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CDW Limited

CDW UKCloud Secure Remote Access

This service allows secure remote access to our elevated platforms for the UK Public Sector, is compliant with GDPR and suitable for remote access to OFFICIAL compute workloads, and based in UK Crown hosting datacentres to ensure data sovereignty.  Our Secure Remote Access is supported, scalable and billed monthly.

Features

  • Multi-tenant NCSC-approved internet Secure remote access VPN solution
  • Compatible with end user platforms: Android, Apple, Linux, Windows
  • Scale remote access on demand. Unrestricted by 3rd party suppliers
  • 24/7 service desk included as standard with SLA response times
  • Assured; UK hosted by SC and NPPV cleared personnel
  • Aligned with NCSC Cloud Security Principles - alternative to AWS
  • Connect over the internet, PSN, Janet or N3/HSCN via UKCloud
  • Optimised for OFFICIAL. Designed for OFFICIAL and OFFICIAL-SENSITIVE
  • Support for Remote Access Workers and Systems Administrators

Benefits

  • Leveraging UKCloud's solutions, reduce your own infrastructure and compliance costs
  • Choose tools that are right for your remote access workforce
  • Self-assure devices, instead of using of inflexible, locked-down managed devices
  • Feel supported to get the best from your application
  • Have confidence in who has remote access to your data
  • Your solutions are on a NCSC best practice cloud
  • Use a certified Remote Access solution - avoiding development costs
  • Supports and enables the Government Digital Strategy
  • Enable BYOD and simplifies 3rd party compliance

Pricing

£5.00 a licence a month

Service documents

Request an accessible format
If you use assistive technology (such as a screen reader) and need versions of these documents in a more accessible format, email the supplier at tenders@uk.cdw.com. Tell them what format you need. It will help if you say what assistive technology you use.

Framework

G-Cloud 13

Service ID

1 4 3 4 8 9 5 1 0 9 4 5 1 8 3

Contact

CDW Limited Andy Wood
Telephone: 0161 837 7744
Email: tenders@uk.cdw.com

Service scope

Service constraints
Planned maintenance windows are identified in the service description
Emergency maintenance windows are identified in the service description
Customers must complete an assurance activity prior to service provision
System requirements
  • Modern browsers that can support flash and
  • Allows downloading of JAVA applets

User support

Email or online ticketing support
Email or online ticketing
Support response times
Tickets are responded to on a priority basis. We aim to respond to ALL initial questions within 15 minutes during normal business hours and High Severity tickets will be answered 24/7
User can manage status and priority of support tickets
Yes
Online ticketing support accessibility
None or don’t know
Phone support
Yes
Phone support availability
24 hours, 7 days a week
Web chat support
Web chat
Web chat support availability
9 to 5 (UK time), Monday to Friday
Web chat support accessibility standard
None or don’t know
How the web chat support is accessible
Slack is accessible via any web browser that supports HTML5 and is also accessible programmatically via its API. Alternatively, Slack can be used via its own desktop client.
Web chat accessibility testing
None
Onsite support
Yes, at extra cost
Support levels
UKCloud's standard support includes Customer Success Managers, Technical Account Managers, Support Engineers and a 24/7 Network Operations Centre. We aim to respond to ALL incidents and requests within 15 minutes 24/7, with a priority on resolving P1 incidents.
Support available to third parties
Yes

Onboarding and offboarding

Getting started
All new customers are assigned a Customer Success Manager that will provide proactive support and advise for the first 90 days. This also includes the assistance from devops and cloud architects to ensure the right solution is provisioned and maximised for the workloads, along with a range of user guides.
Service documentation
Yes
Documentation formats
  • HTML
  • ODF
  • PDF
  • Other
Other documentation formats
  • Video
  • Audio
  • Webinars/Webex
  • Presentations
End-of-contract data extraction
The customer has complete autonomy of how data is stored and managed within their virtual environment. Data can be extracted either from within the VM (for example, copying data over virtual networks), or the entire VM (for example, exporting as a VMDK or OVF).
End-of-contract process
We will return all your data and materials which cannot be deleted or exported by you, and securely destroy all copies of your data on your written instruction.  We will return any pre-paid sums for services not delivered to you. We will not penalise you for terminating your contract with us unless specifically stated in the Service Definition. We will also return all of your confidential information, unless there is a legal requirement that we keep it.

