Intranet & Extranet Design

Posted At : June 20, 2007 4:32 PM
Related Categories: Web Development

Your website is more than what your customers see. A well designed site also makes it easier for you and your employees to do business by providing a secure space for exchanging information, updating content, communicating with each other and streamlining procedures. Intranets and extranets are ways to securely share a central body of information and tools with all of your employees.

What's the difference between intranet and extranet?

An intranet is a private network that uses internet protocols and connectivity to share information among employees of a firm or business. It's rather like a website that only your employees can access. You can use it to host databases, content management systems, staff information, time clocks and bookkeeping applications. Intranets may be used to offer training modules, facilitate communication with discussion boards and serve as a central calendar for the entire company.

An extranet is a private network that uses internet protocols and connectivity to securely share information with partners, vendors, suppliers, customers and affiliates. An extranet might be used to host price lists that can be easily updated, take orders from customers, maintain technical documents and facilitate collaborations among multiple firms without giving any one of them access to the others' entire secure network.

Why intranet and extranet applications are important to your business

Applications that are shared on intranet and extranet applications allow firms and employees to share information and collaborate with each other on projects. They may be as simple as a shared pool of documents, like order forms and catalogs or as complex as whiteboards, chat spaces, discussion forums and development environments. Intranet and extranet spaces are invaluable for streamlining the flow of information and avoiding duplication of work.