Franciscan Missionary Sisters of the Nativity of Our Lady renews its digital workplace infrastructure with Virtual Cable

The Congregation of Franciscan Missionary Sisters of the Nativity of Our Lady (Darderas) It has its roots in the spirituality and charitable assistance movement of the so-called “Secular Congregation of the Nativity of Our Lady”, founded in 1599 at the Bethlehem College of the fathers of the Society of Jesus of Barcelona. This congregation was mainly dedicated to the exercise of charity with the sick at the Hospital of the Holy Cross and prisons.

It is currently dedicated to supporting and caring for the sick and elderly, with a presence in Europe, America and Africa, with 16 offices in total. To improve communication between all centers and the unified management of their workstations, in addition to the security of their IT infrastructure, they have trusted the solution of digital workplace UDS Corporate of Virtual Cablewith the advice of Claranetpartner platinum de Virtual Cable. Mari-Sol GarcíaIT manager at Hermanas Franciscanas, explains to us what the entire process has been like.

(MCPRO) When and why did the Franciscan Sisters Congregation decide
Missionaries of the Nativity of Our Lady implement a workplace virtualization solution?

(Mari-Sol García) In June 2022, we made the decision to renew and modernize our technological environment. Our digital workplace infrastructure based on Microsoft Remote Desktops (RDS) had become obsolete, negatively affecting our users’ experience and making it difficult for our technical team to resolve incidents. The need to improve the security, accessibility and efficiency of our IT infrastructure was the main driver of this transformation.

(MCPRO) How did you find out about UDS Corporate about Virtual Cable and what did the project?

(Mari-Sol García) We learned about UDS Corporate (the version of UDS Enterprise customized for large organizations) thanks to Claranet, a strategic partner of Virtual Cable, which proposed a complete renewal of our remote desktop infrastructure.

We went from a Microsoft Remote Desktops shared service (RDS) to a
VDI model, which has been a significant improvement. Thanks to this change, each user now has dedicated resources, eliminating service degradation problems during times of intensive use. Virtual desktops always remain stable and guarantee optimal performance at all times.

Thanks to the versatility of UDS Corporate, we also provide remote access to Windows computers located in our facilities, offering greater flexibility to users, who can now access their work tools 24×7, from anywhere and through any device with web browser.

(MCPRO) What technologies have you chosen to build your infrastructure?

(Mari-Sol García) We have implemented a virtualization environment based on VMware, with authentication managed through Active Directory.

To facilitate access, we have opted for the RDP protocol and, in addition, we offer the option of accessing via the web using HTML5, which allows agile access from any computer without the need for complicated prior configurations or VPN. This flexibility has been crucial to adapt to the diverse needs of our organization, and to offer our users the possibility of using their own devices, following the BYOD trend.

One of the great advantages of working with Virtual Cable’s digital workplace solution is its compatibility with any third-party technology. This has allowed us to build a completely customized infrastructure, 100% adapted to our specific needs. By being able to seamlessly integrate different technologies, we have achieved a work environment that not only fits perfectly with our current operations, but is also capable of evolving and growing with us in the future, without technological restrictions and avoiding vendor lock. in.

(MCPRO) What role does the solution developed by Virtual Cable play in the organization? What user groups use it and why? do they use it?

(Mari-Sol García) Currently, UDS Corporate is implemented in our eight European headquarters, where our communities of sisters and four care centers for the elderly are located. The departments of Management, Administration, Human Resources and assistance services are the main users.

In the medium term, we plan to extend its use to our centers in America and Africa, where we have eight other health and training centers. This expansion plan reflects the great confidence we have in the solution proposed by Claranet to support the efficiency and security of our operations globally.

(MCPRO) How has the security of your infrastructure improved?

(Mari-Sol García) The transition to VDI has been a huge step forward in terms of security. Now, we are much better protected against threats like ransomware, which previously posed a considerable risk to the availability of our desktops. Thanks to this technology, these threats can be quickly mitigated, recovering service in record time.

In addition, the end-to-end encryption of the Virtual Cable solution guarantees the integrity of data in transit, which travels encrypted. In the event of a security breach, the threat can be easily isolated and resolved by recovering the virtual desktop template for one or all users, without loss of service for the user or productivity for the company.

(MCPRO) What are the main benefits that you would like to highlight?

(Mari-Sol García) In addition to the notable improvement in security, we have experienced a very positive impact on availability, accessibility and usability for the entire organization. The jobs are always kept up to date, which has reduced incidents and improved productivity, generating cost savings associated with less time spent by the IT department and the external technical service.

Likewise, we have observed a considerable improvement in access control and data protection, which gives us greater peace of mind. Access to printers in our different communities and centers has also been optimized. With Virtual Cable’s VDI solution, every time a user logs in, they log in to a new machine, which not only improves agility but also minimizes the risk of security incidents.

The implementation of UDS Corporate has exceeded our expectations. With the help of the Claranet team, we are convinced that this solution will allow us to continue growing and improving our digital workplace infrastructure, not only in Europe but also in other continents where we operate.