Integrated video conferencing and remote access to desktop PCs
Video conferences and remote access to desktop PCs integrated
The collaboration solution EGroupware now offers a module for video conferences with the integration of “Jitsi”. The new module “Guacamole” provides a full-fledged home office workplace by accessing the company PC via web browser.
Video conferences with EGroupware 19.1
Kaiserslautern, 24.04.2020 – With Jitsi, it is very easy to hold video conferences with colleagues at home or in the home office and with external parties. Via the status bar, EGroupware users can see who is online. With these employees, ad hoc virtual meetings can be arranged. For others and contacts outside the groupware circle who are not online, invitations can be sent out from EGroupware and conference appointments can be arranged.
External participants will receive an e-mail with a link to join the conference. The data connection is encrypted, and as long as the server is located in Germany, there are no data protection concerns. No additional tool is required. Jitsi runs in a web browser.
Parallel to the video conference, other EGroupware modules for chat, document exchange and editing (Collabora Online) etcetera can be used.
The Jitsi extension is part of the maintenance update 19.1.20200409 of EGroupware. For its users – in the community like the
Professional version – the EGroupware GmbH and IONOS Cloud offer a jitsi server in Frankfurt, which will be available free of charge during the Corona crisis until the end of June 2020. If you have already set up Jitsi on your own server, you can simply add it to EGroupware.
Working in the home office is only possible to a limited extent in many places. For one thing, the desktops or notebooks available there do not have the performance of the end devices in the offices. And for another, it is neither possible nor desirable to set up VPN connections for all external systems. Therefore EGroupware GmbH has additionally made the module Guacamole directly from the collaboration software usable.
With Guacamole complex applications can be transferred to the browser of weaker PCs and used there. This also eliminates license cost issues for specialized applications on local PCs in the home office. It is therefore more than just screen sharing or remote maintenance as with TeamViewer, but rather full access to desktop PCs as with Citrix Virtual Apps or Parallels RAS. It is up to the administrators to determine which users should have access to which desktops and which security levels, for example two-factor authentication, are required for this.
Jitsi and Guacamole are open source like EGroupware. It is therefore possible for users with their own IT environment to adapt the applications to their own requirements and to extend them if necessary. EGroupware GmbH offers assistance with installation and support. The sponsored Jitsi Server is already preconfigured on all EGroupware installations.
If you have questions about EGroupware, you can always contact our team!
With kind regards from Kaiserslautern
EGroupware GmbH
