Background

Carolina Business Equipment (CBE) has been a print provider for over 45 years, offering print services, copiers, scanners and document management to over 4,000 customers in South Carolina. CBE began offering managed IT services six years ago in response to the changing needs of its customer base, for whom print services started to take a backseat to other concerns driven by digitization. CBE’s mission is to provide clients with stellar service and the modern, comprehensive products and services that their clients need for their own businesses to grow and thrive.

John Morelock, the Director of IT Solutions & Services at CBE, took on the project of developing their own Network Operations Center (NOC) and utilizing a Remote Monitoring and Management (RMM) provider to create an effective IT managed service for their clients. “Our goal is to handle everything IT for our clients, whether it be a problem with their IT infrastructure, ISP, phone provider, or a firewall issue. We want to provide a one-stop full-service experience to our clients.”

Replacing Cisco

Originally, CBE relied on Cisco for their firewall/router customer needs, but as the majority of their clients were SMBs, the price point was not working. Morelock tasked his networking team to look for an alternative solution in a lower cost bracket. One of those network admins downloaded Untangle NG Firewall and suggested Morelock take a look at it. “I very quickly fell in love with the platform and the interface. It didn’t take me long to realize the benefit the entire suite of thirty-plus applications could provide to my clients.” Morelock and his team began introducing Untangle to their clients. “It was easy to introduce Untangle NG Firewall to our customers thanks to the downloadable software, free apps, and 14-day trial of all the paid apps. Now, 99% of our clients’ firewalls are Untangle.”

The ease of implementation is one of the top reasons Morelock and his team suggest Untangle to their clients. Untangle’s flexible deployment options allow CBE to deploy NG Firewall on Untangle appliances, in the public cloud, as a virtual machine, or on their own third-party hardware. “We show every client the cost savings and functionality of Untangle, but we’ve had clients state that they want to stick with their old firewall provider or their cheap off-the-shelf router,” said Morelock. “However, when they struggle with implementation, configuration, or other network problems, they call us to fix the problem, which most likely ends with Untangle being installed.”

One such client was a large print customer with previous Cisco experience who wanted to stay with them to filter their VOIP phones through the firewall. After three weeks with no success, the client called CBE to fix the issue, as the company could not afford for their phones to be offline. CBE was able to implement Untangle NG Firewall within one day, get the phones working immediately, and enforce VPN connections for their remote locations. “The client was surprised and very happy that we were able to solve the problem in one day. After seeing the full benefits of Untangle, the client now plans to install Untangle at each office to gain more visibility into and control over those networks,” said Morelock.

We find Command Center very helpful to easily access our NG Firewall deployments quickly, without having to physically go onsite.

Simplified Management

In order to effectively manage all their clients, CBE relies on Untangle’s cloud-based centralized management solution, Command Center. “We find Command Center very helpful to easily access our NG Firewall deployments quickly, without having to physically go onsite.” Command Center offers partners and customers with multiple sites remote management capabilities, zero touch provisioning and a ‘configure once, deploy anywhere’ methodology.

“Untangle’s flexible software solution allows us to install the product on our own hardware so we can brand and sell the solution as our own. Integrating IT managed security services into our print business was a strategic and profitable move for CBE. With only 200 of our 4,000 customers utilizing our IT services, we’ve added over $2 million renewing annual revenue. As our IT services branch continues to grow, we look forward to being able to provide more customers with the peace of mind that their networks are protected. ” John Eckstrom, President & Owner of CBE

Background

Bridger Valley Electric Association (Bridger) is a consumer-owned cooperative, part of the Wyoming Rural Electric Association, that provides electricity and internet across 8,000 meters in the SW Wyoming region. Gregg Moretti has been the Chief Information Officer at Bridger for many years, and is responsible for all networking solutions and ensuring the headquarters, 12 substations, as well as the 30 servers, 60 workstations, various laptops, mobile devices and remote users are all securely connected and protected from threats. As the sole person responsible for networking, Morretti needs solutions that are easy to use, quick to implement and cost-effective.

