Industry: Financial Services

Average Network Size: 60 users

“After some research, I decided that Untangle was the most attractive appliance available today.”

Background

The Bank of New Glarus and Sugar River Banks in New Glarus, Wisconsin was founded in 1893 with $12,000 in opening capital. An independent bank providing financial guidance and solutions, the Bank honors its hometown heritage by providing exceptional customer service to the people and communities it serves.

IT veteran Jeff Armstrong has spent the last six years of his eighteen year career in financial services IT. He joined the Bank six months ago and began looking at the infrastructure in place to serve the six area locations.

Multiple Sites, Multiple Headaches

After evaluating the Bank’s network, Jeff quickly realized that he needed to decrease costs while optimizing bandwidth usage. Site-to-site VPN needed to be robust, redundant and managed. Finally, he knew he needed to control access to web content and protect desktops from viruses, phishing and other malware and exploits.

A Solution that Just Works

Jeff learned about Untangle from a former colleague who was already a fan. He looked at both Untangle’s software-only and appliance solutions. Though Jeff has the expertise to configure his own hardware, he chose the Untangle u10 for its ease of use. “I like the minimal work up front to install the appliance in my network,” said Jeff. “The two u10s we’ve purchased so far have saved me time and money – and will continue to do so.”

“I needed a solution that will decrease the complexity of managing the network for my team,” said Jeff. “I can’t be everywhere at once. I wanted my team to be able to learn quickly, self-serve, and not have to deal with learning a command line interface.” Jeff continued, “Untangle is a point-and-click solution that has made my day-to-day tasks easier. My team has been able to work on the Untangle without needing me every time.”

“The pair of u10s have paid for themselves many times over,” said Jeff. “The devices are running flawlessly. I’m very happy with my decision.”

Average Network Size: 250 people, 200 desktops

”Untangle is a polished product, cost effective, and offers so much in the package. It also complements other products we have in place.”

Background

Robert Hitchcock is the Network Administrator with First Community Federal Credit Union (FCFCU), serving the Kalamazoo area of Southwest Michigan, the Downriver area of Detroit, Michigan, and, as First American Credit Union, four counties in the Beloit, Wisconsin area. FCFCU is a nationally accredited, non-profit organization serving the financial services needs of community residents.

In his nearly two years with FCFCU, Robert has inventoried and improved the network infrastructure as well as maintained the workstations of employees. His days involve everything from setting up new branch offices to helping the CEO with her laptop. In addition to juggling diverse responsibilities, Robert is responsible for selecting new technologies for FCFCU.

Audits and Overhead

FCFCU was unhappy with its Websense solution. It was expensive and cumbersome. Furthermore, as a financial institution, FCFCU needs to comply with stringent information security audits throughout the year. Robert knew he needed a gateway solution that supplemented client antivirus as well as provided granular web filtering in order to be in compliance during the audit cycle. Robert, a longtime open source advocate, turned to Untangle as a way to reduce costs and complexity, as well as meet the gateway requirements recommended by third party security auditors.

Compliant and Cost-Effective

Robert decided to put Untangle Lite onto his own hardware, then supplement with paid apps: Directory Connector, Policy Manager and Web Filter. He then put Untangle inline in transparent bridge mode behind his firewall. “The cost of one year of Websense is more than what I will spend on all three regions and subscriptions with Untangle,” said Robert. “It’s a huge cost savings and a very comparable product. I really like that Untangle offers extra modules that enhance the free products. I can buy only what I need, when I need it. Untangle provides top notch services at a reduced cost compared to others in the market.”

Ease of use has also improved. “Untangle has allowed me to investigate incidents more quickly. I’m able to log activities on my network and review them easily, which saves me time and energy researching issues. It’s often more readable than firewall syslogs,” said Robert.

