My company makes devices that run Windows CE and must connect to our website through a customer's internet connection. We sell these devices to all sorts of customers with a multitude of network configurations and security needs.
These devices worry the IT departments of the companies we sell them to, and rightfully so. They worry about administering proxy settings on hundreds of devices, about the possibility of them downloading viruses or other security risks into their network, that it runs Windows, about the devices downloading software updates, and so on....
The best analogy I can think of is a business that had a bunch of Tivos connected to the internet. There is a business need for the devices but IT doesn't really want them on the network.
What can we do to alleviate the IT departments' concerns and make configuration a minimal effort. If we could funnel them through something like a VPN to a single server that connects to the company's proxy server, would that do it?
I only know a little bit about networking, but it's still my job to solve this, so any help is deeply appreciated.