Securing Multiple Locations

Moretti has relied on Untangle for more than 8 years. “I came across Untangle in my search for a network security solution that was robust and customizable, yet also affordable,” said Moretti. Moretti was able to save money immediately by downloading the NG Firewall platform and free apps to deploy on existing hardware. The platform and free apps provided basic network monitoring and control over the network. As the company needs grew, Morretti turned to NG Firewall Complete for a comprehensive network security solution to tackle content filtering, protection against ransomware, malware and advanced threats, application-based shaping for bandwidth optimization, VPN connectivity options and more. “I was able to do a free trial of the paid applications and quickly realized the benefits the entire solution could provide to address our network security needs,” said Moretti.

Bridger is located in southwest Wyoming, with one main headquarters office and 12 remote substations. “We have an Untangle u150 appliance at our headquarters location that filters the traffic for all the devices on site, as well as the traffic that we send via VPN from our remote substations,” said Moretti. Untangle appliances allow for simple setup and installation, as NG Firewall is already installed and pre-configured.

Moretti is now evaluating deploying Untangle u25 appliances at each remote location to connect them directly to the internet. He can then manage policies for these locations via Command Center, Untangle’s cloud-based centralized management platform.

We use the Web Filter and Application Control apps quite extensively to actively block inappropriate websites and applications that users may attempt to access.

Untangle’s suite of applications provides Moretti with everything he needs to protect each location. The Virus Blocker, Spam Blocker and Phish Blocker applications all work together effectively to block phishing scams, clickbait spam, viruses, botnets, ransomware, and other threats. “We use the Web Filter and Application Control apps quite extensively to actively block inappropriate websites and applications that users may attempt to access,” said Moretti. Untangle’s Bandwidth Control and Policy Manager apps enable Moretti to control the network traffic, ensuring business critical applications are given priority and remote users are given appropriate access to the internal network. “All of the apps have default settings that get you up and running quickly,” said Moretti. “The apps that require additional and more detailed rule sets are easily configurable.”

For billing purposes, Bridger must allow a third-party billing vendor to connect to the internal network. With Untangle’s Policy Manager, Moretti is able to allow them onto the network only from certain IP addresses and limit their access to only what they require. “The Policy Manager app lets me create very granular user-based rules,” said Moretti, “and because Untangle logs every event that happens on the network, I can easily look at the reports to see if someone tried to access information not pertaining to their work.”

Compliance Made Easy

As an electrical utility company, Bridger must abide by federal regulations, NERC, and state standards. “We conduct threat management and vulnerability assessments on a regular basis,” said Moretti, “so it is critical to have real-time reporting to show the compliance auditors we have a threat defense solution in place.” NG Firewall Reports provides Moretti with a detailed view of all the network traffic, including blocked threats and rogue websites and applications. Because the reports are database-driven, Moretti can drill down into any aspect of the network traffic, providing compliance auditors with specific reports to meet their standards.

Untangle’s Dashboard provides Moretti with an overview of the entire network status, including security alerts, system performance and suspicious networking activities. “I have a 43-inch monitor in my office dedicated to displaying the Dashboard, so I can see exactly when an anomaly occurs,” said Moretti. “Untangle has continued to add innovative features to its network security solution over the years, and I would recommend anyone with limited funds and IT resources take a look at Untangle.”

Background

Rathbone Group, LLC is a national subrogation law firm headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio, serving clients throughout all stages of the subrogation claim process. Rathbone represents insurance carriers, self-insured entities, and third party administrators, with multiple offices that serve the United States, Canada, and the US Islands. Jeffrey Kaput is the Director of IT at Rathbone, responsible for all things IT-related across their multiple office locations. Kaput must ensure adequate network security and connectivity for their over 90 employees, 12 servers and over 40 virtual machines.

