Need help: small business opened second location

[SpaceHulk]

OK I work for a small company and they consider me the 'tech guy' even though I don't really know alot and have never been properly trained. We have been growing like crazy lately and I set-up a small office LAN. No big deal just a router and a 16 port switch and this nice little netwok drive WD-NetCenter. Everyone loves having a centralized location for files.
We just opened up a new location 8 miles away and the users that are moving would like access to the files on the Netcenter.

How do I do that?

I was thinking to give users direct access to that somehow and have a shortcut on their desktop to access the files. Is there a way to set-up FTP on that drive or do I need to set up some sort of server for that? Anyway, I'm just thinking out loud and have no clue. Please help me if you can.

Thanks.

 

[Cloud Strife]

I think you'd need to create a VPN of some sort to securely access the netcenter. Sorry I can't give you anymore help. My networking knowledge is limited by my lack of experience.

 

[JackMDS]

LOL. When you look at the page of the WD-NetCenter to can see that it was written by Hard Drive people, and not Network personal.

There is Not enough info concerning the device especially no reliable indication of the server and security capacity of the device.

For business purposes, you need a device that has an SFTP (Secure FTP) server on it so that the remote connections would be fast and safe.

If you do not have VPN End point or similar arrangement for VPN, this product might help.

http://www.southrivertech.com/products/webdrive/index.html

:sun:

 

[RebateMonger]

There's several ways to do this, including:

1) Site-to-site VPN
2) Client-to-site VPN
3) FTP
4) Web-based file access (such as Windows SharePoint Services)
5) Terminal Services (Remote Desktop or Terminal Server)

The best choice will depend on how you want to control the files, the file sizes, and what types of files they are. Access to databases, for instance, generally requires different access methods than access to word processing documents.

If you are "growing like crazy", you might want to check out a Server. You'll find it easier to start doing your IT properly than to try to fix it later on. You can read about MS's Small Business Server 2003 on Microsoft's site. This would give you full VPN capability, as well as automated backups, your own email system, and the ability to control security on all your computers.

SBS gives you a jillion ways to share information (and not just files) safely between those two offices. It'll even protect you against accidental deletion or overwrites of your files. And the cost is low, especially compared to what it costs to set up that second office!

No matter what you decide, BE SURE to put somebody in charge of backing up your data on a regular basis and keeping some of those backups offsite. You don't want to lose your entire business when that WD drive fails.

 

[SpaceHulk]

Thanks for the advice to everyone above. I think eventually we will need a server. Accounting already has asked about a real-time inventory system and that may require a server. Also, htey would like to put their accounting software on a server so multiple people can access it at once.

How easy is Small businees server 2003 to implement and maintain? I have been a computer enthusiast for 12 years but have no networking (Ok, I do have plenty of peer-to-peer experience) or server experience. Is this something that is going to require us to hire a tech?

Other options
VPN - how do I set that up? Is that using some 3rd party software? This project doesn't have a budget, I can get one once I put together costs.

Terminal services. I've used this in the past and actually use it at home now to control a HTPC; but I don't think it's feasable here. We need something easy where certain folders show up on peoples desktop and can click and open edit and drag files. There is no need for any type of database or any other performance sensitive application just file sharing of word, pdf, and excel files.

Sharepoint services - I have to look into, is this just some form of web based storage?

Thanks for the help so far.

 

[RebateMonger]

Things like accounting are one reason I mentioned a Server. The Server solves a bunch of problems all at once, whereas an FTP site only solves a single problem.

A client-to-site VPN (where each client logs in separately) can be done using either a hardware VPN router (you can get Netgear boxes for less than $100), or through a Server (like SBS).

Once a client is connected through the VPN, they will be able to access resources (computers, drives, printers, etc.) on the remote network.

A site-to-site VPN is done with TWO hardware VPN routers, or with two Servers, and automatically keeps both networks connected. You can make this a one-way or two-way connection.

Understand that I am biased (I do IT consulting for a living)......but, in my opinion, installing and maintaining a Server (ANY Server) is best done by an IT professional. But you don't have to hire anybody. It's definitely NOT a full-time job. Many small businesses use local IT consultants who can manage your server remotely.

SBS is NOT timeconsuming or "difficult" to manage. But, like any Server, it needs to be monitored and properly cared for. The computer world is getting vicious, and can be unforgiving of security or configuration mistakes. A qualified consultant will also make sure that you have suitable security settings on all your PCs, that passwords are done safely, and that a backup and disaster recovery plan is implemented.

If you want to do it yourself, Harry Brelsford's SBS Best Practices book is great. I HIGHLY recommend reading it thoroughly. But, frankly, a lot of the security and configuration stuff would be best done by a professional.

SharePoint Services is a web-based information sharing site you get as part of Windows Server and SBS Server. It allows things like announcements, calendars, shared folders, document version control and check-in/check-out of documents (so you don't have multiple people making changes to the same document at the same time). Everybody on your VPN would be able to access and use SharePoint.

 

[Tsaico]

You should seriously consider RebateMonger's suggestions. Not only is it cost effective (accouting will love that) but it relatively easy to deploy. There are some intricatcies that you may want to have your local consultant keep an eye on, as it is generally a bad idea to use a live production server as your training ground, but the wizards do a so so job on setting you up with everything you need. You will just have to be ready to have all the information such as static IPs, domain name, and everything else that is listed in the prep list.

Though I personally like the Gateway to Gateway VPN. I have found that for the most part, my users, (about 800 over three companies) are generally dumb, and cannot handle the idea of how to check their vpn connection is alive or not. It more or less takes the user out of the status of the connection, wich works for me and them.

If you have the budget, I would get both. The SBS to handle your domain functions, and the two gateway VPN devices to handle your remote office connectivity to the remote network. But as rebateMonger said, it would be a good idea to have an outside consultant come in to do the setup and you do the day to day stuff. You don't need to learn a lot to get it working, but you will have to learn a lot to keep it secure and reliable. WHile you may not have sensitive information, cleaning up worms and viruses is no easy task, no matter what the environment. Or even if a hacker then uses your site a depository for his crap.

(I had one site call me up for the first time, explaining they just put in a new server, one of the company's employee's son had set everything up. Next thing they know, the internet is slow and all the network is crawling. Turns out their only domain controller got hacked, and some guy was using their workstations and server and bandwidth to distribute music and movies to anyone who connected, esentially killing their network for practical uses.)

 

[SpaceHulk]

OK, I think I will have a consultant come take a walk through to see what we need. But before we get that rolling, I would like to try this VPN thing out. I checked out the router we have at the location #1 (where the NetCenter drive is) and it is a D-Link 704UP. It has VPN capabilities.

I'll try to get VPN up on that end so the remote users can access those files; but I am not confifent as I have no idea the ports or protocols the netcenter is using.

 

[RebateMonger]

That router will not serve as a VPN endpoint.

This is an example of a router that can act as a VPN Server.