To find out about Progent's expertise for CallManager and Cisco's other older IP voice products, visit CallManager expertise.
• Cisco IP Gateways provide integration with PSTN networks and with users working beyond the corporate perimeter like telecommuters. Progent can provide consulting expertise for Cisco's legacy IP gateways such as the UC520, UC540 and UC560 products as well as for modern Cisco SIP gateways. See Cisco Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) gateway configuration consulting.
• Additional VoIP Platforms supported by Progent include Vonage, Intermedia Unite and 8x8. Progent can assist you to enhance your wide area network infrastructure to support these VoIP solutions and deliver as-needed integration and debugging services.

Video Conferencing for Teleworkers
A broad selection of video conferencing products from major technology companies enable online discussions, video and voice conferencing, chat sessions, and content sharing for both local users and at-home workers. Many organizations use multiple conferencing products to accommodate their various partners and clients. Progent's communications experts can help your organization to maintain your existing conferencing environment and optimize the productivity of your at-home employees.

• Skype for Business is Microsoft's popular unified communications platform that enables real-time presence, instant messaging, voice and video calling and conferencing plus the seamless integration of these capabilities within Office desktop and Microsoft 365 productivity software such as PowerPoint, Word, Excel and Outlook. Progent offers the skills of Microsoft-certified specialists who can help you to set up and maintain Skype for Business client software to accommodate your remote workforce. For details about Progent's consulting expertise for Skype for Business, visit Skype for Business integration experts.
• FaceTime is Apple's group video phone platform for iOS and macOS devices. FaceTime runs over Wi-Fi or cellular Internet connections. Current versions of FaceTime allow as many as 32 simultaneous users for voice/video sessions. To learn more about Progent's consulting expertise for Apple FaceTime, see Progent's FaceTime configuration expertise.
• Webex Meeting Center supports remote conferencing for most computing devices. Offered through Cisco's Webex Cloud, Webex capabilities include sharing granular content or computer screens, presentations that embed rich media such as Microsoft PowerPoint, session recording, plus revision and playback for future reference. To learn more about Progent's support expertise for Webex and for additional IP video products from Cisco, see Progent's Webex Meeting Center support services.
• Teams is Microsoft's next-generation replacement for Skype for Business. Teams acts as a hub for conversations, contacts, and information with features such as video calling, threaded chat, plus file sharing. To learn more about Progent's support expertise for Teams as well as for other Microsoft 365 apps, refer to Progent's Microsoft Teams consulting services.
• Additional Voice/Video Conferencing Apps supported by Progent's conferencing experts include Google Meet, Amazon Chime, Zoom, and Slack. Progent can deliver integration and debugging expertise for these conferencing platforms and help you to optimize your WAN architecture to host them.

Microsoft Integrated Collaboration Software for Remote and Hybrid Workers
Microsoft's collaboration platforms are tightly integrated with Microsoft's familiar Office and Microsoft 365 families, offering a powerful environment of productivity apps that create a cohesive user experience for exchanging information across a corporate network and on a broad selection of endpoint devices. Progent has provided online consulting services for Microsoft SharePoint and Exchange Server since their initial publication and can assist your company to deploy these critical collaboration platforms to optimize the productivity of your at-home workers.

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 supports third-party cloud services to deliver real-time collaboration and communication. Developed as a substitute for Skype for Business Online, Microsoft Teams and Teams Premium can support chat, audio/video meetings with screen sharing, calling, cloud voicemail, group email, as well as file and app sharing. Teams is tightly integrated with Microsoft 365 and relies on Exchange Online, SharePoint Online, OneDrive for Business, and Microsoft Entra (formerly branded Azure Active Directory) for delivering its full range of features. For details about Progent's consulting services for Microsoft Teams and Teams Premium, visit solution design and deployment consulting for Microsoft Teams and Teams Premium.

SharePoint utilizes web entities to promote collaboration and knowledge sharing by offering policy-based delivery of content, business processes, and utilities for looking through company-wide business data. SharePoint permits you to create secure portals that allows remote workforce to see and update aggregated corporate intelligence by means of Wikis, Blogs, social sites, and Web Parts. To learn about Progent's SharePoint consulting services, see SharePoint integration and application 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 find out about Progent's Exchange expertise, refer to deployment consulting services for Microsoft Exchange Server.

