Cloud Clients from Phoenix Contact securely connect machines to the 'mGuard Secure Cloud' via the Internet. The clients form the basis for scalable remote maintenance of machines. Users can choose between the TC Cloud Clients, which use operator networks, and variants that use global 4G LTE mobile networks for cloud communication. The clients are configured using the cloud and are immediately ready for use in the machine. The mGuard Secure Cloud is a scalable VPN infrastructure that connects service personnel with machines and systems via the internet. The VPN technology used employs the IPsec security protocol with strong encryption. The clients have a digital input and an output so that service connections to the cloud can be established and signaled as required.