Technology Solution

Rathbone started in 2014, and as a new company with 50 employees to support, Rathbone had to be savvy with their budget for network security. Luckily, Kaput had been using Untangle previously for nine years and knew the value and effectiveness it could bring to the firm. Untangle’s NG Firewall solution was designed for small and medium businesses with limited resources and IT staff, so it was an ideal fit for Kaput to implement across their locations. “As a new company, we couldn’t afford the enterprise network security products, like Barracuda or Websense,” said Kaput. “I needed a solution that could provide comprehensive security that fit our requirements and budget.” Untangle’s NG Firewall Complete provides Rathbone with comprehensive security at the gateway with Layer-7 application filtering, allowing for complete visibility into everything happening on the network.

“We use the entire suite of applications in NG Firewall Complete,” said Kaput. “We’ve seen an increase in phishing emails within the last year, and Virus Blocker and Spam Blocker catch pretty much everything.” Untangle’s Web Filter and Application Control applications also allow Kaput to block inappropriate websites and applications and ensure employees are being productive while at work. The NG Firewall applications work seamlessly together via Untangle’s flexible Integrated Rules Engine, enabling Kaput to create granular policies to handle every type of traffic or threat.

Since the software is already installed, all I had to do was push policies via Command Center, and we were up and running.

Kaput also needed a way to connect their dispersed locations and employees on the same network without compromising security. “We use the Tunnel VPN app to connect all our locations,” said Kaput. Tunnel VPN allows for a persistent, secure connection between NG Firewall and remote networks, so Kaput can force each remote and branch network connection to go through the headquarters’ network. This provides Kaput more security and control over the network traffic. To easily manage the network at their field offices, Kaput has deployed Untangle u25x appliances. The u25x is a desktop firewall appliance that is ideal for branch offices, allowing Kaput to stay on top of any network issues that may arise. “The appliances are easy to set up,” said Kaput. “Since the software is already installed, all I had to do was push policies via Command Center, and we were up and running.”

The Dashboard provides Kaput with a detailed view of all the traffic on the network. With customizable alerts, Kaput always knows if something is wrong. “The Dashboard gives me a direct view into each office’s network, whether an update has been completed or a device is offline,” said Kaput. “With the alerts, I get an email automatically and can resolve the issue quickly before any downtime affects employees.” The Reports app also helps Kaput provide audit reports to those clients that are required to show proof they have adequate network security in place to protect their data. “Since we house our clients’ data, we have to show proactive proof that we have network security protection. The audits show we have firewall, web filtering and intrusion prevention solutions in place,” said Kaput.

Rathbone has been using Untangle for the last four years and has plans to implement WAN Failover and WAN Balancer apps to ensure the internet is always accessible to maintain productivity. For networks with two or more internet connections, WAN Failover and WAN Balancer help maximize performance and throughput by distributing traffic with simple rules. “As we have grown as a new company, Untangle’s solution has grown with us, too. We have added more applications as our needs have changed. Untangle’s support team has always been helpful and responsive when we run into issues or questions,” said Kaput.

Background

ProStratus has been providing IT services and solutions for small businesses throughout the Springfield, Ohio area since 1992. With a combined 60 years of IT and data center experience, ProStratus strives to provide its customers with cost-effective, top-notch support and solutions. ProStratus serves a variety of client types, including schools, elderly assistance homes, and medical institutions.

Bryce Holland is one of the IT Directors/Project Managers at ProStratus. “I’ve used Untangle’s NG Firewall solution to protect my home network for many years,” said Holland, “so it was an easy choice to implement Untangle at our clients’ sites when their current solutions were no longer effective.”

Technology Solution

One of their clients, a large local high school, was having difficulties with their existing Barracuda firewall. The physical appliance was no longer supported and unable to stay up-to-date on emerging threats, causing concern for the school. The school has over 1,000 devices consisting of desktops, laptops, and iPads that need to be filtered and protected, not just from threats, but from children accessing inappropriate content, in order to maintain CIPA compliance. Because Untangle offers a simplified network security solution at a cost much lower than enterprise solutions, Holland was able to save the school money by running Untangle as a virtual machine.

Identifying and filtering all the devices brought on campus is a top concern for Holland and the school. “With Untangle, we were able to easily separate the mobile devices from the main network and identify those users with the Captive Portal application,” said Holland, “For those users on the main network, we use the Directory Connector application to identify the groups and users the school has already available in their Active Directory.” Directory Connector allows Holland to easily make rules and policies based on users and groups; for example, the students have a more strict internet access policy than teachers do.

