Computer Support Forum

Found a forum while looking for some computer code. This particular page of this forum has a nice little post that shows very simply how to put a browsers address on an html page. It's just a simple little peice of code but Ithought I'd just share it with everyone.

Even a novice skilled person could add this little feature to their site just as a little amusment thing for thier site visitors.

Every post of mine doesn't have to be serious . . . :)

Remote Support Software

Vista is due before the end of this year.

Vista is due to roll out before the end of this year. It's going to be so cool. Everyone is going to be scrambling to get up to speed wit the new features of the OS. I really like XP and Micrososft has done such a good job with it that I feel Vista is going to be a really fantastic product. Sure it's going to take a few service packs first. Since Vista needs at least a MB of RAM to run, memory sales are sure to climb. Invest in those chip manufactures. . .

Management Tool Monitors and Controls Multi-Vendor Devices From one Location

Tone Software Corporation Tonesoft

ToneSoft's ReliaTel application sounds like an incredible product for monitoring and managing telecommunication devices. The devices could be from multiple vendors too. This is an app that I would love to see in action. Enabling Technologies Corporation has selected TONE’s ReliaTel Remote Management solution to expand the Enabling Managed Services Monitoring business.

Powerful Telecommunications Management Tool Monitors and Controls Multi-Vendor Devices From one Location

"A single convenient application, ReliaTel gives authorized staff complete control of multi-vendor voice systems. The system enables authorized staff to control local and remote devices, enabling global monitoring from one location with a common interface. With no need to buy multiple management packages or depend on outside monitoring centers, maintenance and staff training costs drop dramatically."

Read the rest of the news article on Tone Software's site

Hummingbird to be acquired for $465 million

Source:ITWorld
May 26, 06

Enterprise software developer Hummingbird Ltd. said on Friday that it agreed to be purchased by holding company Symphony Technology Group in a deal valued at US$465 million.

The Toronto company develops enterprise content management (ECM) software that helps organizations manage documents, records, correspondence and contracts.
A third party, Tennenbaum Capital Partners LLC, will invest $135 million to help finance the transaction.
Hummingbird said the deal will generate immediate cash that will allow the company to continue to focus on its mission of offering ECM and connectivity products.

Software for PC remote control on the web

PC Remote Control Software

Providing tech support in a quick effective manner is possible by using remote pc control software on the web. Ordinary software for pc remote control on a network sometimes falls short when it comes to remote controlling system's over the web. One Of the barriers that prevents traditional software from successfully accomplishing the task of accessing the remote pc is the need to establish an inbound network connection to the desktop. One of the features of remote support solutions is that they overcome the common barrier. These packages are specially designed to meet the needs of helpdesks and tech support departments that are trying to reach users anywhere beside their own network to provide remote desktop support. Desktop users need a simple method to trigger on-demand pc remote control software. If the steps requried are too may, confusing, include pop-ups or other decision requiring options, the system will not work as effectively. Microsoft's RDP is a good reliable protocol for desktop remote control. It however falls into the catagory of a LAN or private wan support product since if an attempt to use it over the internet was made without first reconfiguring the remote device, it would fail.

10 user complaints about IT support

Source:Tech Republic
Apr 25 12:21 PM

Being a support pro can entail a fairly high level of aggravation, some (maybe a lot) of which can be laid at the doorstep of the very customer you serve: the end user. But IT pro Becky Roberts advocates taking a step back occasionally and considering the situation from the user's perspective.

The issue of complaints and their resolution is a perennially hot topic in the virtual world of TechRepublic, with views expressed about the peeves of an IT manager and a support tech and complaints about CIOs. But nowhere in all these discussions have the most important people in our universe--our users--been given a voice.

In an attempt to redress this imbalance and put our own complaints in perspective, I took the liberty of asking my users to provide me with their complaints about us, the IT professionals. So here, in no particular order, are my users' grievances, together with a few thoughts about how they might be addressed and/or how they could have been avoided.

