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AI and IoT: Everything You Need to Know 

A (Re)introduction to AI and IoT

Intros may not be necessary—you’ve likely already met. Artificial intelligence (AI) and the Internet of Things (IoT) are increasingly infused into our lives. In fact, the better these technologies work together, the less likely we are to think about how they interact. When things work, they just work (thanks, UX design!).

Yet those interactions are more potent than ever. Transforming data and connectivity through the network, AI and IoT are fueling one another’s rapid growth. Together, they can unlock tremendous efficiency and innovation, but to safely harness their potential, it’s important to understand what AI and IoT can offer to organizations—and to one another.

What is artificial intelligence?

Applications of AI are advancing so rapidly that only the latest breakthroughs tend to capture our attention. Today, when someone mentions AI, it’s easy to think “generative AI”—but AI still encompasses a broad array of computer science and engineering that simulates a human’s capacity to learn, perceive, reason, and problem-solve. Using AI technologies effectively requires a deeper understanding of the distinctions between different types.

AI can be as simple as reactive machines that perform a narrow range of tasks. These basic systems follow predefined rules and patterns, but don’t learn from historical data or adapt. Early chatbots, for example, might offer a limited selection of responses, and only if the user phrased their question a certain way.

Machine learning (ML) systems, on the other hand, learn from historical data and are designed to improve over time. Using advanced algorithms, ML applications are skilled at optimizing. ML-powered recommendation engines are a key feature driving modern consumer interactions with digital content. This has led to greater personalization of user experiences across e-commerce sites, streaming platforms, and workplace dashboards.

Deep learning is a characteristic of more advanced AI systems that use inference and neural networks to analyze complex data and develop sophisticated processing models. The emergence of large language models (LLMs) such as ChatGPT have shown deep learning’s transformative potential, enabling AI integration into diverse applications such as intelligent chatbots, financial trend analysis, and code debugging.

More sophisticated forms of AI often require more data. Large datasets help to ensure accurate parameters are set in complex models, contribute to a stable training process, and enable advanced AI to learn underlying patterns and capture nuanced features.

What is the Internet of Things?

The Internet of Things refers to a network of objects, such as devices, buildings, and vehicles. IoT connectivity is enabled by sensors, software, and technologies that allow these objects to collect and share data with one another using the internet. IoT sensors can also trigger transactions in response to the real-world data collected, such as climate or visual information. The process used to intercept and log traffic that passes over a digital network is referred to as packet capture. Data packets that are captured can then be analyzed to provide detailed insights and help diagnose network issues.

The decisions that an IoT system makes are determined in a control loop. Though similar to a reactive machine in the narrowness of its focus, an IoT control loop is a complex combination of hardware and software. Control loops leverage sensors, data processing units, actuators, and communication networks to manage things like temperature or lighting in complex environments. While not a form of AI, control loops can enable data-driven automation.

The potent intersection of AI and IoT

IoT technology is widely used to optimize energy usage, maintenance, and security in various settings. These include everything from smart factories and homes to traffic lights and hospitals. Different IoT devices and platforms communicate through application programming interfaces (APIs), which integrate data from multiple devices into centralized systems. APIs can also help manage the increased data load as more devices are added, allowing the network to scale efficiently.

There are several challenges in managing these interconnected devices, such as limited visibility for end users and complex network integrity. IoT devices generate massive amounts of data. While copious data is key for sophisticated AI models, it can become overwhelming to process—making network performance issues difficult to diagnose.

The network of devices also can become a vulnerable entry point for cyberattacks. As networks add complexity, attack surfaces proliferate. According to the 2024 State of Industrial Networking Report, mitigating against cyberthreats is the #1 challenge for companies running industrial infrastructure.

The combination of AI and IoT is helping to address some of the challenges in managing more complex networks. It’s also improving how devices interact and make decisions. Smart spaces and AI-enhanced data management systems are helping organizations digitally transform physical workspaces, gain control over environments, avoid costly disruptions, and protect individuals who access those spaces. Intelligent simulations are accelerating this transformation, compressing design cycles by applying AI algorithms to extract more insights from fewer simulations.

What are the benefits of combining AI and IoT?