OneDrive is Microsoft�s shared cloud file hosting and synchronization service, comparable to GoogleDrive. At-home users can store files to the OneDrive service, and colleagues anywhere can share them securely via a browser. Included with Office 365, OneDrive allows at-home workers to jointly author documents. Revisions created offline are automatically synced when you go back online. To find out about Progent's support services for OneDrive, visit Microsoft Onedrive configuration consulting.

Cloud Integration for At-Home Workers
Progent offers fast and affordable remote support for helping businesses to create, manage and optimize cohesive hybrid network architectures that include internal data centers, at-home workers, branches, plus cloud services. Progent offers expertise for all modes of cloud service such as Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS), Platform as a Service (PaaS), and Software as a Service. Progent can help teleworkers fix problems with cloud connectivity, authentication, and cybersecurity.

Azure is a leading family of public cloud software and services that enables you to use IT infrastructure, servers, and key applications hosted on Microsoft's massive cloud. Microsoft Azure features over one hundred cloud-based services such as the ability to host Windows and Linux-powered virtual machines, on-demand cloud storage, messaging, application development with Visual Studio, and backup/restore. Progent can assist you to deploy VMs on Azure Virtual Machines, configure cloud-based storage on Azure Storage services, streamline identity management with Azure Active Directory, and plan backup and restore solutions with Azure Backup. Progent's cloud experts can also help you create protected access to Azure services for at-home workers by setting up and debugging firewalls and VPN IPsec tunnels. For details about Progent's consulting services for Azure, go to Azure consulting services.

Microsoft 365, previously branded Office 365, is Microsoft's growing family of client productivity applications and cloud-based services available by subscription. Office apps and cloud services are marketed in a variety of plans designed for customers ranging from individuals and households to major enterprises. Progent offers quick and affordable remote contact with consultants familiar with Microsoft 365-compatible client devices running Windows, Mac, iOS, and Google Android operating systems. Progent can assist you to evaluate the numerous subscription bundles offered with Microsoft 365 and deploy 365 applications for your telecommuters to achieve maximum business value. To learn about Progent's consulting services for Microsoft 365, visit Microsoft 365 consulting services.

Microsoft 365 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, easier management, dynamic scaling, high availability, and other benefits inherent with public clouds. Microsoft has engineered Microsoft 365 Exchange Online to run seamlessly with local Exchange environments, allowing customers to build hybrid information systems. Progent's Exchange consultants are available for as-needed help to guide you past challenging IT bottlenecks and also offer comprehensive project management services to ensure your at-home workers have convenient and secure access to your Exchange Online environment. For information Progent's consulting expertise for Exchange Online, see Microsoft 365 Exchange Online configuration and troubleshooting consulting.

Amazon AWS is a pioneer in the public cloud computing arena and is the industry's biggest source of cloud services. Progent can provide rapid and affordable online contact with cloud integration consultants who can help your organization to design, implement, maintain, and troubleshoot hybrid information networks that incorporate Amazon AWS cloud-based services with local data centers and with other public clouds such as Microsoft Azure. Progent also offers access to Cisco-certified CCIE networking experts to help you to build a high-uptime network architecture to make sure your users have a productive computing environment whether they are working from your main office, a branch office, at home, or on the road. To find out about Progent's expertise for Amazon AWS, refer to Amazon AWS integration expertise.

Google Cloud Platform (GCP) is a popular collection of cloud computing services that provides Infrastructure-as-a-Service and Platform-as-a-Service products. Progent's certified Microsoft, Linux, and Cisco consulting experts can help you to scale your existing IT assets with the Google Cloud, and Progent's database consultants can show you how to make your critical applications cloud ready so your teleworkers can benefit fully from Google Cloud Platform services. Progent's consultants can assist your organization to deploy virtual machines on Google Cloud Compute Engine, plan a cost-effective storage solution with Google Cloud Storage services, and simplify identity control for teleworkers with Google Cloud Identity services. Progent's experts can also assist you to use GCP's management tools to control and monitor your GCP environment. To learn, go to Google Cloud Platform consulting support.

Help Desk Support for Remote Workers
A sudden, enterprise-wide switchover to a teleworker workforce, which might be driven by an epidemic or as an element of a disaster recovery/business continuity process, can overwhelm even the most efficient in-house Support Desk. Progent's Help Desk Call Center services make it possible for organizations of any size to outsource or expand their Help Desk Call Center with Progent's online Technical Response Center (TRC) services.