Holland has also implemented Untangle at a senior services nonprofit organization, United Senior Services, where no network security solution was previously in place. “Nonprofits must meet a certain level of web security in order to protect the private data of donors and the individuals served,” said Holland. “Untangle gives the nonprofit visibility into network traffic and provides reports to executives to showcase their security initiatives.” The elderly home has over 150 devices on-premise and supports many guests, including on-site vendors. In order to protect the main network, Holland separates the vendors to a different network segment, ensuring private data is never exposed to unauthorized users.

When a principal asks if their school is CIPA compliant, I can look them straight in the eye and say ‘absolutely’.

Holland utilizes most of the applications at their clients’ sites, including Web Filter, Virus Blocker, and Phish Blocker, mainly to stop all the viruses, spam and phishing attempts that have increased recently. “Ad Blocker has saved our clients’ network countless times over,” said Holland. “For example, a teacher was looking up information for a class on a compromised website, and Untangle seamlessly blocked it. Untangle saved the day for that school.”

Reporting and Compliance

Untangle helps businesses maintain their compliance with many regulations. “When a principal asks if their school is CIPA-compliant, I can look them straight in the eye and say ‘absolutely’,” said Holland. The Reports app allows Holland to drill down into any aspect of the network traffic to root out problems and see what is happening on the network. Additionally, audit logs let ProStratus know who has made administrative changes and when. “The audit logging is an incredible feature,” said Holland.

ProStratus is able to save their clients money by running Untangle in a virtual environment. “Our clients are small businesses, with limited budgets, so having the option to run Untangle as a virtual machine or on our own hardware helps us pass on the savings to our clients,” said Holland. Holland plans to implement Untangle at more of their clients’ sites as the need emerges. “We have Untangle at four locations right now––three schools and an elderly assistance home,” said Holland. “We hope to continue to implement Untangle at our other locations soon.”

Background

David Groot founded Windstar Technologies Inc. in 2004 to provide complete support for clients looking to outsource their IT needs. Windstar services small businesses, including medical, legal and nonprofit organizations, that want to eliminate the headache of managing and resolving computer and network issues. From data backup and cloud solutions to managed IT and network security solutions, Windstar provides all things IT-related that a small business owner needs.

Groot had originally been using WatchGuard to fulfill their firewall router needs. However, he found the experience to be difficult, often struggling through their policy configuration and setup process, leading to the frustration of not being able to accurately generate reports for clients. Groot became aware of Untangle in 2008 when he attended a third-party webinar. “With the free trial, I was able to test out the product, NG Firewall, in our office first,” said Groot. “I was pleasantly surprised at how extremely robust, yet manageable, the product is.” After learning the many features his clients could benefit from, Groot began implementing NG Firewall Complete at Windstar’s client locations.

Technology Solution

Because Untangle provides perimeter security, Windstar can add their other solutions, like proxy and DNS servers, to create a network environment that fits each of their clients’ needs. “We rely on many of the apps in NG Firewall Complete to provide a network security and threat management solution for our clients,” said Groot. ”Virus Blocker, Spam Blocker, Web Filter, and Application Control are just some of the apps that protect and filter network traffic, stopping malware, hacking and phishing attempts before they reach users.”

The Directory Connector application helps Windstar’s clients utilize their existing Microsoft Active Directory, RADIUS or local directory, so usernames and groups are automatically authenticated and logged. “Our clients love all the reports we can generate within NG Firewall,” said Groot. “Because the Reports app allows us to drill down into any aspect of the traffic on the network, we are able to give specific and detailed reports to our clients.” The Reports app runs within NG Firewall, eliminating the need for additional hardware, and provides fully dynamic, interactive and customizable reports. With Reports, Groot is also able to set up alert rules so if any condition is met, for instance an authorized user trying to access the network, he and his staff are immediately notified so they can take swift action.

