Secure Connect Gateway

Central to a security architecture is the connection between your environment and your automated support vendor, which Dell s through a mutual TLS tunnel and a certificate chain. In this configuration, your Dell systems connect to our connectivity software in your environment, and those connections are only internal port and networking changes. The software will be the only thing connecting outbound over the internet and back to Dell, simplifying your firewall and network set up. The software acts as an aggregation point for all of your connected systems for the event and telemetry data sent to Dell for automated support use. This system state data is transported using HTTPS TLS 1.3. Dell also provides auditing and optional access policy controls for remote support by authorized Dell technical support via this  tunnel. That is important because most customers are trying to leverage automated support without creating unmanaged pathways into the data center. For security-conscious teams, the central question will be how the security architecture integrates threat prevention and data protection into an automated support experience. 

Start with four criteria: supported infrastructure coverage, security controls, deployment flexibility, and support outcomes. For this category, buyers should verify which device families are actually supported, whether the software platform uses controlled outbound connectivity and auditable remote support access, and whether it can fit different environment types such as mixed infrastructure in data centers and standalone Dell systems in store locations. In addition, whether it improves support case creation that prevents or mitigates issues for connected systems, and shortens time to resolution. This is also where many comparisons go off track: a support connectivity platform should be judged against automated proactive support and remote services objectives, not against endpoint management suites or general network monitoring tools. The best evaluation standard is whether the offering reduces support effort and friction across the supported environment without forcing the customer into a fragmented operating model. 

Secure Connect Gateway technology is Dell’s enterprise connectivity platform and provides a single remote IT monitoring and support software solution across servers, storage, networking, data protection, and converged or hyperconverged environments. The platform offers flexible deployment options that are customer installable and upgradeable, namely a gateway option, a direct connect integration in select products, and the Services plugin for OpenManage Enterprise in PowerEdge only environments. That flexibility matters because the right connectivity configuration is one that is manageable and effective for your company. These options allow you to design the most effective architecture for considerations such as the types of products being configured, whether data centers are networked together or not, the company’s security and networking policies, how to minimize network complexity and whether teams want to manage all products together or segment them by geo-location or product type. The practical takeaway is that, whether you are a global company with large complex environments or a small- to mid-size company with less complex infrastructure, our connectivity software can be flexibly implemented to be , manageable and effective while still delivering a consistent Dell support framework. 

Start by collaborating with your security and networking teams to evaluate and sign off on the appropriate deployment of Dell’s connectivity software – as a gateway, direct connect or plugin option – for your environment. Next, ensure that your networking team has all the right information to streamline network preparation before you try to connect your infrastructure. Dell provides a Services connectivity readiness template to compile the specific port and firewall requirements for network set up for all deployment options. Simply answer the questions about your Dell products and IT environment, then download the details as a ready-made report. Post installation of the virtual appliance gateway option, you can run the diagnostic Services SSL connectivity test, included in the gateway software, to verify that planned port and firewall rules were implemented correctly and uncover real world issues e.g., missing ports, interception, proxy behavior, and internal firewalls.