Robert also saved time by avoiding a steep learning curve. “The interface is great, and it’s easy use when diagnosing a problem,” said Robert. “Teaching colleagues to use Untangle has also been very easy.” As an open source supporter, Robert likes that Untangle is developed by the engineers and community that use it. He finds the self-serve wiki and forums to be very helpful – so much so that he didn’t need to call Untangle support when he needed help to fix an issue.

”Untangle is a polished product, cost effective, and offers so much in the package. It also complements other products we have in place,” said Robert. “Untangle is like getting a cake with extra frosting on top. The cake itself is great, but all the extras you get with Untangle make it even better.”

Software

Appliances

All prices are list price in U.S. dollars and are exclusive of applicable tax and shipping charges.

All current customers will renew at the lower of the current price or the new price in the table above. Prices are effective for new customers beginning May 1, 2013.

All current software-only subscribers to Standard or Premium in the 51-150 user band will be given an extension of one free month for each year of their subscription term as price protection. Annual subscribers get 1 month. 2-year subscribers get 2 months. 3-year subscribers get 3 months.

NOTE: No other price adjustments will be made.

If you are quoting an appliance with a cold spare or extended warranty to close after May 1, please contact sales@untangle.com to help determine the total price.

Please contact sales@untangle.com with any questions.

The rise of consumer mobile computing devices such as tablets and smartphones has lead to an increase in their use on private networks owned by businesses, schools, non-profit and government entities. Network administrators must balance the risks and rewards of allowing employee and visitor computing devices through their doors and onto their networks. Let’s take a look at some of the challenges associated with BYOD and how Untangle can help.

Rewards

The BYOD revolution is being fueled by the flexibility and power of mobile computing. Suddenly, employees and students can be more productive – accessing email and apps anytime, anywhere – with a mobile device. This makes for a win-win situation, lowering organizational costs and increasing end user delight. It also allows greater choice in device type, whether users are simply more comfortable on iOS or Android; tablet, phablet or phone. Finally, it also theoretically cuts down on mobile device management (MDM) for organization-issued devices, relieving a time sink for IT.

Risks

The flip side of BYOD is hidden risks and their related costs which must be factored in to any evaluation of a BYOD program.

• Ability to bypass network policy rules that are only enforced on wired LANs.
• Inappropriate content being available onsite even if the device never meets the network.
• Once the device does meet the network, it brings all its vulnerabilities with it. Malicious apps and other malware may be present. Rootkits/jailbreaking can open doors.
• Productivity and bandwidth drains. Social media, gaming, video and other sites and apps can consume end user time as well as network resources.
• Data leakage and endpoint security issues. In the age of USB sticks, Dropbox and cloud backups, mobile devices are insecure endpoints with cloud connectivity. Devices may carry confidential and proprietary information, particularly after syncing with organizational email or other apps. A lost device can cause unlimited exposure.
• Mixing personal and private data. Sharing a device for personal and organizational use can blur the lines of demarcation. Some organizations with strict endpoint security may even choose partial or total remote wipes in the event of emergency, causing a loss of personal data.
• Tech support headaches. Where IT control ends, tech support headaches begin. Levels of help desk support for BYOD devices must be determined and communicated to end users.

Solutions

The most important thing an organization can do is to develop and articulate a position around BYOD. Ignoring it won’t make it go away. Instead, bring together stakeholders from IT, legal, finance and compliance within an organization to weigh the pros and cons of BYOD within your specific context, then clearly define a policy. Evangelize it with end user education and communication – again and again.

The next piece of the puzzle it to figure out how to manage the point where BYOD devices meet your network. Untangle’s Captive Portal can help. Create a device-specific rack that’s more locked down than the rack you use for trusted, organization-owned LAN devices (that are hopefully audited and have client software protecting them).

• Captive pages can be displayed by operating system and/or device type.
• Show different captive portal pages to wireless and wired users.
• Only show a captive portal page if the user is not already known via some other method (like the Active Directory Login Script).

