Since the outbreak of Covid-19, remote work has become the norm. This year, as Taiwan's infection rate has risen, office workers who test positive must work from home. Although many companies globally have already begun using remote systems for work, many companies, in their rush to undergo digital transformation, have only made do with temporary arrangements or used the wrong systems for remote environments, causing employees to have to solve equipment and security issues on their own. In the long run, this creates hidden damage to both companies and employees, and worse, makes it difficult to retain talent.

[Figure 1] Employees have to figure out how to solve remote work problems themselves (Image source: Pexels Ron Lach)

Jason Cheng (鄭郁霖), a software development consultant at 5xRuby, states that companies must understand the current state of VDI (Virtual Desktop Infrastructure). Do they understand remote systems, or have misconceptions? For companies, safeguarding company resources, protecting business secrets, backing up, remotely correcting errors, being able to review employee remote work operation paths, preventing data theft or photography, and even establishing assessment and audit mechanisms are all critical considerations.

Currently, there are many good remote system products on the market, such as V brand or C brand, which are provided in software form and combined with their virtualization technologies to centrally manage virtual desktops. Although expensive, they are feature-complete and have comprehensive packages. Or like the Korean N brand, which provides hardware client devices combined with software, with weaker functions but much cheaper costs. The lightweight remote control interface SOSI launched by 5xRuby in May this year has high platform integration flexibility. Simply using a browser enables secure connection and use, without even needing to install software, making it fast and convenient.

Some remote system products can only be used with designated software and platforms, or restrict key functions that require payment to unlock. Sometimes you encounter situations where you can only purchase packages but don't use much, which is a burden for small and medium enterprises. How to make correct evaluations when selecting products and not fall into the "package" trap? Looking at recent years with increased focus on security, Jason lists the following seven inspection indicators.

1. 1. What method do the connections and devices that need to be supported use to connect to the remote platform? Review what type of terminal is used for connection.
2. 2. What operating systems and connection methods can the VDI backend host that accepts connections support?
3. 3. What authentication methods are supported, such as whether external AD, LDAP, etc. require two-factor authentication.
4. 4. Does it support screen recording to completely record users' operation screens?
5. 5. Does it support keystroke recording to completely record users' keystroke behavior?
6. 6. Can it support high smoothness, and what FPS capability can it support?
7. 7. What virtual management platforms can it be combined with, and can it support multiple options with compatibility?

Before purchasing remote system products, companies can use these questions as a benchmark to screen and compare products. Eddie Kao, co-founder of 5xRuby, states that SOSI has all the above support points. It not only lacks the cumbersome architecture of traditional VDI but can also bring an intuitive operating experience to new generation users. If companies are interested in learning more, they may consider consulting first.

[Figure 2] Jason Cheng, 5xRuby Software Development Consultant (Photo source: 5xRuby Software Development Consultant Jason )

※This article is also published on the development team's "5xRuby Software Development" company press release※

Company Profile

5xRuby Co., Ltd. was established in 2014 and is one of Taiwan's most representative companies proficient in the Ruby programming language. The company provides web services primarily based on the Ruby on Rails development framework. Brand clients are distributed across Taiwan, Singapore, and Japan. The company has assisted overseas startups in developing cross-border e-commerce services, successfully raising Series A funding, and has also developed proprietary apps and website services for many publicly listed companies in Taiwan. The company provides technical consulting and enterprise technical advisory services for brands, completely establishing a solid web development foundation for brands and providing professional Internet solutions.