Intranets

What is an Intranet?

An intranet lets its users communicate with each other, share information and resources and even share software programmes. It is, in effect, a scaled down version of the internet: it has a restricted group of users - the staff in your organisation - and contains only the content that you choose to make available.

Intranets have enjoyed a steady growth in popularity because they are both relatively simple and relatively inexpensive (compared to dedicated Local Area Networks or LANs) to set up.

All you need to get your intranet started is:

• a few computers cabled together
• an internet browser on each machine
• a computer designated as the server, which holds the operating software and system information.

As they use web browser technology, intranets are platform independent, ie both PC and Mac users can happily access and share information securely on the same network.

It may seem tempting to get your intranet up and running as quickly as possible, but time spent considering its projected usage will pay dividends both in terms of the functionality you finally achieve and the amount you end up spending.

Read on to find out how your business could benefit from an intranet and how you can go about building one.

Examples of products and companies included in this leaflet do not in any way imply endorsement or recommendation by DTI or is4profit. Bear in mind that prices quoted are indicative at the time it was published.

© Crown Copyright. 04/663; 04/04