Enterprise WiFi – How We Can Help

Over the last 4 years, WiFi has shifted from being a ‘nice to have’ for ad-hoc access to the corporate network and guest internet access to critical piece of corporate network, responsible for delivering access to core line of business applications, including voice and video.

Aerohive Networks has introduced an innovative new class of wireless infrastructure equipment called a Co-operative Control Access Point (CC-AP). A CC-AP combines an enterprise-class access point with a suite of cooperative control protocols and functions to provide all of the benefits of a controller-based WLAN solution, but without requiring a controller or an overlay network. Aerohive Networks implementation of a CC-AP is called a HiveAP.

This co-operative control functionality enables multiple HiveAPs to be organized into groups, or “hives,” that share control information between HiveAPs to enable functions like fast layer 2/layer 3 roaming, co-operative RF management, security and mesh networking.
This capability enables a next generation WLAN architecture, called a co-operative control WLAN Architecture, that provides all of the benefits of a controller-based architecture, but is easier to deploy and expand, lower cost, more reliable, more scalable, more ubiquitously deployable, higher performing and more suitable for voice over WLAN than today’s controller-based architectures.

HiveAPs discover each other whether they are connected to each other over a wired network, or wirelessly. When neighbors are found with the same hive or mobility credentials, they can build secure connections to each other. Once the neighbor relationships have been established between HiveAPs, they use cooperative control protocols to provide seamless mobility, cooperative RF management, resiliency and best path forwarding.
Enterprises are expanding their wireless LANs to improve productivity, reduce switch port plus cabling costs, and bring branch offices online inexpensively. They are also increasing wireless network capacity to address the explosion of Wi-Fi client devices including mobile internet devices (MIDs) and smart phones. As a result, near-100% uptime is critical, and multimedia traffic requires enhanced quality of service (QoS) features for optimal user experiences. The distributed, scalable Aerohive architecture has been optimised with the features needed to meet all of these requirements.
Wireless LANs have become mission-critical within the enterprise – with any downtime affecting revenue. Meanwhile, time-bounded voice and video traffic are joining the network and require QoS enhancements to 802.11′s basic packet prioritization features. Enterprises also need to tune mixed wireless networks containing 802.11n and legacy 802.11g/b/a equipment to deliver fair network access to all client devices.