Wi-Fi guest-access strategies

Wireless in the Enterprise This newsletter is sponsored by Belden Wireless Solutions Belden Webcast/Podcast Alert "How to Solve the 8 Greatest WLAN Problems" Join Belden WLAN expert Eric Meurell and learn how to overcome the biggest problems with WLANs today. Whether you're updating an existing WLAN or you're buying and installing a new system, the information you'll learn will help you make the right decisions. Network World's Wireless in the Enterprise Newsletter, 09/19/07 Wi-Fi guest-access strategies By Joanie Wexler I mentioned last time some of the Wi-Fi mobility woes I experienced on a recent weeklong business trip. One in a series of snafus was the impossibility of getting on-the-fly guest Internet access at a client company I was visiting. The issue at hand is getting the temporary guest – be it a contractor, business partner or customer – sanctioned in the user database and issued a username and password. Generally, this requires planning ahead and involvement of the IT staff. Because IT staffers already have plenty to do, this takes time and certainly tempers a company’s flexibility to accommodate drop-in colleagues. Some progress is being made. Wi-Fi systems maker Trapeze Networks recently launched server software called SmartPass to ease and hasten getting a guest signed up for wireless Internet access. The system has two levels of access: one for non-IT personnel, which is limited to creating a guest pass for someone that lasts a number of hours, days, or weeks. The other is for IT personnel, who have more granular control over user access, data, and records. Get Up to Speed on the Latest in WLANs Easily stay on top of the latest developments and issues in WLAN technology, standards, security, telephony, management and more with Network World's latest Executive Guide, "Keeping Up With the Wireless Whirlwind." Click here to download! The centralized Trapeze application offloads the work of creating and maintaining guest access from multiple WLAN controllers to a server that communicates with the controllers. In other words, personnel do not muck with WLAN controller settings to set up guest access, which is probably a good thing from a reliability standpoint. The good news for the guest is that they can quickly get a username and password and be up and running on site. Trickier is the job the hosting company has in figuring out the associated guest policies. For example, should everyone in the company be able to sign up anyone they want for guest access? Balancing usability with security is an ongoing business challenge faced by all companies. Trapeze said its SmartPass system works with third-party WLAN access points but that they have to be managed by Trapeze WLAN controllers. What would be interesting would be if someone could develop a “drop-in” guest access server that was independent of the Wi-Fi infrastructure/controller vendor. This way, you could choose best-of-breed components for the various aspects of your WLAN configuration.   What do you think? Post a comment on this newsletter

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Contact the author: Joanie Wexler is an independent networking technology writer/editor in California's Silicon Valley who has spent most of her career analyzing trends and news in the computer networking industry. She welcomes your comments on the articles published in this newsletter, as well as your ideas for future article topics. Reach her at joanie@jwexler.com. This newsletter is sponsored by Belden Wireless Solutions Belden Webcast/Podcast Alert "How to Solve the 8 Greatest WLAN Problems" Join Belden WLAN expert Eric Meurell and learn how to overcome the biggest problems with WLANs today. Whether you're updating an existing WLAN or you're buying and installing a new system, the information you'll learn will help you make the right decisions. ARCHIVE Archive of the Wireless in the Enterprise Newsletter. 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