Body
This article offers an explanation of accessing company resources from the office or from outside the office, along with related concepts and services.
If you need to quickly jump to specific instructions on connecting with VPN or authenticating through Okta:
- Using VPN to access company resources while remote
- Authenticating through Okta
Overview
When you're in the office, your computer connects directly to internal company resources through a secure, private network. However, accessing these same resources from home, a coffee shop, or anywhere outside the office requires additional steps and security measures. This article explains how network connectivity affects your access to shared files, internal applications, and other company resources - helping you work effectively no matter where you're located.
Company Network
When you connect to the internet at home or in a coffee shop, you're accessing the public internet - a vast network that connects billions of devices worldwide. Your device gets assigned a public IP address and can reach websites and services available to anyone on the internet.
Company networks, often called corporate or private networks, are more like a gated community within the internet. These private networks use their own range of IP addresses, invisible to the outside world. They contain resources only accessible to company devices, like:
- Internal file shares where teams store and share documents
- Private applications hosted by the IT team
- Printers and other shared office equipment
- Database servers containing company data
The company network is protected by firewalls and other security measures that act as gatekeepers, carefully controlling what can enter or leave the network. This creates a secure environment where valuable company data can be stored and accessed by authorized employees.
When you're physically in the office, your computer automatically joins this private company network. However, when you're working remotely, your computer is on the public internet - outside the company's gated community. This is why you need special tools like VPNs to create a secure tunnel back into the company network.
VPN
A Virtual Private Network (VPN) creates a secure, encrypted connection between your computer and the company network - essentially building a private tunnel through the public internet. When you connect to VPN, your computer behaves as if it were physically plugged in at the office, giving you access to all your normal work resources.
Depending on which Wilks Brothers company you're a part of, you'll utilize a different VPN to access the company network remotely:
- Wilks Brothers and related companies: Palo Alto GlobalProtect
- Carbo Ceramics and related companies: Cisco AnyConnect
- MG Bryan: Fortinet Fortigate
Each work similarly, from a user's perspective:
- Install the VPN client on your computer (if you have a company issued laptop we've already done this for you)
- Launch the VPN client on your computer
- Point the VPN to the company gateway (this step is only required the first time you connect, as the VPN client will save this setting)
- Authenticate through Okta
- Once connected, you can access internal resources just like you're in the office
Remember that VPN connections require a stable internet connection. If your internet drops, so too will your VPN connection.