Revisit, Refine

BYOD is here to stay. The worst policy is no policy at all. Starting where the device meets your network is a safe and sane strategy, but your organization will need to review its policies and evolve as technology and use cases evolve. Leading the discussion will get your organization into the BYOD mindset as it ascends the adoption curve.

– Amy

Captive Portal receives an entirely new implementation in Untangle 9.4. Captive Portal’s role in Untangle’s offering is growing more important in several key markets including hospitality and retail alongside established verticals like education and small/medium business. Despite adding new features and functionality to Captive Portal, Untangle has also made it simpler and easier to maintain. Captive Portal is now part of Untangle’s Integrated Rules Engine (IRE) and can address critical use cases frequently requested by customers:

• Separate mobile devices to a different rack with different policies for BYOD (bring your own device) environments. Captive pages can be displayed by operating system and/or device type.
• Show different captive portal pages to wireless and wired users.
• Only show a captive portal page if the user is not already known via some other method (like the Active Directory Login Script).
• Show a warning page when the user goes over quota or is added to the penalty box for bad behavior.
• Have special captive pages for specific sites.
• Enable custom integrations from acknowledging Acceptable Use Policies (AUP) to accepting payments for wi-fi hotspot access.

Untangle also provides a custom captive page format utilizing Python, a popular programming language, allowing administrators to integrate visual and functional changes as well as enable custom integrations.

Untangle 9.4 Community Webinar

Dirk Morris, VP, Products and Co-Founder of Untangle, will demonstrate Untangle 9.4 at 10:00 a.m. Pacific on Thursday, January 17, 2013.

About Untangle

Untangle, a network software and appliance company, provides the most complete multi-function firewall and Internet management application suite available today. Designed to meet the network policy demands of organizations large and small, Untangle’s award-winning software now ships on easy-to-deploy appliances. Untangle’s proven network software solutions are installed in over 30,000 organizations, protecting more than 2 million people and their computers. With its try-before-you-buy approach, Untangle enables organizations to take control of their network within minutes and at no risk. Untangle is located in Sunnyvale, California. For more information, visit untangle.com or call (866) 233-2296.

We’ve all said it. It’s said in moment of desperation when trying to figure out why something is not working.
While this technique may have its place, a closer examination shows it to be an inefficient way to troubleshoot an issue.

Let’s look at some example problems. You walk outside in the morning to go to work, and your car doesn’t start. Uh oh. You’re gonna be late. Do you ask yourself “What’s changed?” Of course you don’t. It doesn’t provide any useful information about locating the source of the issue. Pretty much everything has changed. The weather is different; maybe it’s colder and the starter doesn’t have the juice to turn the engine. Maybe the battery is now discharged because you left the dome light on. Every component in the car is one day older than it was yesterday and maybe one of them is dead. Likely you’ll check a couple obvious issues, like the battery and fuel level, and if that isn’t it, you’ll likely call for help.

Let’s look at another example. You walk into a room and flip the light switch and the light doesn’t come on. Do you ask yourself “What’s changed?” I highly doubt it. Again, it doesn’t provide any useful information because the number of variables is huge. You’ll probably try another switch. You may try another light bulb, or check that other things on that power circuit are getting power. If those don’t work you’ll probably call someone to help.

Now let’s look at an example in the virtual world. You sit down at your desk in the morning, launch your favorite email client, and discover that it just throws an obscure error and refuses to start. Do you ask yourself “What’s changed?” Most people do!

My theory is that people view software an an enclosed system with no external inputs. As such, people expect it to work forever unless something changes. Unfortunately, this is far from the truth. Firstly, software runs on hardware which is a hidden input/variable into any software system. Your hardware is one day older than it was yesterday. Secondly, most modern applications use the Internet is some fashion; certainly, your email client does. What’s changed on the Internet since yesterday? Pretty much everything. Maybe your router got a new address via DHCP. Maybe your clock is unsynced. Maybe your ISP changed its routes. Maybe your service provider moved the email server. Maybe DNS is resolving differently. Maybe the email server is down or busy.

