NFC Vault Image

Modernize Remote Access

for a Hybrid Workforce

How can I leverage Amazon S3 to facilitate remote file access?

VPN-Less File Server Access

Unified Mapped Drive Experience

Single Sign-on & Zero Trust

Offline Editing & Caching

Can Amazon S3 solve the remote file access problem?

The most common solution for hybrid employees who need remote file access is to set up VPN (Virtual Private Network) or RDP (Remote Desktop) so that employees who work from home can access file server network shares. If VPN or RDP works for you, that's all good and no big deal. However, if employees are not happy with VPN or RDP, the next solution is usually to migrate the file servers to SharePoint, which works for some, but not all, organizations. The most common issues with migrating to SharePoint are compliance issues, scalability issues with large data sets and legacy application support issues. If you either can not migrate to SharePoint or the migration fails, what do you try next?

In addition to the SharePoint solution, there is also an Amazon S3 File Gateway solution. The great thing about Amazon S3 File Gateway is that it provides backward compatibility through the file server's network share interface. However, accessing Amazon S3 File Gateway from a remote location is an issue. Amazon S3 is also included in the solution mix. Enterprises value Amazon S3's durability and availability, as well as its data classification. However, the problem they have encountered is that Amazon S3 does not provide a cloud file server interface, such as drive mapping, file locking, permission controls, etc.

So how can you turn Amazon S3 into a traditional file server that provides wide-ranging remote file access to support your hybrid workforce?

Remote Access Illustration
Remote Access Illustration

CASE STUDY #1 NFC Vault and AWS File Gateway work hand in hand

A private investment firm deployed AWS File Gateway to address capacity constraints on its on-premises file server. The company had about 8 TB of data, which is close to the limit of an on-premises file server. Therefore, AWS S3 File Gateway was used to move data from the on-premises file server to Amazon S3. Employees at the corporate site can access SMB shares provided by the on-premises file server and the AWS File Gateway appliance (based on a virtual machine). This worked well until the pandemic broke out in 2020. When everyone started working from home, the problem arose that the on-premises file server and AWS File Gateway are all on-premises appliances, which means access is not easy without an enterprise VPN. And a VPN is considered either a security risk (since it exposes the entire network) or inconvenient. So how can you access files from your employees' home offices without a VPN (but the data is in Amazon S3 anyway)? It's certainly not practical to require every employee to install an AWS File Gateway appliance in every home office to meet access requirements. This is where NFC Vault comes in. NFC Vault installs on an Amazon EC2 instance and provides an HTTPS RESTful-based protocol for file access. NFC Vault also has Windows client agents, macOS agents, web browser agents and Active Directory integration. So when employees work from home, they get a mapped drive to the same Amazon S3 bucket provided by AWS File Gateway. In addition, this solution now provides mobile access, offline editing, and file sharing in the web browser with Active Directory identity integration.

CASE STUDY #2 Single Sign-on - NFC Vault/OneLogin integration

A leading sports tour organization produces and distributes videos about sports tournaments. They use Amazon S3 as a great data storage for its availability and durability. Originally, they used TntDrive to map a drive on Windows machines to Amazon S3 and used Adobe Creative Suite to edit the videos. After a while, however, they ran into problems because TntDrive is a client tool that provides direct access to Amazon S3 via a map drive, but does not provide Active Directory integration or file and folder level permissions like NTFS permissions. So you need a file server interface, which NFC Vault can provide. For example, the company uses OneLogin as a single sign-on solution, meaning that each employee logs into the OneLogin portal via a web browser. Within the web browser are application tiles representing Office 365, Sales Force, and other enterprise applications they can use. However, prior to the introduction of NFC Vault, an application tile for "Corporate File Server" was missing. With the NFC Vault/OneLogin integration, the "Corporate File Server" tile is displayed after employees log in to the OneLogin web portal and click through. They see their files and folders (with appropriate permission) and the files and folders are from Amazon S3. Also, employees log in to OneLogin on their desktops using SAML integration and then see a mapped drive representing their Amazon S3 bucket and can then use Adobe Creative Suite to edit files.

