We released our latest in the Fundamentals series earlier this month and it is trending quite well. The 802.11ac standard sounds like a step backwards alphabetically…but it will soon be an incredible step forward forward for WiFi once it is ratified by the IEEE. Watch this latest fundamentals to get comfortable with the truth. 802.11n is still your best bet for 2012 and into 2013 as we continue to partner on the standards process but the future is bright indeed!
By Peter Gaspar, Consulting Systems Engineer, Service Provider Mobility, Emerging Theater
It’s not new news that when it comes to network access, Wi-Fi technology is a cost-effective complement to macro radio access. Industry blogs continuously feature analysis about the economic advantages of using Wi-Fi as a small cell technology. No surprise, then, that many mobile operators have completed or are working seriously on plans to integrate this technology into their mobile ecosystems.
But when it comes to details, things start to get confusing. Terms like policy and charging, lawful intercept, mobility and SIM authentication start to pop up. The Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) has incorporated Wi-Fi (non-3GPP IP Access) as part of the LTE architecture, created the terminology and studied the Read More »
It was raining in London last week during the LightReading event Strategic Opportunities in Service Provider Wi-Fi. That might not sound unusual, but actually my cab driver said it had been a dry winter, and the rain was much needed for his garden. That’s how I felt about the event – it felt like a lovely spring rain.
Heavy Reading Senior Analyst Gabriel Brown first addressed the packed room by likening the early days of Wi-Fi to the Wild West. With the advent of carrier-grade Wi-Fi, the integration of Wi-Fi into Mobile networks, and initiatives such as the Wireless Broadband Alliance Next Generation Hotspot Program, the west is slowly Read More »
As anyone who attended Cisco’s recent “BYOD without Compromise” Webinar noticed, the BYOD phenomenon is changing company priorities, and is bringing up a lot of questions about the solutions available to scale, secure and operate a successful network. Replay the Webinar
Join us for our upcoming #ciscowifi TweetChat during which you’ll be able to engage in a real time BYOD discussion on Twitter with Cisco Technical Experts. What is a TweetChat?
April 17, 10-11am PST: TweetChat Topic: BYOD and Cisco ISE – use #ciscowifi.
First, I’ve put together just a few details based on the most popular questions posed during the recent webinar about Cisco’s approach to BYOD. And at the end of this post, I’ve also listed upcoming events for even more in depth technical discussions on a variety of BYOD topics.
Enhanced Identity Services Engine (ISE):
Cisco ISE is a context-aware, identity-based platform that gathers real-time information from the network, users, and devices. This enables IT to offer mobile business freedom with policy for when, where and how users may access the network..
ISE integrates with Prime Network Control System and supports BYOD with any 11n Wireless Access Point (even if you’re running your network in FlexConnect -- aka HREAP- mode)
In addition to managing on-boarding, Cisco ISE has full guest lifecycle management. It also allows IT to deny access to devices for a variety of reasons; such as who you are, what device it is, if you are running the latest OS or anti-malware or how you are accessing the network..
Posture -- Posture is the component of ISE platform responsible for enforcement of corporate security policies governing access to its enterprise network. For example, for non-corp owned devices, you can decide what is the minimal requirements based on the device type/OS etc. Setting this up ahead of time will avoid security issues with non-supported devices
ISE also provides real-time endpoint scans based on policy to gain more relevant insight. These automated features result in a better user experience and more secure devices. Cisco ISE uniquely leverages the network. It is essentially the brains for secure access and provides the policy to the network infrastructure (it is woven into the switches, routers, etc.)
New Prime Infrastructure:
Prime is a single package that provides complete infrastructure – wired and wireless, and mobility lifecycle management– configuration, monitoring, troubleshooting, remediation, and reporting. This solution includes: Prime Network Control System (NCS) for converged wired/wireless monitoring and troubleshooting, plus wireless lifecycle management, with new branch network management functionality; and Prime LAN Management Solution, for wired lifecycle management and Borderless Network services management.
Mobile Device Management (MDM):
To protect data on mobile devices and ensure compliance, Cisco is integrating with multiple Mobile Device Management vendors. This gives IT greater visibility into the endpoint as well control over endpoint access based on the compliance of these devices to company policy (such as requiring pin lock or disallowing jailbroken devices), and the ability to do remote data wipes on lost or stolen mobile devices. If you don’t have a supported vendor, we will not be able to get as rich detail about the status of that device, however, you still get the full wired/wireless policy.
Current MDM third party vendors: Zenprise, Good, Airwatch, MobileIron
Device Operating Systems:
Wondering about which OS is preferred on your mobile device?
Cisco offers broad mobile device OS support in Cisco AnyConnect VPN software, including IOS, Android, and Windows Mobile.
Virtualization:
When it comes to virtualization, Cisco has created the Cisco Virtualization Experience Infrastructure (VXI), an end-to-end systems approach that delivers the next generation virtual workspace by unifying virtual desktops, voice, and video. Check out the link for more information on VXI, VXI with Citrix, VXI with VMware, Virtualization Services and validated Design Guides http://www.cisco.com/web/solutions/trends/virtualization/index.html
This is just a drop in the bucket. To get even more information on taking your organization beyond BYOD, don’t miss our upcoming technical deep dive webinars and in person events that speak directly to managing your growing network while you’re doing your best with limited resources. You can also check out Cisco’s BYOD solution, Prime and ISE:
I was driving home the other day when I heard a radio report on densely populated California cities. What’s interesting was a mention of a small California city that is ranked as the nation’s fourth most dense urbanized area. I guess that a lot of people don’t know Delano, a central valley city with a population density of 5,483 people per square mile. It’s surprisingly more dense than the New York-Newark, N.J. metropolitan area which is ranked the 5th.
Many people with many devices in a densely populated area can pose a challenge to WiFi networks. I was talking to a Cisco customer in the New York City area a few days ago. He said that deploying WiFi was not as straightforward as it used to be. There are many RF interferences near his office and many new SSIDs that he never saw before.
