If you’re an IT manager or director, you probably have heard of Faronics.  If not, then the name probably sounds more like a colon-cleanse product you’d see on the shelf of a RiteAid or Walgreens more than an IT company. This blog post will be short and sweet in order to quickly inform because having an even basic knowledge what’s out there from a company like Faronics in terms of security and protecting your IT assets is helpful to any CEO, CFO, entrepreneur – as well as any staff member within your organization.

Were you aware that there is software out there that can literally make your computer (desktop, notebook, etc.) literally bullet-proof in terms of  protecting it from, for lack of a more technical description, getting screwed up? We’ve all been there – spyware, malware, viruses, corruption, software conflicts, blue screens of death, hanging (freezing), etc. Sound familiar?

There is software from a company called Faronics (faronics.com) and their mainstay is a product called “Deep Freeze”. It is often used for public computers (libraries, etc.), kiosks, etc. – but this and other products like it allow you to literally surf at will (download the latest Justin Beiber soundtracks, screen savers, apps, and more) and install 50 different trial versions of software apps – then upon rebooting the computer – they’re gone! The machine “resets” back to a clean state from when you first “froze” it. 

The uses are nearly endless, as I’m sure you could imagine. This type of “protection layer” along with others such as firewalls with content filtering (that means the firewall stops web sites with bad content from ever making it through to computers on your network) are all part of not only securing your network and devices – but also a major consideration when it comes to lowering your annual IT management costs.

Think of this type of application and others each as a different layer, just like an onion – each layer handles and protects or secures a different aspect of your systems, files and flow of data – making sure that only those “pieces” that need to be dynamic in nature such as databases, Word documents, spreadsheets, etc. – are the only pieces of data that multiply and get created and modified on your computer systems. The hardware devices (computers, laptops, phones, etc.) where those pieces of data reside are truly “dumb” pieces of equipment that allow you to open, edit and save those pieces of data.  So the more you can keep your computers fully protected – dare I say, “bullet-proof” from the standpoint of being allowed to fail or have problems – the more effectively and efficiently your business will function. Simply put, if your staff members come in every day and never have a single problem with their computers, wouldn’t that save you time and money?

The result is an increase in ROI based not only from the perspective of your IT staff budget, equipment, etc. – but also from the fact that your staff will experience minimal downtime since the answer to nearly all their IT problems is simply:

“Please restart your computer…”

(Then a minute later, your IT staff will hear – “That’s Amazing.  Fixed it!  Thanks!”)

Please realize that I am making this sound extremely simple – and often times it is just that simple. But in more complex environments obviously it gets more complicated and it also becomes a balance of stability versus flexibility based
on staff needs and other considerations. We have seen this type of solution also extend the life of workstations and servers literally years longer than they would otherwise be in use (or at least before requiring a reinstall or operating system/software “reset”).

But regardless of your organization’s specific situation, it is important to realize that products such as these are not only out there, but that they work – and work extremely well. What is also interesting is that after we configure a large network with layered protection as described above, it never fails – the CEO often makes the same observation:

“Wouldn’t this be a great way to protect my computers at home from my kids? They can wreck a machine unknowingly in about 10 minutes.”

Yes.  Yes it can.

I rarely will mention a specific company or tout a product but Faronics is a company that has focused on a specific niche of products and there are not many companies that compete or match their suite of offerings (but always competitors
that offer similar solutions such as from Symantec, etc.). For those interested, I have listed their web site below along with links to some white papers and case studies.

Regardless of whether you utilize their products or from any vendor, the key is to know that simply put, there are ways to “lock down” your systems and get close to a truly bullet-proof IT environment.

Feel free to check out the following products and white papers:

DEEP FREEZE -- We call this one the "silver bullet" as can seriously make a computer system bulletproof (both standard and enterprise versions).  Allows you to "Freeze" a computer where a simple reboot fixes everything.

ANTI-EXECUTABLE -- Stops any programs/applications from running that aren't considered "safe" (standard, enterprise and server versions).  Typically will require more involvement and experience to implement but more flexible in terms of not requiring "freezing" of a computer.

You can also access case studies and tech white papers.