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Control Your Air Space
Airespace Control System (ACS) Software is the industry’s leading platform for Wireless LAN (WLAN) planning, configuration and management. It provides a powerful foundation by which IT managers can design, control, and monitor enterprise wireless networks from a centralized location, simplifying operations and reducing total cost of ownership.

With ACS, network administrators have a single solution for RF prediction, policy provisioning, bandwidth allocation, network optimization, troubleshooting, user tracking, security monitoring, and WLAN systems management. Robust graphical interfaces make WLAN deployment and operations simple and cost effective. Detailed trending and analysis reports make Airespace Control System Software vital to ongoing network operations.

Airespace Control System Software has an embedded database and runs on a server platform. This architecture provides the scalability necessary to manage hundreds of Airespace WLAN switches and appliances, which in turn can manage thousands of Airespace Access Points (APs). WLAN switches or appliances can be located on the same LAN as ACS, or across a wide area link. This makes ACS the ideal WLAN management platform for even the largest enterprise environments.

The Airespace Control System Software enables the following functions across an entire wireless network.

RF Management

• Wireless coverage – Airespace Control System Software provides tools that enable IT managers to visualize the footprint of their wireless network. This includes granular heat maps that show the precise RF topology for a building based upon imported maps with assigned wall attributes. RF topology information helps IT staff to optimize network coverage and performance and is an invaluable tool for capacity planning.
  
• Location tracking – ACS has advanced location tracking features to accurately track the location of wireless devices throughout an Airespace network. This enables IT staff to isolate and contain wireless intruders, control access to wireless resources based upon geographic location, track assets, and support Enhanced 911 (E911) services for voice. By incorporating location tracking functionality into the WLAN infrastructure itself, ACS reduces the complexities of WLAN deployment and minimizes total cost of ownership.
• Rogue detection and containment – The Airespace platform uses patent pending technology to constantly monitor the air space for unauthorized access points and ad-hoc networks. If unauthorized devices appear, Airespace Control System Software can be used to determine if they are malicious, and to take appropriate steps towards containment if desired. Detailed trending reports help to identify potential recurring problems.
• Wireless Protection System (WPS) – Airespace combines real-time monitoring functionality with advanced analysis capabilities to provide the industry’s most advanced and effective Wireless Protection System (WPS). Airespace WPS prevents threatening or unauthorized wireless activity (client and AP) from taking place within the Airespace coverage area. An integral part of the Airepace WPS, is an advanced intrusion detection and prevention capability. At the very edge of the WLAN, all Airespace APs perform both network distribution services and intrusion protection functionality simultaneously. If threatening activity is detected, the Airespace system is able to respond with immediate mitigation action such as rogue containment or placement on an exclusion list (if required).
• Troubleshooting – By consolidating a variety of key network information, such as noise levels, signal:noise ratio, interference, signal strength, and network topology, network administrators can use ACS Software to isolate and resolve problems at all layers of a wireless network.

Policy Creation and Enforcement
Airespace Control System Software features policy templates, which dramatically simplify the task of deploying Wireless LANs. With the click of a button, these templates can deploy new policies network wide, ensuring consistent policy enforcement throughout the network.

• Service Policy Engine – Airespace Control System Software contains a service policy engine that allows network administrators to easily create Virtual LAN (VLAN), RF, QoS, and security policies. These policies can be pushed across an entire network, to individual switches, or even to individual access points on the network.
• User Exclusion Listing – IT staff can use the Airespace Control System Software to proactively exclude specific users, preventing them from associating with the wireless network. If unusual activity is detected, offending devices are automatically added to a “grey list” and IT staff is promptly alerted. For example, a user is grey listed if numerous failed logins are attempted in a short period of time as this is the signature of a dictionary attack. If a device is determined to be malicious, IT staff can transfer it to the exclusion list whereby it is permanently excluded from the wireless network. IT staff can adjust the expiration time on these lists to meet specific networking requirements.

WLAN Systems Management

• Software updates – With Airespace Control System Software, upgrades to Airespace equipment can be performed from a centralized location, with a single click of the mouse.
• Network mapping – ACS software can automatically discover individual devices within a wireless network, including Airespace equipment and third-party devices. This eliminates the need for manual database configuration and maintenance, and provides accurate information for capacity planning and troubleshooting purposes.
• Customized reports – A variety of reports can be generated by the ACS software to document network activity and system information. This includes client statistics, radio utilization data, 802.11 counters, RF profile history, busiest AP and client data and alarms.

Flexible and Secure Access
Airespace Control System Software leverages SNMP version 3 for the highest level of network management capabilities and security. This protocol is used for communications between an ACS server and individual switches. The Airespace Control System Software also supports SNMP version 1 and version 2. In addition, ACS manages third-party access points using SNMP.

Network administrators can access the Airespace Control System Software via any standard browser running HTTP or HTTPS. This ensures anytime, anywhere secure access to Airespace’s management capabilities. Each person managing the switch can have a different level of access to the system, allowing management functions to be delegated.

System Requirements

Server
Redhat Enterprise Linux ES or Windows 2000/2003 server or workstation, SP4 or greater
2.4 Ghz Pentium 4 or better
1G RAM or better
20GB Hard drive

Client
Internet Explorer 6.0/SP1 or later

Management
SNMP v1, v2c, v3

Managed Devices
Airespace 4000 WLAN Switch
Airespace 4100 WLAN Appliance
Airespace 3500
Airespace 1200 Access Point
Airespace 1200R Remote Edge Access Point
Third-party Access Points

Database
Integrated Solid FlowEngine SQL

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"Wi-Fi Alliance," their respective logos, and "Wi-Fi Protected Access" are the trademarks of the Wi-Fi Alliance.