Solutions for Branches of One to Many

Branch offices. Teleworkers. Mobile users. All need access to the enterprise network, but all have unique needs.

Users who work away from large headquarters sites have no less of a need for full access to the enterprise network than their headquarters counterparts. Historically, supporting these users has been a burden on IT staff, who compromised on either functionality or cost - until today. Aruba's Virtual Branch Networking (VBN) solution provides a full range of branch office solutions that deliver seamless enterprise connectivity while reducing cost and complexity. By centralizing complexity in datacenter-based controllers and then extending services out to low-cost edge device in the branch office, Aruba's VBN solution delivers the functionality of always-on infrastructure at a cost approaching that of client VPN.

• Smaller branch offices and retail stores need full-service always-on connectivity, but don't typically have local IT staff. Traditionally, a branch office router would be used for these locations, but branch office routers are expensive and complex to configure and manage. Aruba's RAP-5 Remote Access Point family is ideal for such offices, with multiple NAC-enabled LAN ports, 3G cellular uplink options, and optional 802.11a/b/g/n wireless capability. And with Aruba's unique Distributed Policy Enforcement Firewall, security policies are centrally defined but locally enforced - meaning gaps in security are never a concern. A RAP device can be mailed - in a factory-default state - to a site manager who literally needs only plug in power and a wide-area Ethernet connection or 3G cellular modem. With one-click installation and provisioning, the RAP seeks out the primary or back-up data center, establishes a secure encrypted tunnel to an Aruba controller, and uses its built-in firewall to implement access policies defined by the IT staff. Best of all there's no client software to install or manage.
• Larger branch offices are ideally served by Aruba's Branch Office Controller family. These compact devices act as a "branch network in a box," with local Ethernet switching, routing, wireless LAN, firewall, site-to-site VPN, and USB network-attached storage and print server functionality. Unlike router-based solutions, Branch Office Controllers do not require extensive site-specific configuration, relying instead on the centralized AirWave Management Platform to provide consistent policy and visibility network-wide. This architecture significantly reduces IT overhead, and minimizes the cost and complexity of installing and maintaining remote sites. Branch Office Controllers support multiple local 802.11a/b/g/n wireless access points with full enterprise-class WLAN features including Adaptive Radio Management, WPA/WPA2, and wireless intrusion detection and prevention.
• Teleworkers need solutions that work from home with plug-and-play simplicity and security that protects network resources without complicating access. Aruba's RAP-2WG is a low-cost solution that makes the enterprise LAN, wired or wireless, appear in an employee's home. Leveraging VPN technology, the solution eliminates the need for VPN client software, solves the security/usability "split tunneling" compromise, and makes remote voice-over-IP phones a reality. The RAP-2WG is very cost-effective for individual users - so-called branches of one - and sites that need just a handful of access points.
• Mobile users including a wide variety of constituents from traveling executives to insurance underwriters working at disaster sites. These users need network security, plug-and-play solutions, and flexible wide-area network access when Ethernet is not available. For these users, Aruba's RAP-5 family utilizing a USB 3G cellular uplink provides secure enterprise connectivity anywhere broadband cellular service is available. And for network managers looking for a traditional client VPN solution for employees traveling with laptops, an Aruba controller equipped with the ArubaOS VPN Server module integrates a broad list of standard IPsec VPN clients into the Aruba security framework.

Aruba has every base covered - for branches of one to branches of many. Best of all, our solutions natively support user mobility, so that as users move from headquarters to branch offices to working at home, their method of connecting to the enterprise network remains the same. A user carrying a laptop and a wireless IP telephone can go anywhere in the extended enterprise and experience exactly the same full-function access to applications with no reconfiguration needed. With Aruba branch office solutions, the enterprise network becomes truly seamless while costs are simultaneously cut.