Computerworld - IT managers say the biggest advantage of an SSL VPN lies in its ability to relieve the headaches they face in supporting users of traditional VPNs.
Brian Dennis Gaon, manager, IT security at North Shore -- Long Island Jewish Health System, says supporting IPsec VPN client software on machines belonging to thousands of doctors and clinicians was a "huge effort," and the VPN client software was almost always at the root of problems. An EX-1500 SSL VPN appliance from Aventail has significantly reduced calls to the help desk. "There is no client software," Gaon says, and the new VPN now handles 80% of the organization's remote access needs.
Anne Winder, webmaster at Quidel Corp., a San Diego-based medical diagnostics provider, says shifting users from a traditional VPN to an SSL appliance from Emeryville, Calif.-based SafeWeb Inc. cut support-call volume by 30% after a partial rollout. Quidel now plans to offer SSL VPN access companywide. But the implementation isn't entirely clientless: It uses downloadable ActiveX components for access to the company's e-mail, file servers and Web applications, she says.
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