Using the service

Web browser interface
Yes
Using the web interface
We provide a control panel allowing users to provision, manage and decommission various aspects of this service. It also allows users to interface with the UKCloud service management system including raising tickets and requests. The web interface also provides access to a comprehensive set of documentation and videos. Launch, manage and delete virtual network, compute and storage resources. Display network topology. Manage images including creation and recover of backups. Control access and security including key pairs, API access and floating IPs. Manage load balancers.
Web interface accessibility standard
None or don’t know
How the web interface is accessible
The web interface is accessible using the most common web browsers and is delivered over various public and private networks including the internet, PSN, N3/HSCN and Janet. The web interface is protected by standards-based encryption, two-factor authentication and optionally IP address restrictions. The web interface is entirely HTML5 and does not require any auxilary plug-ins, therefore the web interface is accessible by any modern day desktop or mobile internet browser able to support secure HTTPS connections.
Web interface accessibility testing
None
API
Yes
What users can and can't do using the API
You can use API calls to create, manage and monitor Service Requests and view information about the components of your environment. We provide native access to underlying APIs such as vCloud and OpenStack. These are compatible with tools such as Terraform and platforms such as AWS S3.
API automation tools
  • Ansible
  • Chef
  • SaltStack
  • Terraform
  • Puppet
  • Other
Other API automation tools
Jenkins
API documentation
Yes
API documentation formats
  • Open API (also known as Swagger)
  • HTML
  • ODF
  • PDF
Command line interface
Yes
Command line interface compatibility
  • Linux or Unix
  • Windows
  • MacOS
Using the command line interface
Customers can fully manage their virtual infrastructure resources including compute, storage and networking, including management of virtual images, programmatically or manually via the CLI

Scaling

Scaling available
Yes
Scaling type
  • Automatic
  • Manual
Independence of resources
In order to guarantee that users are not affected by the demands from other users, we use resource reservations and shares such as internet bandwidth shaping. In addition, the capacity planning team ensure that usage in terms of all resources are constantly monitored and increased accordingly relating to user demand.
Usage notifications
No

Analytics

Infrastructure or application metrics
Yes
Metrics types
  • CPU
  • Disk
  • Memory
  • Network
  • Number of active instances
  • Other
Other metrics
  • IP Management
  • User quotas
  • Backup status and reporting
  • Vmotion events
Reporting types
  • API access
  • Real-time dashboards
  • Reports on request

Resellers

Supplier type
Reseller providing extra support
Organisation whose services are being resold
UKCloud

Staff security

Staff security clearance
Conforms to BS7858:2019
Government security clearance
Up to Developed Vetting (DV)

Asset protection

Knowledge of data storage and processing locations
Yes
Data storage and processing locations
United Kingdom
User control over data storage and processing locations
Yes
Datacentre security standards
Complies with a recognised standard (for example CSA CCM version 3.0)
Penetration testing frequency
At least every 6 months
Penetration testing approach
‘IT Health Check’ performed by a CHECK service provider
Protecting data at rest
  • Physical access control, complying with CSA CCM v3.0
  • Other
Other data at rest protection approach
Customers are encouraged to protect their own data using encryption technologies where only they have the decryption key. In this way, our customers are assured that their data can never be accessed by a third party.
Data sanitisation process
Yes
Data sanitisation type
  • Explicit overwriting of storage before reallocation
  • Deleted data can’t be directly accessed
  • Hardware containing data is completely destroyed
Equipment disposal approach
Complying with a recognised standard, for example CSA CCM v.30, CAS (Sanitisation) or ISO/IEC 27001

Backup and recovery

Backup and recovery
Yes
What’s backed up
  • The service is able to backup virtual machines and data.
  • Customers can redeploy their entire solution to different UKCloud regions.
Backup controls
Depending on the backup or replication service that the customer chooses, this can be done either via the API or the UKCloud portal
Datacentre setup
Multiple datacentres with disaster recovery
Scheduling backups
Users schedule backups through a web interface
Backup recovery
Users can recover backups themselves, for example through a web interface

Data-in-transit protection

Data protection between buyer and supplier networks
  • Private network or public sector network
  • TLS (version 1.2 or above)
  • IPsec or TLS VPN gateway
  • Bonded fibre optic connections
  • Other
Other protection between networks
We offer the choice of connecting:
• Via the internet using additional encryption such as TLS 1.2
• IPSec VPN tunnels
• Via private networks such as leased lines or MPLS
• Via public sector networks such as PSN, N3, Janet
Data protection within supplier network
  • TLS (version 1.2 or above)
  • Other
Other protection within supplier network
We use dedicated CAS-T circuits between each of our sites to ensure the protection of customer data in-flight. We additionally encrypt this data within our Elevated OFFICIAL platform. All data flows are also subject to our protective monitoring service.