• Progent's Standard Help Desk Call Center support services utilize Progent's nationwide team of online technical support specialists along with world-class trouble ticketing and tracking technology to offer an affordable, state-of-the-art Call Center. Progent's Standard Help Desk Services provide a comprehensive solution that handles all facets of remote Level 1 desktop technical support from initial service requests through ticket generation, screen sharing, problem resolution, and reporting. A web-based User's Service Portal enables teleworkers to check or update their active tickets, add information, and upload screen captures or relevant files. Desktop support services are delivered at a substantial price reduction off Progent's ordinary Level 1 desktop support charges, and Progent offers optional rapid escalation to Level 2 and Level 3 IT specialists to resolve advanced problems. To learn more, go to Progent's Standard Helpdesk Services for small businesses.
• Progent's Help Desk Augmentation Service allows you to augment your existing Support Desk team by splitting responsibilities for Help Desk support seamlessly between your regular IT support staff and Progent's nationwide pool of PC support technicians and subject matter specialists. Progent's co-managed Call Desk service uses a co-sourcing support model based on the leading PSA platform for managing help requests and trouble tickets, establishing ownership, tracking progress, and generating management reports. For information about how Progent's Support Desk Augmentation Services can enable your company to provide best-in-class technical support to your from-home workers, see Progent's Help Desk augmentation Services.

Security and Compliance for Teleworkers
Work-from-Home workers typically utilize their own computers and often work in a poorly secured physical environment. This multiplies their susceptibility to cyber threats and calls for careful configuration of corporate firewalls, AV tools, multi-factor authentication, remote endpoint monitoring, intensive user training, and the development of security policies built on leading practices. Progent's seasoned group of IT security solutions consultants can assist your business to design, deploy and manage an effective cybersecurity solution that protects vital information assets in networks that include remote workers.

Firewalls allow companies to create a network that can be securely utilized by local users as well as by an at-home workforce, mobile users, vendors, clients, and other stakeholders. Next-generation firewall appliances permit you to configure and manage appropriate access rights to different classes of users and to expand your IT network and modify your cybersecurity posture as your business evolves and as network attacks become more sophisticated. Progent supports both current and older security appliances from all leading vendors like Cisco, Palo Alto Networks, WatchGuard, Juniper, SonicWall and Fortinet. For more information about Progent's firewall integration services, see firewall integration and support services.

Online Endpoint Security Monitoring makes it easy to watch over the disparate devices used by an at-home workforce and either block or spot and mitigate modern cyber attacks like ransomware. With ProSight Active Security Monitoring services, a small-footprint agent is put on every protected endpoint, monitoring all activity and using state-of-the-art machine learning from SentinelOne to detect zero-day attacks on arrival. When an attack is discovered, ProSight ASM instantly disconnects the impacted endpoint from the network to quarantine the threat. Because the ProSight Active Security Monitoring software agent is autonomous, endpoint devices stay secure even if they are disconnected from the Internet. Progent is a SentinelOne Partner, reseller, and integrator. For details about ProSight ASM, see remote endpoint security monitoring for at-home workers.

Progent's Duo authentication Managed Services incorporate Cisco's Duo technology to defend against password theft by using two-factor authentication. Duo enables one-tap identity verification on iOS, Android, and other personal devices. Using Duo 2FA, whenever you log into a secured online account and give your password you are requested to confirm who you are on a device that only you have and that uses a separate network channel. A wide selection of devices can be used as this added means of ID validation including a smartphone or wearable, a hardware/software token, a landline telephone, etc. You can designate several verification devices. To find out more about Duo identity validation services, refer to Duo MFA two-factor authentication (2FA) services for at-home workers.

Security Audits can assess the vulnerability of your information system to all classes of outside and internal security threats for a network that includes remote workers. Progent can deploy remote, automated security inventory software for quickly and economically detecting a wide variety of security weaknesses that can be found via the Internet. Progent's endpoint security assessment consulting services, which can be provided by data security professionals with advanced credentials such as CISM, CISSP, and GIAC, can help your business to evaluate your operations and governance policies and assess your network infrastructure to allow you to implement the highest level of protection for your remote workers.

