Keeping Malware Off the Network

Orthopaedic Associates of Grand Rapids

Industry: Healthcare
Network Size: 250 users

“Stuff just gets picked up and zapped”

Background

The Orthopaedic Associates of Grand Rapids, Michigan, is a local business with a large network. OAGR has twenty four specialist orthopaedic physicians and a total staff of 250 employees spread over three offices. The network manager, Jason Zeinstra, runs thirty servers.

“My team is under a lot of pressure,” says Jason. “When a problem needs fixing it’s a case of ‘it has to be done today’. Back before we had Untangle that kind of turnaround demand could be very tough. If we had a workstation that was infected it could take four hours to rebuild.”

Threats Shift To The Web

As malware on the web became more widespread, OAGR found its network exposed to this new risk. After a couple of computers got gummed up with adware, OAGR quickly added additional layers of security, including Untangle.

“That kind of thing just isn’t an issue anymore – stuff just gets picked up and zapped,” says Jason. “The other big advantage of Untangle is spam management. That used to be a big time-eater, too, but now it’s just not a problem.”

Easy To Learn

Jason manages a multi-site implementation of Untangle, with an Untangle server at each of OAGRs three main locations. “For somebody running a large network, Untangle is just a great tool,” says Jason. “When we first installed it, I found the whole thing a very easy learning curve. It has a really nice GUI. For anyone with even a basic knowledge of firewalls, it really is simple. I’d say that anyone could pick it up inside a day. I mean, I was untrained on Untangle, but I just loaded it all up and figured it out with no issues.”

Jason finds that Untangle’s reporting and monitoring features come in handy, too. “sometimes there’s an issue with email going astray or not getting delivered or whatever. With Untangle  everything is clear and traceable – I can see exactly what has been sent to whom and what’s happened with it. Untangle is simple and secure, but it’s also really flexible – a great tool for a large and busy network!”