#1: Applications and hardware that don't work
#2: Inconsistency of WiFi configurations
#3: Slow computer/network
#4: Frequently required password changes
#5: Not being administrators of their machines
#6: Spam filtering
#7: Restricted Web access
#8: Not being allowed to use company computers for personal use
#9: Unresponsiveness of the IT department
#10: Arrogance of the IT department

RDP falls short for over the web pc remote control accses

PC Remote Control on the Web

supports system more effectively and efficiently can simply be achieved using pc remote control on the web. The end user and computer desktop could be located anywhere in the world and by simply access the computer with pc remote control software can give a support engineer quick access to resolve the problem saving lengthy traveling time or frustrating telephone calls trying to talk an average user though screens and command to diagnose. Although Microsoft's rdp is a valuable tool for computer remote control, it has it's limitations when used over the web.

PC Remote Control over the Web

RDP is a valuable tool for supporting computer systems and is best used on the lcoal area network or a closed corporate or enterprise wide area network. It's limitation over the web stems from the need to establish an inbount session to the remote desktop requires modifications to the router or firewall at the far end prior to attempting to connect. PC remote control over the web can be achieved without limitation by using support tools that download to the remote computer by the end users initiation then the software is configured, or obtains its configuration, to connect outbound from the remote network to the support technician.

Remote PC Control over the Web

Remote pc control on the web is prevelent in almost every company. There a various uses of remote pc control through the internet. One of the uses that are most prevelent is where a computer user is at another office or location and accesses their desktop system at the office to work as if they were sitting right in front of it. This allows for a mobile work force and in many cases a dispersed work force as this permits employees to work from home during inclement wheather of even as some employers do hire marketing, temp, or part-time eployees and rather than using valuable office space for them they just set them up with internet access and a pc to control remotely to work on. Another reason for or use of pc remote control over the web is for supporting users quickly. Remote control tools have always been in use by support people looking to assist users without having to go to the location the computer desktop user is residing or working from. Some of the most common software packages,like symantec pc anywhere or carbon copy, have been in use since before the internet and consisted of dial-up. With the emmergence of the internet as the largest netowrk in the world, the reach and speed of remote support sessions has surpassed all expectations that were previous ly thought. The dial-up barrier has been broken long aago and more tools are available for assisting remote computer users with speed and efficiency to match.

EMC Takes VTLs Down Market

Source:Enterprise IT Planet

April 19, 2006

EMC on Monday announced a number of changes to its virtual tape library (VTL) product lineup.
The changes to the Clariion Disk Library family include a new entry-level Clariion DL210 model for mid-size enterprises and branch offices, and for the whole line, virtual tape "shredding" capability for deleting data to meet business and regulatory demands.
EMC is also integrating its NetWorker 7.3 backup and recovery software with the Clariion Disk Library line for better media management capabilities. The Hopkinton, Mass.-based storage giant also announced support for the IBM System i (formerly iSeries) platform, and command line interface (CLI) support.
The Clariion DL210 uses 500GB Serial ATA (SATA) disk drives and can scale from four to 24 terabytes of capacity. The appliance enables disk-based backup and restore without requiring customers to change their current operations or backup infrastructures by emulating open systems tape libraries, drives and media. It offers remote replication capabilities and up to 3:1 compression.

Instant Virtual Extranet v2

Instant Virtual Extranet v2

Plug-in Network Appliances Enable Secure Remote Access By Browser

The Instant Virtual Extranet (IVE) appliances, the flagship product line from Neoteris, Inc., are plug-in devices for network administrators that enable secure remote access to corporate network resources for employees or business partners. The appliances themselves are installed onsite, on the organization's LAN, and serve as somewhat of an access proxy; enabling remote users to access corporate servers and applications using only their Web browser as an interface. The remote users connect to the devices using their public Internet connection and existing Web browsers (no additional client software is required); and the device then communicates with the host servers or applications via its built-in support for multiple communication protocols.