“We also utilize the IPsec VPN application to provide secure site-to-site tunnels for clients who have remote users and locations,” said Groot. IPsec VPN creates an encrypted tunnel between locations, enabling them to function as a single virtual network. This eliminates the need to have firewalls at each location, saving money and resources. “For some of our customers, we run NG Firewall in the public cloud”, said Groot, “which allows us to simplify security policy configuration by deploying in a central location and routing traffic dynamically.” Untangle NG Firewall can be run in the public cloud to provide secure connectivity to business-critical applications while minimizing confguration and management overhead.

Untangle’s products are easy to set up, with an interface that is intuitive and responsive, without compromising security.

Centralized Management

In order to easily manage their multiple clients, Windstar relies on Untangle’s centralized management solution, Command Center. With Command Center, Groot can quickly and easily manage all their NG Firewall deployments from any browser. “We use Command Center to manage the day-to-day activities of each site,” said Groot. “Our remote help desk uses it to access sites, and our field technicians can log in from their tablets to view and resolve any issues sites are having.” Command Center integrates seamlessly with NG Firewall to provide global insights, alerting, management, remote login and reporting.

With Untangle NG Firewall and Command Center in their portfolio of products, Windstar is set up for success as they bring on new clients. “The product is invaluable to us,” said Groot. “Security products often vary, from easy to extreme, in their level of difficulty to implement and manage. Untangle’s products are easy to set up, with an interface that is intuitive and responsive, without compromising security. We are able to customize each of our clients’ sites based on their requirement, ensuring each network is proactively managed and secure.”

Background

Craig Sharp founded Abussi Ltd. in 1995 to help businesses throughout the United Kingdom with all things IT-related, including endpoint protection, internet security and firewalls. By acting as a managed service provider (MSP), Abussi provides organizations a sense of peace knowing their network and IT infrastructure is under constant supervision, allowing them to focus on core business strategies.

Sharp first learned about Untangle in 2008 and immediately was intrigued by the ease of use and flexibility it offered him and his clients. As a downloadable software solution, Abussi can install NG Firewall on their own hardware and effectively test at each client site to ensure seamless deployment. “Other comparable products only cover the basics for network security, with other elements requiring additional investment of either hardware or services to get a complete solution.” said Sharp. NG Firewall is an all-in-one network security solution that makes it easy for network administrators and MSPs to install, configure and deploy.

Technology Solution

NG Firewall provides complete control, Layer 7 visibility and management to both Abussi and its clients; it provides a comprehensive solution for content filtering, malware and threat protection, secure Wi-Fi, application control, bandwidth optimization, and virtual private networks. Abussi has been able to implement NG Firewall at 12 of its clients sites. “Many of our clients have little to no experience in network security, so we generally start off with the trial version of NG Firewall to gain visibility on the network and run reports to show the gaps that could be fixed,” said Sharp. “As soon as a breach, slow bandwidth, or a virus hits, we immediately have that tough conversation that, with the Complete package, this pain point could have been avoided and easily remedied.”

Abussi has been able to help many clients after a breach or incident has occured. For example, one construction company client with about 15 people suffered an breach when a click-happy employee clicked on a phishing email and inadvertently entered their Office 365 credentials. Once the company realized what had happened, they immediately notified Abussi to help remediate the issue. While Abussi was able to mitigate the issue, Sharp pointed out that if NG Firewall Complete had been filtering all traffic, the email would never have surfaced. The construction company has since purchased the Complete package and has yet to have another phishing/spam issue.

Untangle has a brilliant product ideal for MSPs looking for a cost-effective solution for their SME customers.

Often, businesses are spread across multiple locations and need a way for the networks to communicate with each other. With NG Firewall, Abussi can easily link each site via a secure tunnel, ensuring traffic is fully encrypted. For example, one client has 2 locations spread across the U.K., in Cambridge and Swindon (about 100 miles part) with 60 users at each site. The client needed the sites to be connected while ensuring traffic was secure in transit. With OpenVPN and Policy Manager, Abussi was able to create a secure tunnel with a NG Firewall instance at each location and enforce granular rules to ensure business-critical applications are given priority.

