We made it! It is Friday afternoon and the weekend is almost upon us. But before closing up shop, it is a good time to bring up some product transitions that we have going on.

First off the wireless team has this update:

The popular WAP4410N model is no longer available. There are options:

The current replacement is WAP121 but if you looking  for more performance and more features, take a look at the WAP321, WAP551 or the dual-band WAP561.

To close this out, we have the new WAP371. It is brand new, it performs and it has wireless 802.11ac!

Now for the RV Series:

The RV120W and RV220W will be going end-of-sale at the end of December this year. The RV180 and Rv180W will be going to end-of-sale by April of next year. Quantities could be limited on certain regional SKU’s.

The replacement models are the RV130 for the RV180, and the RV130W for the rest.

Update: We also have five PIDs that are now EoL: RV220W-A-K9-AU, RV180W-A-K9-AU (both for Australia/NZ), RV180-K9-AR (Argentina), RV180-K9-CN (China), and the RV016-G5 (EMEA). In Mexico, the RV180-A-K9-NA is now replace with the RV130-A-K9-NA.

Have a great week.

Marc

Tags: #wireless, access point, business, growth, IT, router, scalable, service, small

Hello all,

I hope the week is going well for all of you.

I had a Small Business owner reach out to me yesterday to let me know how her experience was in setting up and configuring her new Cisco RV130W wireless router for her small business she started a couple of years ago.

She owns a small but growing business that sells unique holiday card tree displays. Growth has been amazing so far as word is getting out about this new product. I am definitely planning on getting one for our house.

Here is here is Laura’s experience:

“As a small business owner, I am responsible for all aspects of the business – from accounting and marketing to shipping and IT.  I do not have time for technology that is hard to set-up or doesn’t work.  The Cisco RV130W works exactly as advertised.  It is easy to set-up, has been hands-off since the initial configuration and works – period.

I switched from an inferior solution that did not have wireless coverage for the entire office, connectivity consistently dropped, and was a drain on my time.  I am incredibly happy with my purchase and will be a Cisco customer from now on.”

Laura Burrows
Owner, Social Fruitfly
www.SeasonsTreetings.com

For more information on Laura’s business and these awesome card displays, skip on over to www.SeasonsTreetings.com.

Tags: build your own network, business class, growth, quality, reliable, router, secure, small business, vpn, wireless router

As technology pushes small businesses toward the use of smartphones and other devices in the workplace, securing your company’s privacy is not an easy task. However, if you follow these simple rules, integral information will not land into the wrong hands. Here are some tips on how to make bring your own device, or BYOD, a benefit to the workplace without worrying about security.

1. Establish the Objective

Image via flickr by Sean MacAntee

When deciding on a BYOD policy, you must first identify what you plan to achieve through its implementation. Since there are so many security risks involved, a plan is imperative. If you can’t define the point of it, you might as well abandon it. While security is a risk, plans that are well researched have several advantages including increased employee work rate, improved customer satisfaction, and reduced cost on technological upgrades.

2. Decide What Devices Are Allowed

The next step is deciding what devices to allow. If you only want iPads or Androids, tell your employees specifically. If you are ever in doubt, purchase your own company devices to hand out to employees. While this may seem like an unnecessary expenditure, it will put your mind at ease. It’s also a tax-deductible expense. Check out these area-specific BYOD instructions to connect each of these devices to your company network.

3. Make Security Policies

Since employees are able to access sensitive information on your servers from home or anywhere else, bring forth a policy to curb potential pitfalls. The first thing to do is to decide if you are able to handle this task on your own. If not, you may want to consider hiring an IT firm to overlook the security of your BYOD security. You could also have authentication, as well as passwords. This means that your system will periodically require password updates or even a new password for each log-in, each which goes a long way to preserving important information.