Remote Support Software - PC Support Through the Web

A more dynamic approach

Today's computer support market demands faster technical support response times. With almost every aspect of individuals jobs centralized around computer use, downtime is a loss of productivity on every corporate level. There are multiple vendors providing solutions for remote support software service and software. Some with satic configuration and other with more flexible designs. With the many vendors comes numerous methods for providing online pc remote support software services. Many of which are web based and others that are standalone applications. Numerous vendors supply an ASP style approach which permits their customers to just log into their server, usually through a web browser interface. Then, their remote customers or end-users whom they are trying to support remotely in turn login as well using the same method. The remote user whom they are trying to assist by providing on-demand remote desktop support to also just login into the third party server - this in simple terms is the ASP model for online remote support software . The remote user then enters an email address or a special code on the site. Once that is successfully done, remote control software downloads to their system. Some remote technologies are built around java and other are executable files that require the user to click on run or open like a normal internet file download.

There are other remote control software vendors that require the purchase of server hardware that's to be installed and homed on their customer's own network giving them that extra feel of security. Since the equipment and software is on their premises in their own data center they always know who has access to the server gives them added protection. In addition, having the online 4RemoteSupport remote support software and server hardware located in their own office, allows them to meet certain standards imposed by regulatory bodies such as HIPPA in the medical community. Remote PC control on the web in the medical community and remote computer access in general is beginning to be more closely scrutinized and regulated.

Online pc remote support software

The third type of on-demand remote pc control support software packages would be the stand alone applications. These come in multiple flavors. One is a full blown application like the famous symantec software pc anywhere which I believe has been for many years one of the best remote desktop control products for the enterprise for decades. The other type is one which the technical person looking to provide support has a piece of software installed on their system and their remote computer user downloads an executable that's pre-programmed with networking information to get to the tech support person's network and computer. The two software pieces then connect up to each other providing the tech support personnel with remote control of the far-end computer on the web. Some of these ask fo addition security information and yet others do not. The drawback to this type of software is the fact that it's pre-programming is hard coded into the software. Usually the way to change it is to purchase another executable.

A more dynamic approach

 A more dynamic approach is to have the technician run a piece of software on their computer as before. It could even be a browser add-on like an active-x control. The remote computer side could still be required to download software in the form of a java applet or an executable but with both of these methods have the network information required to connect back to the support engineer allow for change. It either can download with updated information or can fetch the information required each time. By doing so the information is updated an not static. this permits for a more dynamic and cost effective approach that addresses changes in ISPs or change of locations.

The ultimate goal of remote control support of computers is to save time. In most cases, by saving time the cost of providing the service goes down. This tends to lead to more productivity from current staff thus decreasing the need to bring more technicians into the support group. With technology developing as fast as it does and just about all market segments moving and changing at speeds never before seen in the industrial history of the world the remote control approach lends to a faster more agile support work force.

Internet Anywhere - Internet Access via Satellite

Satellite Internet Access allows anyone anywhere to have internet access. For those of you involved in the telco or isp world. The last mike is the worst. the last mile degredates many dsl services and cable is not available everywhere.

Below is an excerpt from FAQ page for DataStorm Services

You can read the rest at their website by just clicking on the following link.

http://www.internetanywhere.us/pages/883502/index.htm

The link above is a great question and answer session. It will address most all common questions.

Remote control software:
A growing market

While remote control technology has been around for quite some time now roughly about twenty years, in this day and age of the Internet, wireless networks both local area and broadband, self-support and heightened security across your e-business infrastructure, remote control is perhaps the one IT support tool that has received the least amount of face time over recent years. It's mostly because remote control traditionally has been viewed as software that was a luxury rather than a necessity. That is until now.