Other clients battle with maintaining bandwidth for business critical applications. With NG Firewall filtering all traffic, Abussi is able to provide clients with reports detailing where their bandwidth is being utilized and create rules to control when users can access certain sites. For example, one client noticed through the reports that employees were constantly on Facebook and other social media websites. With Web Filter and Policy Manager, Abussi was able to easily limit employee access to Facebook only during lunch hours. With NG Firewall, Abussi can configure policies not just by day and time but also by user.

Another client noticed the bandwidth had been continuously deteriorating and had Abussi take a closer look. Upon reviewing reports, Abussi was able to determine that almost 50% of the internet traffic was being utilized by an app that did not relate to the business. With Application Control, Abussi quickly cut off access, immediately improving bandwidth and keeping employees on task and productive.

Remote Management

As an MSP, it is crucial to be readily available for any IT emergency clients might encounter. Untangle’s cloud-based management solution, Command Center, provides Abussi with complete visibility and control over all its clients, no matter where they are. “If a client calls us up in the middle of the night with an issue, I can simply remote access into their appliance from my computer or tablet and fix the issue within a few clicks,” said Sharp. Command Center integrates seamlessly with NG Firewall to provide global insights, alerting, management, remote login and reporting. Further, Abussi is able to create and push policies across sites without having to physically be at the location.

Background

The North American Stamping Group, L.L.C. (NASG) is a metal manufacturing company that supplies the automotive industry with medium-to-high-volume, stamped-metal components and welded assemblies. Based in Portland, Tennessee, NASG has 8 locations spread across the United States, Canada and Mexico. Ken Stoner is the Corporate IT Manager and oversees all things IT-related for over 700 machines across the 8 locations.

The biggest issue Stoner faced was that their current firewall/router was not proactive in protecting the network. An employee happened to click on an email with a Trickbot URL that lead to every Windows machine being infected. Stoner was only aware of the attack after it had occurred, forcing the IT team to drop everything to remediate the issue. Having no guest Wi-Fi network also started becoming a major headache for Stoner. Customers connecting their mobile devices to the network would quickly max out the number of available IP addresses, causing problems for employees trying to work. These problems led to Stoner searching for a new network security solution.

Technology Solution

Stoner was referred to Untangle by a partner who had seen the benefits of the Untangle solution to other organizations. Untangle’s free trial of NG Firewall allowed Stoner to quickly realize how simple the installation and configuration process was. Stoner is very strict when it comes to network access control and only allows half of the company’s 700 machines to connect. “NG Firewall’s flexibility to restrict and allow access by location, department, and users is a huge asset for my team. We can ensure no one is accessing inappropriate or malicious sites,” said Stoner. After the recent Trickbot attack, blocking threats, viruses and malware is a top concern for Stoner. “We utilize the Firewall, Virus Blocker, Ad Blocker and Web Filter applications to proactively block threats,” said Stoner. “ScoutIQ, Untangle’s cloud-based threat intelligence platform, adds another layer of security, especially against emerging threats. I feel confident knowing Untangle is working in the background to effectively protect the network.”

NG Firewall’s flexibility to restrict and allow access by location, department, and users is a huge asset for my team.

Creating a separate guest network was another requirement for NASG, as the constant stream of customers and guests joining the network continually created problems for employees trying to get their jobs done. “One of the biggest benefits of Untangle was setting up a separate Wi-Fi for guests. By forcing all mobile devices and guests to use a separate network, I can ensure we never run out of IP addresses,” said Stoner. “Creating a segmented network also gives us an additional layer of security, since those BYOD devices are effectively quarantined.” NASG also utilizes the Directory Connector application to track who logs in where, as well as the IPsec VPN application to connect the remote locations.

To seamlessly manage the remote networks at the 8 different locations, Stoner relies on Untangle’s Command Center, a cloud-based centralized management solution. With Command Center, NG Firewall policies can be created on one appliance, then cloned and pushed across other appliances, no matter their locations. “Being able to push policies to the other appliances that are located hundreds of miles away is a huge resource- and time-saver for the IT team,” said Stoner. Command Center also provides global alerts for all NG Firewall deployments. “If an appliance goes offline or a threat is hitting one of our sites, I get alerted right away and can take immediate action.”