Availability and resilience

Guaranteed availability
99.90%
Approach to resilience
Our service is deployed across a number of sites, regions and zones. Each zone is designed to eliminate single points of failure (such as power, network and hardware). Customers are encouraged to ensure their solution spans multiple sites, regions or zones to ensure service continuity should a failure occur.
Outage reporting
All outages will be reported via the Service Status page and the notifications service within the UKCloud Portal.  Outages are identified as Planned maintenance, Emergency maintenance, and platform issues.  In addition, the designated Technical Account Manager will proactively contact customers as appropriate.

Identity and authentication

User authentication
  • 2-factor authentication
  • Limited access network (for example PSN)
  • Dedicated link (for example VPN)
  • Username or password
  • Other
Other user authentication
For online systems (e.g. Customer Portal & API interfaces), all users are required to have a unique username, password and memorable word combination. Customers may also use 2FA authentication tokens.
Access restrictions in management interfaces and support channels
Customers have the option to raise a support request via telephone or email. UKCloud will always authenticate the identity of the user by validating known phone numbers and asking them for specific characters within their pre-agreed memorable word. The management interfaces are only available on the UKCloud network.
Access restriction testing frequency
At least every 6 months
Management access authentication
2-factor authentication
Devices users manage the service through
  • Dedicated device on a segregated network (providers own provision)
  • Dedicated device on a government network (for example PSN)
  • Dedicated device over multiple services or networks
  • Any device but through a bastion host (a bastion host is a server that provides access to a private network from an external network such as the internet)
  • Directly from any device which may also be used for normal business (for example web browsing or viewing external email)

Audit information for users

Access to user activity audit information
Users contact the support team to get audit information
How long user audit data is stored for
Between 1 month and 6 months
Access to supplier activity audit information
Users contact the support team to get audit information
How long supplier audit data is stored for
Between 1 month and 6 months
How long system logs are stored for
Between 1 month and 6 months

Standards and certifications

ISO/IEC 27001 certification
Yes
Who accredited the ISO/IEC 27001
Lloyds Register (LR)
ISO/IEC 27001 accreditation date
8th May 2021
What the ISO/IEC 27001 doesn’t cover
Nothing
ISO 28000:2007 certification
No
CSA STAR certification
Yes
CSA STAR accreditation date
28th October 2016
CSA STAR certification level
Level 1: CSA STAR Self-Assessment
What the CSA STAR doesn’t cover
Nothing
PCI certification
No
Cyber essentials
Yes
Cyber essentials plus
Yes
Other security certifications
Yes
Any other security certifications
  • UKCloud - ISO27018
  • ISO9001
  • ISO20000
  • UKCloud - ISO27017
  • UKCloud - CISPE Code of Conduct Certification

Security governance

Named board-level person responsible for service security
Yes
Security governance certified
Yes
Security governance standards
  • CSA CCM version 3.0
  • ISO/IEC 27001
  • Other
Other security governance standards
CSA STAR, ISO27001, ISO27017, ISO27018 and ISO20000
Information security policies and processes
UKCloud has a number of inter-connected governance frameworks in place which control both how the Company operates and the manner in which it delivers cloud services to its customers. These have been independently assessed and certified against ISO20000, ISO27001, ISO27017 and ISO27018 by LRQA, a UKAS accredited audit body. The Company is governed by an integrated suite of information security policies. Under the top level Information Security Policy itself are second-level documents with specific focus on Acceptable Use, Antivirus Protection, Asset Management, Business Continuity Management, Data Protection, Password Management, Personnel Management, Supply Chain Management and many others.

Operational security

Configuration and change management standard
Conforms to a recognised standard, for example CSA CCM v3.0 or SSAE-16 / ISAE 3402
Configuration and change management approach
UKCloud has documented configuration and change management policies and processes, which have been implemented, maintained and assessed in accordance with the guidance from ITIL v.3 and the current ISO20000 standard. Formal configuration management activities, including record management and asset reporting, are monitored and validated constantly, and any identified discrepancies promptly escalated for investigation. A robust, established process for the formal submission of change requests is mandated prior to review and approval of the daily Change Advisory Board, which is attended by a quorum of operational and technical management personnel.
Vulnerability management type
Conforms to a recognised standard, for example CSA CCM v3.0 or SSAE-16 / ISAE 3402
Vulnerability management approach
UKCloud has a documented vulnerability management policy and process, which have been implemented, maintained and assessed in accordance with the guidance from ITIL v.3 and the current ISO20000 and ISO27001 standards. Where technically possible, real-time updates and status reports are identified and sourced from credible vendor sources, which cover a significant proportion of UKCloud’s asset population. For other systems and software, assigned personnel have responsibility for regularly reviewing technical forums and specialist groups to promptly identify and evaluate any emerging patches or updates which require our attention.
Protective monitoring type
Conforms to a recognised standard, for example CSA CCM v3.0 or SSAE-16 / ISAE 3402
Protective monitoring approach
Following best practice from the National Cyber Security Centre, UKCloud protects both its Assured and Elevated platforms with 24x7 enhanced protective monitoring services, vulnerability scanning and assessment.  Our approach to protective monitoring at minimum meets the Protective Monitoring Controls (PMC 1-12) outlined in NCSC document GPG13 (Protective Monitoring for HMG ICT Systems).  It includes checks against systems events (SIEM) and network traffic analysis, including time sources, cross-boundary traffic, suspicious activities at a boundary, network connections and status of backups.  Any alerts generated are logged and investigated 24x7.
Incident management type
Conforms to a recognised standard, for example, CSA CCM v3.0 or ISO/IEC 27035:2011 or SSAE-16 / ISAE 3402
Incident management approach
UKCloud has a documented incident management policy and process, which have been implemented, maintained and assessed in accordance with the guidance from ITIL v.3 and the current ISO20000 and ISO27001 standards. This activity is responsible for the progression of alerts generated by automated monitoring systems, issues identified by UKCloud personnel, and incidents identified and reported to UKCloud by its customers and partners. All incidents are promptly reported into a central ticketing system, which ensures that each is promptly assigned to an appropriate resource, and its progress tracked (and escalated, as required) to resolution.

Secure development

Approach to secure software development best practice
Independent review of processes (for example CESG CPA Build Standard, ISO/IEC 27034, ISO/IEC 27001 or CSA CCM v3.0)

Separation between users

Virtualisation technology used to keep applications and users sharing the same infrastructure apart
Yes
Who implements virtualisation
Supplier
Virtualisation technologies used
VMware
How shared infrastructure is kept separate
At the compute/storage layer, consumers are separated via robust hypervisor controls based on VMware vSphere technology. This solution has been previously been validated by the NCSC PGA and the implementation is regularly tested via by regular independent IT Security Health Checks conducted by a CHECK service provider.

Energy efficiency

Energy-efficient datacentres
Yes
Description of energy efficient datacentres
UKCloud’s services are CarbonNeutral® cloud services. We achieved this certification by working with Natural Capital Partners to measure and reduce our CO2 emissions across all sources used to deliver our cloud services to our customers. These include direct emissions from all owned or leased stationary sources that use fossil fuels and/or emit fugitive emissions, and emissions from the generation of purchased electricity and steam (including transmission and distribution losses) to power our servers. For our cloud services to achieve CarbonNeutral® status, an independent assessment of the CO2 emissions produced from direct and indirect sources required to deliver them was carried out, followed by an offset-inclusive emissions reduction programme. This means that for every tonne of greenhouse gas emissions we produce in delivering cloud services, we buy a verified carbon offset which guarantees that an equivalent amount of greenhouse gas emissions is reduced from the atmosphere through a renewable energy or clean technology project.

Social Value

Fighting climate change

Fighting climate change

Whilst carbon is of significant global importance, the UKCloud sustainability agenda moves beyond ensuring CarbonNeutral® cloud services. We recycle almost 100% of hardware (excluding hard drives) and have a highly respected reputation across our sector as disruptors and champions of leading the way towards sustainable cloud solutions. UKCloud achieved its certification by working with Natural Capital Partners to measure and reduce their CO2 emissions across all the sources used to deliver cloud services to our customers. UKCloud has a stated goal of deepening its commitment to sustainable technology, by becoming a carbon negative organisation at no extra cost to public sector organisations. UKCloud’s mindset is very simple regarding sustainability: ‘Every organisation in the world has a moral obligation to do whatever they can to reduce their carbon footprint to net zero as soon as possible’. This means UKCloud has chosen to go beyond offsetting the carbon it uses, instead becoming carbon negative. Again, this emphasises our strong moral compass and ethical leadership. UKCloud achieved its carbon negative status in early 2021, by investing in the innovative CoForest project, a new carbon offsetting forest near Bath. UKCloud personnel are gaining hands-on experience in planting and managing UKCloud’s trees, which will provide a credible legacy for the benefit of future generations.
Covid-19 recovery

