University of Windsor Selects Ericom to Deliver Remote Access to Applications as Part of Virtualized Learning Initiatives

By AIT News Desk On Oct 13, 2020

Impact of COVID-19 Required Public University to Provide Students and Faculty with Simple, Secure Browser-Based Access to Applications

Ericom Software, a leader in secure web and application access solutions, announced that the University of Windsor selected and deployed Ericom Connect to deliver secure remote access to physical computers and applications as part of the institution’s response to delivering secure virtual learning requirements. The University of Windsor is a comprehensive, student-focused higher education institution with over 16,000 students.

Earlier this year, with the spring semester coming to a close and the pandemic beginning to force public lockdowns, faculty and staff defined the need for a robust virtual desktop infrastructure that could support their upcoming distance learning requirements, beginning with their summer semester. As they began to search for solutions to meet their needs, they quickly discovered that it would be extremely challenging to meet their timelines, even with a significant investment of resources.

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Marcin Pulcer, University of Windsor’s Assistant Director of Information Technology Services, led the team’s effort, and was focused on finding a reliable, scalable remote access platform that didn’t require a large-scale investment and could be integrated into the university’s IT infrastructure quickly and easily. Fortunately, a peer at one of the largest public universities in the US who relies on the Ericom Connect remote access platform to support 100,000-plus students and faculty referred him to Ericom.

“Simplicity was the key to our deployment of Ericom Connect,” said Pulcer. “As soon as we made our decision to work with Ericom, we downloaded the full-featured trial version of Ericom Connect and had it installed and deployed to our users in a couple of hours. What additionally sold us was how responsive the Ericom team was on such a tight schedule.”

In the short term, the university needed a solution capable of supporting specialized software and applications used in a broad range of undergraduate and graduate engineering programs. Prior to Ericom Connect, Pulcer was scheduling access to computers in a highly specialized lab environment. “It was a time-consuming, inefficient process,” Pulcer explained.

Ericom Connect provides secure, centrally managed access to both Windows and Linux applications and desktops, from any device. From a single platform, Ericom Connect offers enterprise-level functionality, along with a superior user experience. Combining the benefits of advanced grid technology and robust connection brokering, Ericom Connect is cloud-ready, and offers high availability, scalability and enhanced performance. Additionally, IT admins can enable users to securely access on-campus desktops and lab resources, without having to install software directly on either desktops or students’ remote devices.

“The pandemic has forced schools at every level, including institutions like the University of Windsor, to launch virtual learning environments,” said James Lui, Ericom Group CTO, Americas. “Simplicity and scalability are key in delivering a consistent remote access experience. And, with the increase in cyberattacks on higher learning institutions, security is more important than ever. Ericom Connect delivers on all of these requirements.”

Added Pulcer, “Ericom Connect is giving students, teachers, and technicians secure remote access to the applications they need from a broad range of devices. We are extremely pleased with the performance and have since recommended it to other peer learning institutions.”