NG Firewall has provided Stoner with complete visibility into and control over each of the networks at NASG. When Stoner turned to Untangle for help, he found that their US-based technical support team was ready to assist. “Support is excellent, everyone I’ve talked to is knowledgeable not just about the product, but network configurations and have always been able to provide me with an answer,” said Stoner.

Background

Cerebral Palsy of North Jersey (CPNJ) was founded in 1953 to provide better services to people with disabilities and other special needs. The organization has grown to serve more than 1,500 infants, children and adults across 21 locations, including two schools, three adult training centers, 14 group homes, a 24-unit apartment complex and an administrative office.

Katie Bochenski started with CPNJ as the system administrator three years ago and is now the Director of Information Technology. She is responsible for not only ensuring that the networks at each of the 21 locations are running smoothly, but also that the school sites are protecting children from accidentally accessing inappropriate websites and applications. When Bochenski started, CPNJ had no web filtering solution in place—just basic firewalls—so she began the search for a solution that would fit CPNJ’s budget and network requirements.

Technology Solution

Bochenski began researching various vendors but found that many solutions were not easy to install or deploy. She came across Untangle as a possible solution, and Bochenski took advantage of the free online demo to evaluate the features and usability. “Using the demo on the website made it easy for me to see how intuitive the user interface is,” said Bochenski. “Ease-of-use was a deciding factor in our selection process. With Untangle, we are now able to gain full visibility into all of our distributed networks.”

The network topology for CPNJ is unique: there is one main administrative building that all the other locations connect to via Untangle’s IPsec VPN and Directory Connector applications. With Directory Connector, Bochenski is able to use their existing Microsoft Active Directory to enforce user authentication prior to connecting to IPsec VPN—providing a secure, encrypted, full tunnel. “I like the Active Directory integration because it is easy to set up different policies that will provide different access levels to users,” said Bochenski.

Ease-of-use was a deciding factor in our selection process.

Because Untangle offers a range of appliances, Bochenski was able to cover the needs of the various locations with situationally appropriate servers. The administration building and larger locations, like the schools and centers, utilize the rackmount appliances. The smaller locations, like the residential housing, utilize desktop appliances. “Untangle made it easy to find the right appliance for each location regardless of size and network traffic,” said Bochenski.

Untangle’s Web Filter and Application Control applications solves Bochenski’s challenge of filtering inappropriate content and applications at the schools. Together with Policy Manager, Bochenski is able to create granular rules based on user groups. She has set up separate policies for students, teachers and administrators each with their own specific rules. For example, the student policy has filter rules to block inappropriate websites and social media, but the marketing department on the administrator policy has access to social media. Combined with Untangle’s Integrated Rules Engine, the apps work together flawlessly, allowing Bochenski to create as many detailed policies and rules as she wants for each site.

With NG Firewall Complete deployed across all 21 locations, Bochenski has complete visibility into each site and can easily pinpoint any issues that arise. “I have only interacted with the support team on a few rare occurrences, but each time they have been tremendously helpful and responsive,” said Bochenski.

Background

Brown County Schools is comprised of six public schools in and around Nashville, Indiana, including three elementary, one intermediate, one junior high and one high school. Brown County Schools offer small class sizes with a student-centric environment, providing students with the highest quality educational experience.

David Phelps has been at Brown County Schools since 2010 and recently became the Technology Director. The district had a costly Barracuda Web Filter in place, but they often exceeded the licensed device limit on the appliance. Phelps needed to find a better solution for the growing campuses in order ensure the network stays secure, CIPA compliance requirements are met, and students and teachers have segmented access. Phelps decided to search for another solution.

Technology Solution

Untangle was recommended to Phelps by a consultant who had seen Untangle used successfully at another school. With the free trial available, Phelps was able to evaluate Untangle NG Firewall prior to purchasing. “Being able to utilize our existing servers was the first benefit I saw with Untangle,” said Phelps. By installing Untangle’s NG Firewall solution on their existing servers, Phelps did not have to worry about purchasing additional hardware.

