This guide is one part of a series designed to help you get the most out of working from home. Our other guides:
1. Hardware essentials
2. Office equipment
3. Home office furniture
As we all face up to working from home on a more regular basis, it's prudent to equip a home office with devices that will help you perform your job to the best of your ability, and to furnish your surroundings in a way that will help make it not only a productive space, but also a pleasant one.
In this guide to working from home, we look at the software that's designed to maximise productivity with a secure system.
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Cloud storage services
VPN
Video conferencing
Password manager
Antivirus
Best cloud storage services
The growth of online storage has seen cloud backup replace traditional on-premise hardware. Instead of the traditional "folder and file" storage system on a single computer, cloud storage distributes that data across one or more remote servers. This not only keeps data protected from hard drive failure and ransomware, it also means that it's accessible from anywhere and on any device - a vital function when employees work remotely.
To create this list of recommendations, we have researched more than 40 of the best cloud storage providers, selecting only the best providers, based on aspects such as capacity, price, file size, security and ease of use.
iDrive offers continuous syncing of your files, even those on network drives. The web interface supports sharing files by email, Facebook and Twitter. Cautious or click-happy users will be pleased to hear that files deleted from your computer are not automatically deleted from the server, so there's less danger of removing something important by accident.
Up to 30 previous versions of all files backed to your account are retained. Another thing to note is that IT admins have access to the iDrive Thin Client application, which allows them to backup/restore, manage settings, and more for all their connected computers via a centralized dashboard.
For photos, you have a neat facial recognition feature that helps you to automatically organize them as well as syncing them across all your linked devices. iDrive also offers iDrive Express which sends you a physical hard disk drive if you lose all your data, allowing for the swift restoration of all your backed up files.
An enhanced version - aptly named iDrive Business - exists and offers priority support, single sign-on as well as unlimited users and server backup. While iDrive Personal offers 5TB or 10TB per user, their professional counterparts get between 250GB and 12.5TB of online storage.
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The best cloud storage services compared
| Cloud service | Free tier | Storage capacity | Number of devices | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| iDrive | 5GB | 5TB | Unlimited | $3.48 (first year) |
| pCloud | 10GB | 2TB | 5 | $350 (one-off payment) |
| Zoolz | 1GB | 5TB | Unlimited | $49.95 per year |
Best VPN providers
VPN or a 'virtual private network' is software that increases online anonymity, encrypts your internet use, and effectively tricks your laptop or mobile device into thinking it's in another location.
For many, a VPN service is all about privacy and security, to help keep your online life completely safe from hackers – especially now that so many of us are working from home. And for many business they are used as an additional layer of security, enabling employees access internal systems remotely. Whatever your use for a VPN is, you'll find the best options below.
ExpressVPN continues to sit at the top of our best VPN list. It impressed in every test we threw at it and the 5-star rating we've given it is testament to the fact it can barely be improved upon.
So let's get in to some specifics. It starts well right from the off, as you you'll immediately note that ExpressVPN gives you the choice of over 3,000 servers in 160 locations across 94 countries.
The service already used AES-256 encryption - just like the US government - and a choice of various other protocols (including IKEv2, OpenVPN and L2TP/IPsec) to keep your data safe. But perhaps most exciting is that it has now begun rolling out its very own Lightway protocol that seeks to increase speed and reliability even further.
But away from the numbers and specifications, it’s in our real-life testing where ExpressVPN really shines. For starters, it’s fast. Really fast, with fantastic connection speeds across servers in multiple countries. And that was using OpenVPN in our tests - the aforementioned Lightway option should increase that further still.
We also love just how easy to use this service is. That might seem obvious, but not every VPN provider out there has worked out how to make its tools intuitive, regardless of what device you're using it on. From desktop, to mobile, to TV streamers, ExpressVPN is a doddle to set up and operate for both pros and inexperienced users.
Frankly, we don't mask the fact of how highly we rate ExpressVPN. It's very simple... it is THE best VPN you can get in virtually every scenario. Don't believe us? You can always take advantage of ExpressVPN’s quibble-free 30-day money back guarantee that you can use like a free trial – not that we imagine you’d need to use it.