Covid-19 recovery

UKCloud's robust disaster recovery processes ensured we were able to cope with the sudden lockdown caused by Covid-19. The majority of our staff were able to transition to home working with minimal disruption thanks to the systems which were already in place. Processes were initiated to ensure the health and welfare of those who couldn't work from home including screens, safe distance office layouts and readily available cleansing products. As the UK transitions back to a more normal way of life, UKCloud has taken the opportunity to evaluate its working practices and has initiated a hybrid working model. Staff continue to have the opportunity to work from home for the majority of time, with office attendance requested on a two day a week basis. This has improved work/life balance and also productivity, ensuring our customers receive a better service. UKCloud continues to evaluate how we do business in a post-Covid world and will identify new opportunities to improve processes and working practices to benefit both our employees and our customers.
Tackling economic inequality

Tackling economic inequality

UKCloud strongly believes in the power of lifelong learning and in the role that they play in enabling digital inclusion. The pandemic has shone a greater spotlight on the digital haves and have-nots - young people who have struggled to learn from home, through to older people needing to get online in order to remain connected to their loved ones. UKCloud is unlocking social value through the provision of over 171,000 free sessions via its Open Knowledge Platform. UKCloud has chosen to create free content because it levels the playing field, and it is ‘the right thing to do’. Each digitally enabled session increases the confidence and skills of a wide range of stakeholders and enables the UKCloud vision to share its knowledge and reduce digital inequality. UKCloud has continued to prioritise the lifelong learning opportunities of its own employees, with more than £99,000 of annual investment into their skills via more than 400 courses and qualifications. This aligns with the recent Queens Speech and the upcoming Skills and Post-16 Education Bill 2021. UKCloud and its employees reach out to hundreds of young people each year via CCMP, their Foundation Charity Partner. They seek to educate young people about digital careers and use their voice as a platform to promote the role of women in technology and STEM roles. UKCloud recognises and values the importance of the role that employment plays in an individual’s quality of life, and more widely, for the families that we support.
Equal opportunity

Equal opportunity

UKCloud has taken a proactive position with the gender pay gap. Alongside our championing of the STEM and Women in Tech agendas, 17% of its existing workforce and 18% of new recruits are female. UKCloud has publicly confirmed this commitment through signing up to the Government Tech Talent Charter. Furthermore, UKCloud is deeply mindful of how challenging it can be, as a young person, to secure a first interview or hold down an apprenticeship. They ensure that they act as a ‘value enabler’ through their annual commitment to supporting both apprentices and undergraduates as they venture onto their own career paths. The recent Government PPN 06 sets out specific targets that move towards tackling UK inequality, and UKCloud has a recruitment strategy in place to ensure that they reach out to underrepresented groups and vulnerable young people to encourage them to take on apprenticeships. UKCloud is currently generating £85,500 of social value through the apprenticeships provided between 2019 and 2021.
Wellbeing

Wellbeing

First and foremost, UKCloud sustains our employees, who are our greatest asset. Employee wellbeing is at heart of UKCloud’s operational delivery model. We know that the pandemic has amplified the need for a robust approach to mental and physical health, which is why UKCloud’s pre-existing employee wellbeing benefits have stood them in particularly good stead and helped people pull together and take care of one another and their families. UKCloud has already provided £77,000 of funding to ensure employee access to virtual GP appointments and had already been providing a free counselling service, with a total of 1,986 sessions available to their employees per annum. UKCloud understands that taking time off work due to sickness or maternity leave is an inevitable part of life, so we support our employees to help make these eventualities less stressful. UKCloud takes the time to listen to our employees through ‘Your Voices Matter’ and our annual ‘Wellbeing Week’. UKCloud can demonstrate strong evidence of employee voices and rights being expressed through employee initiatives, which significantly contribute to increasing equality, diversity and inclusion. UKCloud knows that jobs and lives can be stressful or even overwhelming at times, but our combined wellbeing efforts deliver social value and seek to provide meaningful benefit to employees and their families.

Pricing

Price
£5.00 a licence a month
Discount for educational organisations
No
Free trial available
No

Service documents

Request an accessible format
If you use assistive technology (such as a screen reader) and need versions of these documents in a more accessible format, email the supplier at tenders@uk.cdw.com. Tell them what format you need. It will help if you say what assistive technology you use.