4. Combine BYOD Policy with Acceptable Use

If you don’t already have an “Acceptable Use Policy” for your business, you should strongly consider one. Not only will it curb employee distractions, but it will reduce potential risk for harmful viruses and malware. While employees will undoubtedly slip at some point, set forth rules that will lay out the disciplinary actions for such indiscretion. In addition to this, make sure that you have some sort of monitoring system in place. There’s no need to be nosy, but knowing what your workers do while on your network can save you a headache in the future.

5. Train Your Employees

Training can be the difference between increased productivity and total catastrophe. Engage in communication with your employees about the BYOD policy, and hold training seminars on a frequent basis to show them potential risks of BYOD abuse. This shows employees not only how to use their device effectively, but also that they are being monitored at all times.

6. Develop an Exit Strategy

Undoubtedly, at some point, employees will leave your company. Removing them from access to information on the network, business email, and other apps to which they previously had access can be tricky. Make certain that you figure out a way to avoid security lapse by maintaining an exit checklist. On this list, you can decide how you want to shut down their access. Some of the most common security checks disable company emails, wiping company-issued devices, and changing the passwords to any company accounts used in their position. Once these steps are completed, you can stand assured that your company’s private information is secured.

Once you have considered all of these aspects, it is finally time to decide whether or not implementing a BYOD policy is in the best interest of your business. While there are downsides, the key advantage might lie in keeping up with your competitors. Remaining a forward-thinking business not only attracts new customers, but helps you to retain them in the future.

Hello all,

Hope you all are enjoying a productive week. This week I thought it would be prudent to talk about upgrading router (+switch and wireless access point) firmware. The firmware is software that is embedded on the router. This firmware is normally updated to include new features and enhancements to the device. All of our firmware upgrades are FREE.

So take a look at a quick Knowledge Base article (based in our fabulous support forum) on upgrading the firmware on the new RV130 and RV130W: https://supportforums.cisco.com/document/12318721/firmwarelanguage-upgrade-rv130-and-rv130w-using-web-interface.

You will need to download the firmware to your computer and connect an ethernet cable from computer to your router.

Side note: We have an option, yes there is another way. Check out this blog on FindIt.

Make it great rest of the week.

Marc

Tags: Cisco Small Business, code, Firmware, router, switch, upgrade

Hello!

We are so excited that for the second year in a row, Cisco Small Business has been chosen as a Top 100 Small Business Influencer.

Ved Sharma, Dir/GM, Cisco SMB Services states, “I could not be prouder of our teams whose combined efforts continue to make Cisco Small Business products and services an industry-leading preference for our customers. Our focus on reaching the Small Business community via Facebook, Twitter and other social media avenues helps us to engage with and communicate to small and mid-sized companies. ”

The Small Business Influencer Awards are presented to those who are influential to small businesses in North America, through the products, services, knowledge, information or support they provide to the small business market.

The Champions are selected by a panel of judges steeped in the small business market, based on the following criteria;

• advocating on behalf of small businesses,
• providing products or services that address the unique challenges faced by small businesses,
• revolutionizing how small businesses do business or how they solve business challenges,
• helping small businesses grow,
• or otherwise impacting small businesses in a significant way.

Says Anita Campbell, CEO of Small Business Trends and one of the co-founders of the Awards, “Influencers are those who play crucial roles in the small business ecosystem, but who often are in the background. The Top 100 Champions have distinguished themselves in some way. Check out the Cisco Award. The Small Business Influencer Awards enable the small business community to nominate and show their support for those that influence and support them.

Read more about the Cisco Small Business portfolio: http://www.cisco.com/cisco/web/solutions/small_business/index.html

Read more about Cisco Small Business Services www.cisco.com/go/smbservices

Read and participate in the  Cisco Small Business blog http://blogs.cisco.com/smallbusiness/

Thank you everyone for helping make us a Top 100 Small Business Influencer!

Cindy

Tags: award, cisco_small_business, influencer, midsize, services, smallbusiness, small_and_mid-size, small_business, Small_Business_Services, smb, Top_100