The Brown County Schools network serves many functions and diverse users. Each of the six campuses provides devices to students and teachers, with Wi-Fi in every building. Phelps does not allow a public Wi-Fi network, except at the high school, where students can connect their personal devices. “While we have an open network at the high school, I closely monitor bandwidth utilization to ensure learning takes priority,” said Phelps.

The new user interface is a nice improvement. The Dashboard provides me with a quick view of my network.

To ensure CIPA compliance, every device that is connected to the network is filtered. Phelps has two policies in place: one for students, and one for teachers and administrators. The student policy is specifically designed to meet the rigorous filtering requirements demanded for legal compliance. “Virus Blocker, Web Filter and Ad Blocker are critical applications,” said Phelps. “The apps work together seamlessly to ensure that our children are protected from inappropriate content, and the network and its connected devices are protected from malware.”

Phelps plans to further refine the policies over time to meet the individual needs of each school site and grade level. “Untangle makes it easy to put policies in place,” said Phelps. “It’s fast and straightforward to add or tune rules based on evolving requirements. The ease of use, ability to see relevant reports, and be alerted to incidents is light years beyond what we saw with Barracuda Web Filter.”

Background

The City of Bridgeton is a municipality located in St. Louis county, Missouri. It is the primary transport hub within Greater St. Louis, with a population of over 11,000, plus 100,000 visitors traveling through every year. The City of Bridgeton consists of five departments including Public Works, Police, Parks & Recreation, Municipal Court, and Administration.

Tom Rickard, an IT Specialist, was hired in 2010 to fix their challenges with slow internet performance, set up a network for each department’s specific needs, and find a solution that could provide secure, free public Wi-Fi.

Technology Solution

Untangle NG Firewall was recommended to Rickard by a fellow IT professional. Since NG Firewall is available as a free download, Rickard was able to install it on a virtual machine for evaluation. After testing out the different applications and the overall functionality of the solution, Rickard deployed NG Firewall on an existing server at the Public Works department. “The city has 150 devices throughout the 5 departments accessing the internet. With limited security in place, I was cleaning up spam and viruses everyday. As soon as I installed NG Firewall, the spam and viruses stopped,” said Rickard.

With the Public Works department network cleaned up, Rickard decided to implement NG Firewall in the Police and Parks & Recreation departments. One unique feature of NG Firewall is the ability to create multiple virtual racks, much like a traditional server rack. Racks allow the IT administrator to set up different policy rules to define network privileges based on username, groups, time, day and other criteria. Rickard set up an internal network for the Parks & Recreation department with strong security and tight controls. He then set up a public Wi-Fi network to provide access for BYOD devices. By segmenting the networks, Rickard was able to provide the correct privileges and security levels based on the risk profile of the users. “The City provides free WIFI in most of its public facilities, which includes the Athletic Complex, Aquatic Park, and Recreation Center,” said Rickard.

With limited security in place, I was cleaning up spam and viruses everyday. As soon as I installed NG Firewall, the spam and viruses stopped.

Business Results

Untangle NG Firewall has given the City of Bridgeton control over each department network, while also providing WiFi to the public, without compromising the private and sensitive information within each department. The combination of the Captive Portal, Web Filter, Virus Blocker, and Spam Blocker applications helped Rickard to stop the spam and viruses that had been plaguing the network every day. Bandwidth Control and Application Control provided visibility into and control over the bandwidth usage on the network. “If the internet is slow, I can easily go in and see what’s going on,” said Rickard. “If someone is running an application that is hogging the bandwidth, I can simply restrict their access.”

“We would have had to hire someone full-time in order to keep up with the high levels of spam and viruses we were tackling every day,” continued Rickard. “The total cost of the NG Firewall deployments are a fraction of the cost of a full-time employee.” NG Firewall’s Reports and Dashboard also allow Rickard to easily customize his own reports to provide visibility into what is important to him. Moving forward, Rickard plans to customize more rules and policies for each of the departments.