If you ask yourself “What’s changed?”, then just like our examples in the physical world, the answer set is usually so large that it doesn’t help you isolate any possible causes. If you really think there is only thing that changed, it is likely you are ignoring many inputs/changes because you don’t see any way they changed, or you don’t see how they could relate to your issue.

So how do you go about properly troubleshooting the issue? The first step is to admit that if you find yourself asking, “What’s changed?”, that it is likely because you have no idea where the problem lies and no idea how to go about finding it. The second step is to devise a scientific method to troubleshoot different aspects of the system to isolate and locate the issue. If the second step fails, the third step is to call someone who can help.

“What’s changed?” does have its uses. It is a hack/shortcut that can often lead to a quick answer without having to troubleshoot the issue from the top, but you must recognize it as a shortcut. What you should NOT do is call for help and assert that you know where the issue is because it’s the “only thing that changed.” Also, if you are asking for help on how to troubleshoot the issue, you should NOT skip suggested steps with a response like “The issue couldn’t be there because that hasn’t changed.” Even worse is inventing possible changes and blaming the issue on them. “My email client must have upgraded last night.” You’d be surprised how often people blame issues on events that didn’t even happen.

Here at Untangle, we help customers troubleshoot all kinds of network/internet/computer issues. Please realize that if you overuse the “What’s changed?” technique, it can actually make it harder for us to help you because it means our first task is to disavow you of the idea that you already have the problem isolated to a specific component. This can sometimes be harder than troubleshooting the problem itself!

– Dirk

Tehachapi, California

Industry: Education
Average Network Size: 4,600 students; 450 staff

Background

When Michael Grimes, Network Manager, and his supervisor were evaluating alternatives to their “bulky, expensive” M86 solution, they turned to Untangle. They needed to ensure that students couldn’t keep overriding and routing around their content filters and network policy rules, constantly putting the network at risk. They also needed  a solution that could handle the entire district: three elementary schools, one middle school, one comprehensive high school and an alternative education school which includes continuation high school, adult education, and a home-based independent study program. The solution had to scale, be easy to implement, and be robust. Untangle met those needs – at a fraction of the cost of their previous vendor.

Untangle u500 Appliance

Michael selected an Untangle u500 appliance. Even as a new Untangle user, Michael found the u500 easy to set up and deploy. After familiarizing himself with the applications and settings, he found that he could effectively create policies to handle every user he served: students, teachers, staff and mobile visitors. Michael values the “flexibility with settings and features” that enabled him to “set up groups with specific terms of use.” When using Policy Manager, Michael said, “I find it useful when outside devices are brought onto the campuses. They are automatically given the student racks and the setting keeps threats out.” Before, Michael struggled with logins. “Now, with Untangle and Active Directory, I know exactly who is on and what they are doing at all times,” said Michael. This has allowed him to hone in on any stray computers or users on his network.

Flexibility and Power

Before, Michael struggled to accommodate the needs of teachers and staff with valid reasons for Internet access. Many weren’t technologically savvy, and didn’t understand the risks associated with malware, spyware, phishing and other threats. He wanted to provide them with the tools they needed without exposing his network to unnecessary risks. With Untangle, Michael was “able to provide the best of both worlds” – keeping the network safe, while giving the teachers and staff the freedom to do their jobs.

Lake Park, Minnesota

Industry: Education
Average Network Size:  700 students; 11,000 IP addresses

“Untangle has worked so well, we’re not even considering other vendors.”

Background

When Bob Henderson needed a “fix it and forget it” solution for enforcing network policy, he turned to Untangle. As an open source advocate, Bob was already familiar with Untangle after deploying it in a small business environment. When he joined the Lake Park Audubon School District as Technology Director four years ago, he recommended replacing their failing Lightspeed Systems web filter with Untangle. The “many features and ease of use” of Untangle “are a life saver,” said Bob.