Remote control software is changing quickly and dramatically. No longer is it just the primitive peer-to-peer dial-up technology we remember that could put us in contact with our remote hardware, software and networks in an effort to avoid a physical trip. Web based remote support software and internet based remote support software is based on computer remote control. Controlling computers, servers, and laptop for web based remote support and internet based remote support is at the core o applications that are used for technical support and assistance for remote users. With the advent of the web and the emergence of the support portal, our old well established and liked friend is growing up. It has moved into the enterprise, as well as the call center help-desk, and become a valuable technical support tool. And now it's evolved to more than fixing problems on computers but into roles that include e-support, e-learning and the ASP model.

The growing market

Computer remote control over the web

"Essentially the remote control market has had a few different faces over the last several years," says Stephen Drakel, senior research analyst at Framingham, Mass.-based IDC. "Its origins started in early remote access software, and over the last few years it has moved to more of a complementary component to management software and help desk software and is really a key component there."


The remote control market is so healthy, in fact, that in May 2000, Drakel forecasted the market would grow 19.8 percent from 1999 to 2004-moving from annual revenues of $349.2 million to $638 million respectively. At that time, Drakel also projected a growth rate of 19.4 percent with annual revenues of $417 million for 2000 alone.

But if the market has remained relatively steady in terms of its offerings, one must ask what is prompting this growth and with the sudden uptick of interest in PC remote control technology and its capabilities?

Drakel thinks much of the new limelight being cast upon remote controlis due to the growing influence of the Internet and e-support market, as well as the ongoing pain businesses continue to feel when it comes to hiring and keeping skilled IT staff. And a look at many of the vendors in the computer remote controlmarket space helps to confirm his intuition.

Remote desktop control on the web

I would like to add at this point that I have personally used many locally installed or online web based remote support products and find that they are all an invaluable tool for support. The time that is saved by remote accessing computers to provide computer support is obvious the first time a tool such as this is used. once you have accessed the desktop over the internet and fixed the problem in several minutes whereas just driving to the location could have taken up to an hour with average times to commute to destination for support within the 20 minute to 30 minute range. In my case, tech support trips to the city for resolving even minor computer desktop or network issues, depending on time of day, could take as long as several hours. With luck an hour to get in and at least 20 to find parking before you even enter the customers office and get behind the keyboard of the problem computer. Remotely accessing the same computer now is done in minutes and tech support is much more efficient. Customer satisfaction increases as well since now they no longer have to wait as long for desktop support.
Companies that provide not just per incident computer support have adopted to remote control of computers and leverage computer remote control to assist their users at the desktop user level and at the server level. Manged IT support can only be successful with remote computer control and remote support through the web . Computer remote support is key to their success as they leverage the internet to maintain a larger end user and end-point computer base than would have been capable with only on-site support with no computer or server remote control.

Enexity - Securelink

Enexity - Securelink 

 Found this online pc remote support software by 4RemoteSupport , an online remote support service vendor.  They don't have a household name like INtel but it seems there software is reaching approval by support services companies and they've scored some nice deals and contracts. Below are a couple of excerpts from their news section that names a few of the companies that are using Enexity. 12.20.05 - Mediware chooses Enexity's SecureLink™ to enhance remote support and increase customer satisfaction 10.31.2005 - QuadraMed Standardizes on Enexity's SecureLink™ for remote support 09.20.2005 - i2 Technologies Uses Enexity's SecureLink™ as its Primary Remote Service and Support Solution. 

Primary Remote Service and Support Solution 

 About Enexity Enexity helps companies get the most out of their enterprise software applications. We designed the SecureLink™ Virtual Support Network family of products from the ground up to enable secure, remote service and support for your server based software. As a result, you get faster times to resolution with less IT involvement. Our next generation security features keep you in control and you will appreciate the reporting and monitoring capabilities. More secure, more effective... get more out of your enterprise software with Enexity’s SecureLink VSNs. Read More...

