Creating “Wi-Fi that works”, even with minimal requirements, is a tall order given the breadth of client and application types that must perform well over the wireless infrastructure, but when adding in the speed and complexity of 802.11n, a variety of demanding applications, high-density environments, and tricky deployment scenarios, controller-based vendors cannot live up to their promises of Ethernet-like determinism. This whitepaper defines what a Wireless 2.0 network is, and the importance of a controller-less architecture for performance, reliability, scalability, security, and flexibility.

Security of a wireless network still ranks as one of the largest concerns of IT professionals planning to roll out an enterprise wireless LAN. Today the security concerns of the legacy protocols have been largely eliminated and best practices for secure deployment have been developed allowing many wireless deployments to be arguably more secure than their wired counterparts.

Aerohive’s approach enables scalable, secure and reliable network applications by taking advantage of the Cloud while also preserving an unmatched level of flexibility often associated with on-premise solutions. Customers can still decide what to run, when to upgrade and comply with customer’s network operation policies.

Wireless is a shared medium, meaning that all clients and neighboring APs compete for the same limited bandwidth. In addition, each client's speed varies depending on the protocol it is running (802.11 a/b/g/n) and the signal strength, interference and noise it is experiencing. This paper reviews key issues that affect wireless LAN performance, and explains how Aerohive's new Dynamic Airtime Scheduling can solve these problems.

Design your high-density WLAN with sufficient focus on network planning and design and ensure the network equipment that is purchased and deployed is capable of delivering both high performance and intelligent features to optimize the use of limited spectrum. Only through proper requirements gathering, network design, configuration, and continual optimization can a Wi-Fi network be deployed that meets the demands of a dense client population. This white paper outlines a set of simple principles that you can use as a basic guide when designing your high-density network. 

This white paper will take government agencies through the necessary connectivity and productivity requirements and explain how Aerohive can help ensure the network is truly ready for the mobility explosion. This will include an overview of the necessary access, authentication, and security options, as well as a focus on how to properly manage devices once they are on the network — one of the most overlooked aspects of a BYOD implementation. Networks should be prepared to make all devices attached to it productive and compliant for a successful BYOD implementation.

Yesterday's de facto standard architecture is commonly referred to as the, “controller-based” architecture. It involves one or more controllers and controller-based (lightweight, thin) access points (APs). Aerohive re-introduced what every router and switch network already used as a defacto standard – fully distributed control plane leveraging free protocols with a centralized network management system, eliminating the need for a centralized Controller. The controller-less solution.

Retailing companies often must support many geographically dispersed sites on a shoestring IT budget. The wireless LANs (WLANs) in these sites are often small, but they nevertheless need business-class capabilities, such as advanced security protection and centralized management, which often add a premium to the price tag. New WLAN architectures and deployment models, however, have emerged to offer more options to help retailers get what they need while sticking to their budgets. This paper will explore new wireless opportunities for retailers, and then discuss several considerations associated with modern WLAN decision-making.

Online multimedia and interactive educational applications are invading the classroom and prompting schools to take a fresh look at what’s possible with the latest in wireless LAN technology. This paper examines how schools can apply 802.11n enterprise-class Wi-Fi technology in ways that pay while overcoming such traditional challenges as shrinking budgets, high network management costs, and nagging performance and reliability troubles.

Cloud networking introduces a new way to deploy, operate, and manage distributed enterprise networks. It delivers enterprise-class network capabilities via a cloud infrastructure that requires little or no capital investment in additional appliances or IT resources. This white paper will provide details about cloud networking, the state of the cloud market, its benefits, and Aerohive’s cloud-enabled networking platform and its current cloud networking offerings.

802.11n promises to bring revolutionary advances in bandwidth, throughput, and reliability to the wireless LAN. It will also have a perhaps unforeseen impact on the wired network, as well. Bandwidth, throughput and reliability will now become an end-to-end network problem, particularly in cases where the WLAN is deployed as network infrastructure rather than as an overlay.

The distributed, virtualizing enterprise seeks to limit—or break—the relationship between physical location and the ability of a business to function. By shifting from traditional mid-sized to small branches to larger numbers of very small locations, the enterprise can more agilely address its business needs and opportunities. This strategy requires that IT be able to implement a location for a small number of users with very low overhead, and that it be able to turn up services at such locations very quickly—and turn them down again just as quickly. Ultralight branches let the business drive the placement and lifespan of branches while minimizing real estate, infrastructure, operational, and service costs.

Healthcare is an ever-changing and consistently challenging environment for technology, but Aerohive has a unique focus on ensuring the wireless LAN and access layer are easy to deploy, configure, manage, and monitor. Regardless of where you live around the world, technology is going to continue to play a larger and more critical role in healthcare, and it is important to stay informed and in compliance with all regulatory compliance requirements.