Wireless upstart turns distributed WLAN deployments on their heads

Product Test and Buyer's Guide This newsletter is sponsored by Oracle No More Limits: CRM On Demand Goes Strategic On demand is fast evolving into a more strategic, more capable CRM technology option. Today you can have the best of both worlds: a cost-friendly, easy to use solution with many of the functionalities that were once only available on premise This FREE paper covers What's New in On Demand, Why Baxter Medication Delivery ultimately chose on demand, plus the Six Questions Every Buyer Should Ask and more, register now. Product Test and Buyer's Guide, 05/10/07 By Christine Burns Initially there were “fat” wireless access points that provided wireless connectivity while controlling all parameters of that access. Next came wireless controllers that centrally managed many more, thinner APs spread throughout a large-scale wireless deployment. Now the venture capital funded Aerohive Networks is advocating the demise of centralized controllers in favor of distributed, intelligent APs that together can share in the enterprise WLAN management tasks. According to a story by Network World Senior Editor John Cox, Aerohive officials say their cooperative AP architecture creates simpler, cheaper, more scalable WLANs. As Cox explains in his article about the Aerohive architecture, management functions such as identity-based security, QoS traffic prioritization, autodiscovery of neighboring access points and best-path-forwarding protocol tasks are distributed throughout a meshed network of intelligent access points called HiveAPs. HiveAPs can wirelessly communicate with each other via a mesh protocol, and when needed, they become portals that are wired into any existing Ethernet switch port to connect with the wired LAN. Get the latest thinking on the core issues reshaping the new data center. Download our new Executive Guide "Data Center Decisions" to sharpen your competitive edge. The comprehensive range of topics includes: Data Center Trends, User Case Studies, Heat/Power issues and key products for the data center. Click to Download The HiveAP 20 model APs are available now and list for $995. Link to Network World’s Wireless Buyer’s Guide in order to find detailed information on what more traditional WLAN products in nine categories have to offer to stave off newcomer Aerohive's assault on this market space.

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Contact the author: Christine Burns is the Executive Editor of Testing. She can be reached at cburns@nww.com This newsletter is sponsored by Oracle No More Limits: CRM On Demand Goes Strategic On demand is fast evolving into a more strategic, more capable CRM technology option. Today you can have the best of both worlds: a cost-friendly, easy to use solution with many of the functionalities that were once only available on premise This FREE paper covers What's New in On Demand, Why Baxter Medication Delivery ultimately chose on demand, plus the Six Questions Every Buyer Should Ask and more, register now. BONUS FEATURE IT PRODUCT RESEARCH AT YOUR FINGERTIPS Get detailed information on thousands of products, conduct side-by-side comparisons and read product test and review results with Network World’s IT Buyer’s Guides. Find the best solution faster than ever with over 100 distinct categories across the security, storage, management, wireless, infrastructure and convergence markets. Click here for details. PRINT SUBSCRIPTIONS AVAILABLE You've got the technology snapshot of your choice delivered to your inbox each day. Extend your knowledge with a print subscription to the Network World newsweekly, Apply here today. International subscribers, click here. SUBSCRIPTION SERVICES To subscribe or unsubscribe to any Network World newsletter, change your e-mail address or contact us, click here. This message was sent to: security.world@gmail.com. Please use this address when modifying your subscription. Advertising information: Write to Associate Publisher Online Susan Cardoza Network World, Inc., 118 Turnpike Road, Southborough, MA 01772 Copyright Network World, Inc., 2007