VPNremote

VPNet Introduces Powerful New Remote Client

VPNet Introduces Powerful New Remote Client VPNremote 3.0 offers service providers and enterprises a unique remote access solution that provides IPSec security and digital certificate authentication without compromising ease-of-use Release: 27-Mar-2000 "VPNet Technologies, Inc., a leader in Virtual Private Network (VPN) solutions for service providers and enterprises, today introduced VPNremote(TM) Client 3.0, the latest version of its Windows® compatible remote access software for VPNs. As a key component of the VPNware(TM) family of integrated VPN solutions, VPNremote Client 3.0 offers a unique array of features that greatly reduce the complexity faced by remote users, and dramatically eases the burden faced by security administrators when distributing, configuring, and managing a remote access VPN solution. [For more information on the complete VPNware 3.0 software release, see the accompanying press release, "VPNet Technologies Introduces Innovative Centralized Policy-based Management System for Large-Scale VPNs" also dated March 27, 2000.] "The need to provide secure remote access over public networks has produced a succession of network access and security technologies that have typically proved to be overly costly to deploy, scale, and manage, as well as being overly complex for the typical end user," said R. Michael Allen, chairman and CEO of VPNet. "The resulting strain on already taxed information technology and end user technical support staffs has had the net effect of slowing down the rate of adoption and deployment of the advanced secure remote desktop access solutions that have come of age."

Easy Administration of Thousands of Users

 Key features of this new client 4RemoteSupport remote support software release include support for the ISAKMP/OAKLEY (IKE) key management protocol for IPSec; feature rich and easy-to-use GUI-based Certificate Manager, User Profile, and Connection Management utilities; a dynamic client configuration process that simplifies VPN policy distribution; standards-based support for all major PKI vendors and smartcards; and enhanced event and error logging for easy troubleshooting. Together, these features provide a client software environment that overcomes the difficulties commonly encountered in deploying and supporting IPSec VPN remote access clients. "The principle challenges faced by organizations when deploying a remote access VPN is first, the ease with which a security administrator can deploy and manage the client software, and second, the ease with which the average end user can install, configure, and use the client software solution," Allen continued. "This overarching perspective was used to guide the development of our first release of the IKE VPNremote Client." Easy Administration of Thousands of Users Client software pre-configuration and distribution has been dramatically enhanced in this latest version of VPNremote. Using a unique two-phase configuration management process, VPNremote 3.0 addresses one of the most challenging areas of deploying an IPSec VPN remote access solution — the process of setting up and managing the VPN configuration and security policy information on the end user's PC. At time of install, an initialization file is used to construct a user profile containing all parameters required for the user to contact a VPNet VSU(TM) gateway, get authenticated, and have VPN policy information dynamically set up and installed. The security administrator pre-configures these parameters as a part of the VPN setup and software distribution processes — with no end-user intervention required. 

VPN policy information is automatically downloaded

Once users have been authenticated at the VSU gateway, their VPN policy information is automatically downloaded and installed on the PC. User configuration information is maintained and updated using VPNmanager(TM), VPNet's VPN management software, and is stored on the system LDAP directory server. Remote user policy information is dynamically updated each time they log on to their VPN using VPNremote's flexible, high-performance Dyna-Policy configuration protocol. The hands-off configuration process is repeated at every logon with no unwanted delays or performance degradation. This dramatically enhances the end-user out-of-box experience, and places VPN policy management responsibility where it belongs — with the security administrator. It also enables a powerful distribution model that makes feasible large-scale remote access VPN deployments and makes VPNremote 3.0 the most easily distributed IPSec VPN client in the industry. "In deploying VPN client software, our experience has clearly shown that ease-of-use is the paramount issue," said Kamy Kavianian, director of VPN marketing for Concentric Network. "While there are alternatives when considering an IPSec VPN client, VPNet's VPNremote 3.0 offers the advanced features required to provide the robust security demanded by our managed services customers without sacrificing usability and burdening end users and support staff with unnecessary and unwelcome complexity."

