Aruba Networks: Secure WiFi/VPN Solution in One

I attended Forrester's IT Forum 2006 this week in Las Vegas, and one of the vendors exhibiting there is Aruba Networks (http://www.arubanetworks.com).

Aruba, which calls themselves the "Mobile Edge Company" have a line of VPN/wireless “switch” appliances that are really cool. You buy a "mobiliy controller", which is a switch-like device that can control between 6 and 512 Aruba access points (which are very small, 802.11 a/b/g devices).

The mobility controller is much more than just a switch, however. The idea is that you place the controller in the data center, and it then not only controls the access points, but it also serves as an identity-based security gateway (wired and wireless), plus a VPN server.

After you configure one or more wireless access points with private IPs, you can plug them in virtually anywhere with connectivity to the Internet (like mobile users, branch offices, or even locations in the same building). The APs connect back to the "mother ship" (mobility controller) via an encrypted VPN tunnel, providing a secure connection from virtually anywhere (like hotel rooms, for example). The access points also support WiFi security like WPA, so in effect, you get fully secured end-to-end wireless communications from virtually anywhere....and once it's set up, it's virtually plug-and-play.

This solution solves a multitude of remote access problems, including the classic problem where an employee connects back to the corporate network with a VPN tunnel from home, and yet since they have an unsecure (or improperly secured) access point, they've just created an opening into the corporate network that is virtually impossible for the IT organization to detect.

I especially like the remote office / mobile worker aspects of this solution. An IT department could send the smallest AP (around $200 if memory serves) to these users, and they only need to plug the unit into a network connection to gain instant secure wireless connectivity to the corporate network. Super cool!

The total solution scales very well also--they have controllers that scale up to the largest of deployments, and they also have a very good line of access points that even include outdoor environments. I have recommended that our IT person take a look at their solution--it could solve a multitude of problems for us with not a large amount of work and for just a few thousand dollars' investment.



Not only do the APs provide a secure plug-and-play VPN, they also provide secure wireless access that will work in our various office locations as well as home offices and even hotel rooms. Cool idea!



The price doesn’t look too bad—the appliance starts around $1,700 (US) and the APs are around $200 (if memory serves).