Bandwidth Control

The large, rural district relies on a suboptimal fiber connection and has always struggled with bandwidth issues. At the elementary school level, the network suffered whenever full class lessons were taught in the computer labs. Just thirty concurrent users working on rich media content brought the network to its knees. Not only did Untangle improve download speeds for those students, but it allowed Bob to manage bandwidth fort he rest of the school with ease. “Untangle’s Web Cache saved 8GB of bandwidth off the top,” Bob said.

Saving Time and Money

The district includes a high school with 500 workstations split into four computer labs between two sites, plus 180 laptops and a BYOD policy that allows mobile devices on campus. Bob was constantly faced with issues due to proxying and students using inappropriate web sites and applications. Now that Untangle is in place, Bob can not only block or allow sites and categories, but he can also track usage at any given time down the the individual user. Bob relies so heavily on the insights provided by Untangle Reports that he has installed a large screen in his office to display them. He enjoys seeing the graphs change throughout the day; Untangle helps him keep his finger on the pulse of his network. “Untangle has saved me hours and hours managing the network,” said Bob. “I don’t have to worry about the little things anymore; I can work on the important issues like keeping the students safe online and keeping the network stable for all parties. At a cost 40% less than the previous solution, Untangle paid for itself in less than six months.”

Saying Yes

Untangle is not only useful for blocking inappropriate content, but is also granular enough to allow Bob to say yes to the web content that students, staff and administrators rely on. Previously, the district had blocked YouTube completely. Teachers and students were finding ways around the policy by using proxies or skipping authentication altogether. When Bob installed Untangle, he was able to work with teachers to create a network policy that made sense – and enabled YouTube use that everyone agreed on.

A Solution that Scales

In addition to supporting the needs of students, staff and administrators, Bob also provides public wifi for use during sporting and academic events throughout the school year. He relies on Untangle to provide this service without compromising the performance or safety of his network. “We’ve had up to 4000 people and 36,000 sessions running through Untangle. It works wonderfully and doesn’t miss a beat,” said Bob.

Sunnyvale, Calif., Oct 15, 2012 – Untangle, Inc., a network software and appliance company, today announced the release of a new line of appliances to extend the successful uSeries introduced earlier this year.

The mSeries appliances were designed to meet the needs of medium enterprises and larger educational institutions. The 2-U rack mount devices feature an integrated LCD screen with system status information displays and solid state drives. They ship with SSD-optimized Untangle 9.3, the fastest, most scalable version of Untangle to date. Customers have a choice of Untangle Standard Package or Premium Package, the trusted software application bundles already at work on networks worldwide.

Securing over 30,000 networks and 2 million users worldwide, Untangle® offers best-in-class protection against the threats of viruses, spam, hackers and malware, alongside robust content filtering and application control – everything customers demand from a unified threat management (UTM) device.

Untangle, however, also includes industry-leading performance enhancement capabilities with its Web Cache, Bandwidth Control, WAN Balancer and WAN Failover applications. Untangle also includes remote connection capabilities with its IPsec VPN and Captive Portal applications.

Availability and Pricing

mSeries appliances are available online at untangle.com or through an authorized Untangle reseller. All Untangle appliances are offered with an optional extended warranty and cold spare. Prices start at $13,695.

Appliances are sold with an annual software license, and may be upgraded at any time from Standard to Premium at a pro-rated price. See untangle.com for details.

About Untangle

Untangle, a network software and appliance company, provides the most complete multi-function firewall and Internet management application suite available today. Designed to meet the network policy demands of organizations large and small, Untangle’s award-winning software now ships on easy-to-deploy appliances. Untangle’s proven network software solutions are installed in over 30,000 organizations, protecting more than 2 million people and their computers. With its try-before-you-buy approach, Untangle enables organizations to take control of their network within minutes and at no risk. Untangle is located in Sunnyvale, California. For more information, visit untangle.com or call (866) 233-2296.

PR Contact:
info(at)untangle(dot)com
Untangle, Inc.