GeNUBox
Encrypted Data Transfer via all Networks and Satellite
GeNUBoxes are installed at each end point in the maintenance connection, i.e. at the manufacturer’s service center and on the customer’s machinery. If maintenance work is required, the boxes connect to a strongly encrypted and authenticated Virtual Private Network (VPN). If maintenance work is required, the boxes connect to a strongly encrypted and authenticated Virtual Private Network (VPN) using all of the methods currently available, from Ethernet, DSL, and ISDN to analog lines and mobile radio, and even via satellite. Via this secure connection the data from the machine are then accessed, and control commands are issued.
Remote maintenance for marine diesel engines at sea
If no terrestrial network is available and the connection has to be made via satellite, the GeNUBox increases the speed of the data transfer – a special traffic optimization feature for satellite communications allows TCP data to be transferred at up to 20 times the normal speed. This means you can get transfer rates above the nominal bandwidth on the satellite path without the risk of data loss, saving you time and considerable costs.
Platform for Intelligent Remote Maintenance
You will benefit from the intelligence of our solution for the on-site monitoring of your machinery. To do so, we have installed useful remote maintenance applications on the GeNUBox, that will work directly with your machinery’s PLC. For example, these applications can access, save, and compress data and send it to the service center at a given time via VPN.
In addition, you can also get the box to carry out other tasks on location: The application platform has space for individual applications that enable your machinery to be monitored, serviced, or controlled precisely in accordance with your requirements. We will be happy to assist you in implementing a customized solution. In addition, the GeNUBox features a firewall. If maintenance work is required, the appliance segregates the particular machine from the remaining network. Thus the maintenance connection affects exclusively the machine - accesses to other network areas or systems are impossible.
Easy Administration via a Central Management Station
The GeNUBox is administrated via its local GUI or the Central Management Station GeNUCenter, making it easy for you to operate installations of any size. E.g. for a machine manufacturer, this means you can monitor your installations all over the world via remote access, with minimal outlay and from the comfort of your main office. Your customers will be sure to appreciate this prompt and cost-efficient service.
Caution: Remote Access is a Threat to IT Security
Companies with a large number of machines on the one hand, and providers of remote maintenance on the other, are faced with the need to set up an increasing number of remote maintenance connections. In doing this, they must bear in mind that most of the machines being monitored are integrated in local area networks (LANs).
This means remote maintenance service providers need to have access to external company networks. This touches directly on the sensitive area of IT security: If unauthorized persons or malicious codes manage to hack into the LAN via this maintenance access, this can have serious consequences – not least for the relationship between the remote maintenance provider and the customer.
Secure Connection – Rendezvous in the DMZ
GeNUA has developed a solution that allows you to keep a close eye on all maintenance access. The concept: One-way access to external networks is not permitted. Instead, at an agreed time, the remote maintenance provider and the customer create VPN connections to a server in a demilitarized zone (DMZ), i.e. outside their own networks. The customer or the service provider can place this server in his DMZ. A continuous connection is created only once the rendezvous has been established on the server. This connection now allows the remote maintenance provider to access the machine that is being monitored. In this process, the maintenance connection allows access only to the machine being monitored, since the GeNUBox uses its firewall function to isolate this area from the rest of the LAN.
In addition, all activity is logged, so that access can be traced at all times. This rendezvous solution makes it possible for both service providers and companies with a large number of machines to operate as many remote maintenance connections as they like, conveniently and with the highest level of security.
Industrial Hardware for the Toughest Conditions
Various hardware models permit the use of GeNUBox in any environment: Compact appliance without any fans or shock-sensitive hard drives are completely maintenance-free, and will perform reliably even under the toughest enviromental conditions. This industrial hardware can easily be installed on DIN rails, used in server racks, or run as standalone solutions. More powerful rack server systems are available for higher requirements. Systems can be clustered for high availability solutions. If one system fails, the other takes over its functions immediately, guaranteeing uninterrupted operation.
