A funny thing happened while Aruba was on the way to market with its innovative Virtual Branch Network (VBN) solution and "network rightsizing" initiative - Cisco got hot and bothered.
Just after the VBN solution received the 2009 Best of Interop Las Vegas Award in the Wireless & Mobility category (http://bit.ly/aUocV), Joel Conover, senior manager, network systems at Cisco called the new 600 Series Branch Office Controller "a travesty" (http://bit.ly/KOmNv). He then claimed that Cisco offered the same capabilities with a new product...but only when used behind an expensive Cisco 800 Series ISR Router. Why does Cisco need an expensive WAN router when Aruba VBN does not, even for the entry level $99 list RAP-2?
Aruba's rightsizing initiative promotes the use of Wi-Fi everywhere it can be used, wired networks only where they must be used. Rightsizing is a three step process whereby users assess current wired LAN utilization using a tool like StatSeeker (on average 30-40% of wired ports aren't used at all), consolidate switches and scale service plans/cooling/power consumption to match, and then invest the savings in upgrading the Wi-Fi network to 802.11n. Simple and logical, right? If you can save money you should. If your network is already rightsizied then the most you've invested is some time verifying that's the case.
Customer reaction to rightsizing has been nothing short of amazing. The California State University System identified $30M of savings by shifting from wired networks to Wi-Fi (http://bit.ly/uvjbu).
Cisco, however, had a different reaction.When John Cox published an article in Network World titled "Is it time to cut the Ethernet access cable?" (http://bit.ly/3cG4t) in which he noted that pervasive WLANs leave costly wired ports idle, Cisco flipped. Chris Kozup, ironically titled senior manager for mobility solutions at Cisco, maintained that an Ethernet cable is exactly what everyone needs. Aruba's right-sizing is a "shortsighted message from a wireless-only provider. It's penny-wise and pound-foolish." Using Wi-Fi as the primary form of network access is inflexible and the benefits exaggerated, he said.
And yet....Cisco itself released a report stating that its own employees average 90 minutes per day of additional productive time using Wi-Fi (http://bit.ly/UNHQd). So why is Cisco so aggressively pushing wired LANs on customers?
The answer to both questions can be found in Cisco's business model, which depends on profits generated from selling overpriced wired routers and wired ports. The big R&D bucks go to the wired side of the house, which is perhaps one reason why Cisco's lackluster wireless LANs are missing innovative features like application awareness and adaptive response to changes in local RF conditions.
Cisco's focus on wired LANs and lack of wireless innovation has resulted in two consistent forms of behavior: attempts to replicate features found in Aruba's innovative products (Cisco's new band steering feature and the changes in their newest network management console appear to be almost exact replicas of Aruba features); and whining, as exemplified in the articles above.
If you want real innovation, look to companies that identify problems and deliver creative solutions. Replicators and whiners need not apply.
Showing posts with label mobility. Show all posts
Showing posts with label mobility. Show all posts
29 January 2009
Welcome to the Green Island News
We are today witnessing the coalescence of multiple technology breakthroughs into products that herald a fundamental shift in where and how we work:
* High-speed 802.11n wireless LANs and portable computing platforms make it feasible to deploy an all-wireless workplace free from the constraints of wired Ethernet access ports;
* Multi-core processors and hardware-based encryption accelerators make possible high-throughout wireless LAN access points and controllers capable of handling the volumes of encrypted traffic, and the wide range of applications, expected in an all-wireless workplace;
* Energy efficient semiconductors and power supplies make possible products that perform more functions but consume less energy than previous alternatives;
* Infrastructure-based controls and Quality of Service can deliver the reliability and determinism required by a broad range of applications, from computer connectivity to telephony and streaming video;
* Identity-based security with central encryption, strong authentication, and access control policies enable roaming users to be correctly identified, regardless of where or how they access the network, thereby enhancing mobility in ways not possible using legacy security mechanisms.
What lies before us is a workplace in which users have greater mobility to choose where they work, copper cabling takes a backseat to Wi-Fi as the primary access method, and information technology (IT) infrastructure does more but uses less power. “All-wireless” as used in this context is a metaphor for a workplace that affords secure mobility to its users. That workplace could be in a traditional office or campus, at home, or on the road.
Our newfound mobility will have profound environmental, economic, human, and social effects. Sustainability (in terms of energy and resource consumption), user efficiency and productivity, space/architectural/urban planning, and the total cost of network/facility ownership will all be impacted. Additionally, unfettered mobility will result in a wide range of new applications and jobs - perhaps even whole new categories of employment - not previously anticipated or conceivable.
The objective of The Green Island News is to discuss the technology and companies behind this sea change, and to explore the micro- through macro-level impact of the all-wireless workplace. The scope is very broad, the topics very wide. The perspective will be one of an industry insider looking outwards, and hopefully will cast a different light on the subject than one finds in the popular press.
If you're interested in research on Green Island-related topics, please consider participation in The Green Island Project. For details please see www.arubanetworks.com/company/green_island.php.
* High-speed 802.11n wireless LANs and portable computing platforms make it feasible to deploy an all-wireless workplace free from the constraints of wired Ethernet access ports;
* Multi-core processors and hardware-based encryption accelerators make possible high-throughout wireless LAN access points and controllers capable of handling the volumes of encrypted traffic, and the wide range of applications, expected in an all-wireless workplace;
* Energy efficient semiconductors and power supplies make possible products that perform more functions but consume less energy than previous alternatives;
* Infrastructure-based controls and Quality of Service can deliver the reliability and determinism required by a broad range of applications, from computer connectivity to telephony and streaming video;
* Identity-based security with central encryption, strong authentication, and access control policies enable roaming users to be correctly identified, regardless of where or how they access the network, thereby enhancing mobility in ways not possible using legacy security mechanisms.
What lies before us is a workplace in which users have greater mobility to choose where they work, copper cabling takes a backseat to Wi-Fi as the primary access method, and information technology (IT) infrastructure does more but uses less power. “All-wireless” as used in this context is a metaphor for a workplace that affords secure mobility to its users. That workplace could be in a traditional office or campus, at home, or on the road.
Our newfound mobility will have profound environmental, economic, human, and social effects. Sustainability (in terms of energy and resource consumption), user efficiency and productivity, space/architectural/urban planning, and the total cost of network/facility ownership will all be impacted. Additionally, unfettered mobility will result in a wide range of new applications and jobs - perhaps even whole new categories of employment - not previously anticipated or conceivable.
The objective of The Green Island News is to discuss the technology and companies behind this sea change, and to explore the micro- through macro-level impact of the all-wireless workplace. The scope is very broad, the topics very wide. The perspective will be one of an industry insider looking outwards, and hopefully will cast a different light on the subject than one finds in the popular press.
If you're interested in research on Green Island-related topics, please consider participation in The Green Island Project. For details please see www.arubanetworks.com/company/green_island.php.
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