Other recommendations
The best VPN services compared
| Cloud service | Works on | 24/7 support | Trial period | Servers | Devices supported | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ExpressVPN | Windows, Mac, Android, iOS, Linux | Yes | 30 days | 3,000+ | 5 | $6.67 per month |
| Nord VPN | Windows, Mac, Android, iOS, Linux | Yes | 30 days | 5,500+ | 6 | $4.92 per month |
| Surfshark | Windows, Mac, Android, iOS, Linux | Yes | 30 days | 1,700+ | Unlimited | $2.50 per month |
Best video conferencing software
Video conferencing software makes it simple and easy to connect online with other people for online video calls and meetings. Advances in technology means that reliable video conferencing has become accessible and affordable, and can easily serve the modern workplace. This has become especially important during the current pandemic. Below, we've listed the best video conferencing solutions according to our testing.
GoToMeeting is the standalone webconferencing service provided by LogMeIn. As expected it provides audio and video conferencing, as well as screensharing.
One of the features that sets GoToMeetings apart is its mobile friendliness - you can set up and start a conference from your smartphone, something some big brand software would struggle to do. There are also settings to maximise call and image quality, as well as one-tap invites to join meetings as well as chats.
Mobile apps are provided separately for Android and iOS, and both have high positive review volumes, which again makes a change from some other providers who struggle to balance quality and usability with mobile use.
In terms of pricing, almost all standard features are available with the most basic payment tier. Even the limit of 150 participants is generous, and for most businesses this is all that will be required.
A Business plan tier is available which increases the number of participants to 250 and includes a few admin features plus drawing tools and mouse sharing. An Enterprise plan is available to accommodate up to 3,000 participants.
However, while there are many good things to be said for GoToMeetings, if you're looking for a business VoIP solution then GoToConnect offers a cloud-based phone system which integrates GoToMeetings as part of the package, and it may be more cost-effective to sign up for that instead.
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The best password managers
A great password manager can be a game-changer. Most of us have scores of online accounts, and it's all too easy to fall into the habit of reusing the same password for multiple sites. It might be convenient, but it also leaves us in real danger; if just one of those sites is compromised, all your accounts will be at risk. Choosing the best one is an important decision, so we've put all the best options to the test. Here are our recommendations.
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Dashlane is a capable password manager for a single device, capable of storing logins for up to 50 accounts in a secure vault with multi-factor authentication, Like LastPass, it can do much more than just fill in passwords for you; it can also store all kinds of information and fill out forms with delivery addresses and contact details automatically.
So far so good, but Dashlane's premium service is even more impressive. Not only does it let you synchronize all your passwords across all your devices (both desktop and mobile), it also monitors the dark web for data breaches and sends you personalized alerts if any of your stored details appear in a batch of stolen data.
There's secure file storage too (ideal for scanned ID documents, insurance policies and receipts) and even a VPN for browsing the web more securely via Wi-Fi hotspots.
Unsurprisingly, all of this comes at a price, and Dashlane's premium plan is one of the most expensive options around, but the extra services (plus remote account access and priority support) do justify the cost. Note that Dashlane also has added new business features to its offering as of October 27.
Top three password managers
Best antivirus software
If you’re looking for all-round protection against the latest cyber threats, then investing in the strongest software is the best solution you can hope for - and we also have the best business antivirus plans if you're looking to take care of your company computers. That doesn't mean you have to start spending big money either, as our recommendations show.
TechRadar's #1 rated antivirus in a world packed with loads of virus protection providers, and doesn't even have to cost that much more than free antivirus downloads.
If you peruse the rankings of the major independent testing labs, you’ll doubtless notice that Bitdefender inevitably appears towards the top. And for good reason – Bitdefender’s core antivirus engine is excellent, and we found in our testing that it delivers top-notch protection. Which is, of course, the main point of any antivirus product.
Although not the only consideration, by any means, and Bitdefender’s other main strength is that it positively bristles with features. Exactly how many features depends on which product you purchase, although even the entry-level Bitdefender Antivirus Plus 2020 packs in a lot for the money.
That includes a very thorough web protection module (which offers class-leading protection from dangerous links), Safepay online banking protection, a password manager, as well as a vulnerability scanner which can alert you to missing security updates and patches.
As for downsides, about the only one really worth mentioning is that Bitdefender uses more system resources than some rival products.
If you want more features, Bitdefender Internet Security 2020 delivers exactly that, adding a firewall, spam filter, parental controls to keep your kids safe online, with measures to bolster privacy such as an anti-webcam hijacking feature.
Bitdefender Total Security 2020 is the ultimate package which further provides a suite of PC maintenance tools, and is capable of covering all types of devices, delivering apps for Android and iOS hardware, as well as Mac (and Windows) computers.
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More working from home guides and deals
This guide is one part of a series designed to help you get the most out of working from home. Make working from home as comfortable and as productive as you can:
