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RAPID (Remote Access Program for Interactive Diagnostics) is a proprietary service technology that provides remote support to Thermo Scientific electron microscopy (EM) instruments. The program provides desktop-sharing access to remote service engineers and application specialists through a secure VPN connection. RAPID helps our engineers to solve problems more quickly, reducing the downtime of your instrument.
RAPID is a complementary support solution enabling remote service. Time-to-solution is reduced with remote diagnostics and repair, as there is no need to wait for an engineer to arrive on-site.
Our experts from all support levels can view instrument images, check and modify instrument settings, and run diagnostics to help identify areas of improvement and make those adjustments.
RAPID is available at no additional cost for RAPID-enabled Thermo Fisher Scientific instruments that are covered under an eligible Thermo Fisher Scientific service contract or new system warranty.
Once initiated, a RAPID session allows Thermo Fisher Scientific’s experts full access to your instrument to fully diagnose and align or to perform service tasks. You don’t need to stay at the microscope, leaving you free to continue working on other tasks.
RAPID service sessions can often be scheduled at a time that is convenient for you, providing greater flexibility in scheduling and reducing the need to take time off work or rearrange your schedule to accommodate service appointments.
Remote service allows you to receive support and increased accessibility to services even if you are in a remote or hard-to-reach location.
RAPID is available to all customers with a service contract or system warranty and requires a high-speed internet connection available to your system.
If you have not registered for our RAPID platform or have declined it in the past and would like to install now, please fill out the registration form and our service team will help you set up the RAPID platform.
Do you have questions or need help with your RAPID installation?
To prepare for the RAPID Connection Wizard, please work with your IT department on the following steps:
The latest version of the RAPID Connection Wizard was recently released. To upgrade to this version, run the installer RAPID_5.0.1_Customer.exe on the Support PC (SPC) and Microscope PC (MPC) of your instrument. Follow the instructions below or in the Customer Instructions document linked below.
RAPID Connection Wizard can be installed on Windows 7 or higher.
Do you have questions or need help with your RAPID installation?
Video includes instructions to verify installation.
Video includes instructions to verify installation.
Video includes instructions to verify installation.
For technical questions and assistance with the upgrade or installation of RAPID, contact our support team.
RAPID is available at no additional cost to customers whose RAPID-enabled Customer Instruments are covered by an eligible service contract or new system warranty from Thermo Fisher Scientific.
Once you have initiated a RAPID support session, the Remote Service Engineer (RSE) controls the Customer Instrument using the screen-sharing application directly via the VPN connection to the RAPID Secure Server.
Only RAPID supports the use of many auxiliary controls like the transmission electron microscope (TEM) hand panels. The authentication of instrument user, service staff, and application specialists via RAPID ensures that only authorized Thermo Fisher Scientific personnel can participate in a RAPID support session with the instrument user.
The Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA) has registered port 1194 and/or 443 for use by VPN. Because RAPID relies on a VPN connection to the RAPID Secure Server, it is a requirement that the customer’s IT network allows outbound connections (UDP or TCP) over port 1194 and/or 443.
For security reasons, it is not recommended to have a direct internet connection on a Microscope Controller since it does not have an antivirus program or a firewall installed. Therefore, a Support PC is recommended to be the bridge between the MPC and the customer network for any instrument that does not have the latest Managed Router+Switch combination. The Support PC has fewer restrictions than the Microscope Controller (Microscope PC). It can run the latest antivirus program and firewall versions and can be used for customer-specific IT protocols, such as automatic upgrades to operating systems or installing Windows Service Packs. A Support PC can also provide additional data storage.
You can purchase a Support PC at minimal expense from Thermo Fisher Scientific or directly from your preferred local PC vendor. Refer to Table 1 for the Support PC requirements. Contact your local Thermo Fisher Scientific Account Manager for more information on Support PC hardware or software upgrade needs.
Note: Any customer who has a Support PC running Windows XP or lower must replace or update this PC to Windows 10.
Processor | 1 GHz or higher |
RAM | 512 MB or higher |
Hard Drive | 10 GB or higher |
LAN Adapters | 2 |
Operating System | Windows 10 |
Your network firewall must be opened to allow outbound UDP or TCP traffic on port 1194 and/or 443. The cloud-based VPN server will have dynamic IP addresses. Therefore, providing IP addresses for the VPN servers for possible firewall configuration is not possible.
Customers who require to have specific exceptions in their institution network or firewall for RAPID must use the following info about RAPID:
VPN Server |
Domain names |
---|---|
Europe |
vpn-euw1.rapid.thermofisher.com |
Japan |
vpn-apne1.rapid.thermofisher.com
|
USA-West |
vpn-usw1.rapid.thermofisher.com |
USA-East |
vpn-use1.rapid.thermofisher.com |
China |
rapidvpn.thermofisher.cn |
No, only the Thermo Fisher Scientific VPN is set up to run through the RAPID Secure Server and offers the Thermo Fisher Scientific security features.
You always have the option to set up your own remote access to instruments for other purposes, but this will not be supported by Thermo Fisher Scientific. Thermo Fisher Scientific does not recommend (or in several cases allow) you to install your own software on the Microscope Controller.
Connecting to the RAPID Secure Server that is in the same geographic area as your instrument will provide the best performance. Other more remote VPN servers can be used as backup options, but they may not perform as well.