Enhanced End-User Experience

Enhanced End-User Experience VPNremote 3.0 has dramatically enhanced the end-user experience across the board — from installation, to configuration, to actual usage. Installation has been simplified by integrating all files needed for WIN 95/98/NT/ 2000 platforms within a single, small self-extracting executable. This install package contains the initialization file that has been pre-configured by the security administrator. VPNremote 3.0 users enjoy a simple "single-click" installation without being required to interpret or understand the broad range of configuration parameters. Once the 4RemoteSupport remote support software has been installed, the user is responsible only to enter a username, e-mail address, and password using the intuitive and easy-to-use Connection Manager to get authenticated and begin using VPNremote. VPNremote 3.0 provides an advanced Certificate Manager that enables end users to easily and intuitively request, import, and use digital certificates.

Standards-based support for smartcards

 Features such as standard protocol support for on-line certificate enrollment, and standards-based support for smartcards to store and protect RSA keys and digital certificates make VPNremote a powerful but easy-to-use certificate management tool. VPNremote 3.0 supports leading certificate authorities including VeriSign, RSA Security, Entrust, and Baltimore, among others. User's keys and certificates are also exportable as a part of a user's profile to enable them to access their VPNs without having to carry a laptop. A user can store their profile on either a smartcard or disk and access their VPN from any PC or kiosk hosting the VPNremote 3.0 software. To ease the burden of end-user technical support faced by both service providers and enterprises, VPNremote 3.0 has been designed to be simple to install, configure, and use. VPNremote also provides a number of levels of on-board help and technical support designed to minimize the frequency — and maximize the effectiveness — of technical support calls. The first level is a comprehensive on-line help utility that presents detailed user help and technical descriptions for product features and functions performed. Additionally, detailed error messaging and an on-board event logging and viewing utility have been provided to define in simple terms the cause of problems that may be interfering with or preventing client operation, and to assist with problems requiring help desk remote support. This allows network administrators to track down problems easily and resolve them quickly.

Comprehensive and Interoperable IPSec Implementation

Comprehensive and Interoperable IPSec Implementation VPNremote 3.0 offers standards based support for IPSec VPN security. This provides a remote access solution that is robust and secure, and one that offers an enhanced level of interoperability with IPSec-based network security solutions from other VPN and security applications vendors. The VPNet implementation of the IKE key management protocol allows the use of either pre-shared secrets or X.509 digital certificates for authentication and key management. VPNremote 3.0 has been designed to be fully compliant with ICSA 1.1 IPSec certification criteria, including the extended Cryptography, Certificate Authority Interaction, and Enhanced Functionality requirements.

VPNremote Client 3.0 is available in 3DES and DES

VPNremote Client 3.0 is available in 3DES and DES versions and is compatible with Windows 95/98, Windows NT 4.0, and Windows 2000. About VPNet Technologies VPNet Technologies, Inc. (www.vpn.com) is the first company formed with a singular focus on VPNs and is the leading provider of VPN solutions to service providers and enterprises. Founded in October 1995 and based in Milpitas, Calif., the company develops and markets cost-effective products and services for implementing high-performance virtual private networks. VPNet's scalable VPNware System delivers the highest levels of security, performance, and manageability across a wide range of VPN applications. VPNet's innovative VPNsure Services enable service providers and enterprises to outsource the design, implementation, and management of their VPNs." more...

Intel Announces PC Inventory Service And Remote Support Software

I've always liked Intel... Intel Announces On-Demand PC Inventory Service And Remote Support Software SANTA CLARA, Calif., March 18, 2002 - Designed to increase performance and reduce security concerns for IT and help desk managers, two new PC management products from Intel Corporation provide a simple, low-cost deployment solution for asset management and remote support of client systems. Intel® Instant Support Suite enables on-demand remote control of PCs to provide increased efficiency for the help desk. Intel LANDesk Asset Service provides comprehensive inventory and asset auditing through a hosted service. more...