Remote Access Illustration

WHAT DO WE DO?

We offer a solution to these problems

VPN ISSUES

Have you spent many hours troubleshooting VPN connections?

MOBILE NEEDS

Do you have employees who work from home and need mobile file access via a web browser?

DATA SPRAWL

Did you have two or more data stores to manage, but they were getting out of control?

IMPLEMENTATION

Have lengthy cloud migrations, additional user training, and compliance regulations held you back?

Amazon S3 lays a perfect foundation for a cloud file server service

NFC Vault and AWS File Gateway Comparison

Understanding when to use each solution or combine them

Both NFC Vault and AWS S3 File Gateway provide a file server interface to Amazon S3 buckets. The key differences determine when to use each solution or combine them. For remote workers, NFC Vault excels. For office workers, AWS File Gateway works well. For hybrid workforces, both can be combined effectively.

VPN-Less File Server Access

AWS File Gateway: Requires local network access or VPN.
NFC Vault: Provides HTTPS RESTful API access from Windows, macOS, web browsers, and mobile apps without VPN.

HTTP Streaming

AWS File Gateway: Uses SMB/NFS protocols.
NFC Vault: Uses HTTPS RESTful API with dedicated clients for all platforms including mobile.

Single Sign-on

Both: Integrate with Active Directory.
NFC Vault: Additionally supports SAML SSO (OneLogin, Okta, Azure AD) and browser-based access with AD permissions.

Offline Editing & Caching

AWS File Gateway: Provides direct active access only.
NFC Vault: Enables offline editing with automatic sync and conflict detection when reconnected.

Access Anywhere

NFC Vault: Native apps for all platforms with WAN optimization.
AWS File Gateway: Limited to local network/VPN with inconsistent VPN support across devices.

Remote Access Illustration

Take Your File Servers to Amazon S3

Are you taking your on-premise file servers to Amazon S3 or bringing Amazon S3 closer to your on-premise file servers? NFC Vault can help you create a hybrid cloud file server solution with a wide range of secure file sharing capabilities. You can use AWS as a file server without giving up your on-premises file server.

NFC Vault adds traditional file server capabilities to Amazon Simple Storage Service (Amazon S3). It also extends existing Windows file servers with cloud features such as secure remote access, mobile file sharing, and data protection to meet the security, privacy, compliance, and control needs of enterprises. Regardless of where your data resides, NFC Vault makes it easy for remote workers to access their data without the need for a virtual private network (VPN). By making NFC Vault available in the AWS Marketplace, billing and initial setup are greatly simplified for AWS customers who want to use NFC Vault to securely and easily access their existing Amazon S3 and Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud (Amazon EC2) data.

How NFC Vault adds a file server interface to S3

Maintaining familiar file access while leveraging cloud storage

Most employees are familiar with drive letters in Windows Explorer representing specific business functions. NFC Vault maintains this interface while connecting to Amazon S3 storage, preserving the familiar user experience while adding cloud benefits.

VPN-Less Drive Mapping

NFC Vault provides a drive letter interface to Amazon S3. Users can see their files and folders from a drive letter mounted in Windows Explorer or macOS Finder applications.

Global File Locking

NFC Vault provides the ability to lock files to facilitate collaboration between multiple users. When a user is editing a file, it's locked to prevent concurrent edits and protect file integrity.

Active Directory & Single Sign-on

NFC Vault integrates with Active Directory and SAML SSO solutions (OneLogin, Okta, Azure AD). After logging into your identity provider, you can access files through a web browser with AD permissions.

Permissions Control

NFC Vault adds folder permissions to protect Amazon S3 files. Permissions can be defined from scratch or imported from existing file servers.

Access Anywhere

NFC Vault has Windows and macOS agents, web browser access, and mobile apps. Devices anywhere can connect to S3 with local caching and WAN optimizations.