So what do other folks do when they want to share data from a SQL server amongst a large, geographically distributed group of customers?  We have hundreds of customers that trade data from inside an application written in VB6.  They use the ADO calls built into our application to access one central SQL server.  Obviously they are outside the firewall.  They have to update and read data that other customers post (generally through Stored Procedures).  What is the "better" way to do this than through a port open to the outside?

It seems to me that each person posting on this topic is "assuming" that the only use for SQL server is for "internal" use, perhaps to drive content for a web server.  If that was the case, I'd say close the ports as well, just from the basic security concept that you never share what you don't need to.  But that assumption is not part of the basic article that started this thread!  Or maybe I'm missing something - which is what I'm trying to find out.