Horizon3.ai's NodeZero Penetration Testing Platform is a breakthrough penetration test (pentest) product family that can deliver automated testing of your at-home connectivity solution and your internal and perimeter networks so you can expose, prioritize, fix, and confirm cybersecurity vulnerabilities before malicious hackers can take advantage of them. Progent's pentest experts can help you to deploy NodeZero to carry out comprehensive penetration tests of your perimeter and your internal IT infrastructure in order to evaluate your current security profile. Progent's NodeZero experts can also help you to strengthen your network security and can help you to design and deploy a cohesive cybersecurity ecosystem that simplifies management and delivers optimum protection for on-prem, multi-cloud, remote, and perimeter IT assets. To learn more details about Progent's threat analysis services powered by on NodeZero's penetration test platform, refer to Consulting Services for NodeZero's PEN Test Platform.

Download White Paper: Protecting a Work-From-Home (WFH) Network
To view or download a white paper about key areas to concentrate on for securing a network that supports work-from-home staff, click:
Protecting a Work-From-Home (WFH) Environment White Paper. (PDF - 2.4 MB)

Data Protection Solutions for At-Home Workers
The field of Data Protection involves backing up and restoring vital information so as to prevent data loss and reduce recovery time in the event of storage problems due to hardware issues, software glitches, human error, cyber attack, or any other reason. Reliable data protection solutions can be particularly difficult to design and maintain in hybrid environments that incorporate local data centers, public clouds, and at-home workers.

• Backup/Recovery solutions for telecommuters must address multiple kinds of user-owned endpoint devices. Progent offers quick remote access to experts familiar with a broad range of products for backing up Windows, Apple and Linux/UNIX powered servers and desktops as well as notebooks, tablets and smartphones. Leading backup/recovery solutions maintained by Progent's data protection consultants include Barracuda Backup, Azure Backup, Symantec Backup Exec, CrashPlan, Mozy, and Time Machine. To protect resources distributed throughout a hybrid network, Progent can provide ProSight Data Protection Services, a managed backup/recovery subscription service that uses cloud-based storage and includes granular restore and unified management capabilities.
• Disaster Recovery/Business Continuity plans typically anticipate circumstances that call for a quick changeover to an at-home workforce. Progent's expert disaster recovery preparedness experts and business continuity planning specialists can assist your business to create, document and test a DR/BC strategy that includes the logistics of moving to an at-home workforce.

Unified Management for At-Home Workers
Microsoft has renamed and reshuffled its endpoint management platforms under the title Endpoint Manager, which includes Intune for cloud management of remote devices and Configuration Manager for managing on-premises endpoints. Microsoft Endpoint Manager features a unified environment for safeguarding corporate data by managing on-premises, mobile, and home-based endpoint devices.

Microsoft Intune
Intune is a component of Microsoft's Endpoint Management suite that also includes Microsoft Configuration Manager. Intune is a cloud service for managing and protecting mobile devices and applications. Remote endpoint computers can be user owned or business owned. IT admins managing the enrolled endpoint devices of at-home workers can utilize Intune to provision and validate apps on managed devices, push updates and certificates, set up policies for accessing data and networks, manage passwords, establish VPN tunnels, control how home-based workers share data, establish threat protection, verify security compliance, and erase sensitive data from lost, stolen or decommissioned devices. Microsoft Intune runs with iOS, Android, Windows, and macOS/OS X computers. To learn about Microsoft Intune and to find out how Progent can assist you to use this platform to administer the endpoint devices of your teleworkers, visit Intune teleworker device management expertise.

VMware Workspace ONE
VMware Workspace ONE is a feature-rich centralized Mobile Device Management (MDM) product that allows network administrators to keep offsite endpoints current and protected. Workspace ONE incorporates VMware AirWatch for unified endpoint administration along with VMware's Horizon virtual application delivery platform for access control, application management, and configuration management of endpoint devices. Workspace ONE operates with endpoints based on Windows 10, macOS, iOS, Android, Chrome OS, or leading distributions of Linux. VMware Workspace ONE is available by subscription as a cloud service or as an on-premises product via a one-time purchase. Key capabilities of VMware Workspace ONE include rapid remote provisioning of out-of-the-box notebooks, quick onboarding of new users, policy set up and enforcement for all categories of endpoints, unifies management reporting and performance analytics, email encryption, and tight integration with Microsoft applications and cloud-based products. To learn about Progent's expertise for VMware Workspace ONE, see VMware Workspace ONE remote endpoint management consultants.

Contact Progent for Remote Workforce Support Services
To contact Progent about building and managing an efficient telecommuter environment for your Atlanta, Georgia company, phone 1-800-993-9400 or refer to Contact Progent.