AI helps to significantly simplify IoT network management and performance assurance. For instance, AI-driven channel planning uses advanced algorithms to monitor network conditions, tag severities, and avoid dynamic frequency selection (DFS) events that require frequency switching to prevent interference. AI can also help ensure compliance with local energy regulations by adapting transmission power based on range data and regulatory requirements.

AI also democratizes the power of IoT, allowing for more intuitive system interactions that use conversational prompts instead of highly technical queries. This allows administrators to quickly trigger packet captures, automate monitoring processes, and detect anomalies using preconfigured data from other deployments.

Used together, AI and IoT also enable simulations of environments to test virtual scenarios and optimize configurations. IoT systems can leverage the deep learning ability of AI to analyze vast amounts of data and predict outcomes, making those ecosystems and the components within them more adaptive and intelligent.

For example, smart cameras equipped with AI can analyze video feeds in real time, trained on models that allow them to detect and recognize anomalies, unusual activities, potential shortages, or even security threats. Surveillance systems that once required manual oversight and, in the case of incidents, laborious manual review of footage, are now transformed into proactive security solutions that can respond instantly. Triggers can even be set up to only activate threat response in anomalous conditions, such as when an RFID-tagged device leaves a designated area in a store.

The advanced analytics and machine learning capabilities of AI can be applied to data collected by these systems, offering nuanced insights that can improve interactions, refine resource allocation, and extend device life. Retailers can use AI and IoT cameras to track buyer sentiment through facial expressions and traffic patterns. Dwell time can be tracked using heat maps to inform improved equipment configurations and proper rotation.

The APIs that allow IoT devices to communicate with one another also facilitate custom AI solutions for IoT edge applications. AI that operates at the edge can be trained on highly relevant, real-time information, allowing it to quickly diagnose issues and pinpoint causes such as power outages, local environmental factors, connectivity problems, or user errors with a high accuracy and speed. By computing smart thresholds, AI reduces alert fatigue, providing more specific analysis and ensuring that resources are not wasted on misdiagnoses.

AI-enhanced radio resource management (RRM) can process and analyze 10 times the data of conventional methods—another boon for performance assurance. Optimizing radio configurations across multiple access points, RRM systems can help minimize or quickly resolve connectivity issues in complex wireless environments where any amount of latency can significantly impact the user experience.

Securing IoT and AI-based applications

Enhancing the security and performance of IoT networks with AI-based edge applications requires more agility and granular control over network traffic and device interactions than traditional virtual local area network (VLAN)-based approaches can offer. By dynamically adjusting security measures and resource allocation based on real-time data and contextual information, adaptive policy ensures that security protocols meet each device and application’s specific needs and behaviors.

By continuously monitoring network activity and device behavior, adaptive policies can identify anomalies and respond to threats with automatic segmentation and traffic isolation. Automating a segmented response minimizes the impact of security breaches and reduces the potential surface area for an attack.

Adaptive policies also help optimize resource allocation and performance by prioritizing critical applications, managing bandwidth efficiently, and dynamically adjusting to changing conditions and demands in the IoT ecosystem. This helps prevent bottlenecks and ensures that cameras, sensors, and other edge AI applications can function with low latency and high reliability.

What does the future of AI and IoT ecosystems look like? Less intrusive, for one thing. We’re already seeing the infrastructure efficiency in data centers being built to power AI computing. Informed by AI and IoT feedback and optimization, these new data centers require far less space than those of the past. As the use cases for smart and even autonomous IoT ecosystems abound, demand for elegant infrastructure could grow.

Whereas organizations once had separate systems to track people, inventory, and external threats, a platform environment is becoming more attainable than ever thanks to the integration of systems that AI and IoT are now making possible. As environments grow more personalized and complex, user controls should be simplified into a single dashboard experience that works so well you don’t even have to think about it.

Register for a free Meraki dashboard demo

The post AI and IoT: Everything You Need to Know  appeared first on The Meraki Blog.

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It’s Time to Take Control of Experiences and Transform Infrastructure Operations for AI

Today’s business outcomes are intrinsically linked to the quality of digital experiences IT professionals can deliver to connect employees and customers to any app or service.  

Think about a video call for a remote worker. A user opens their app, turns on the camera, and has a meeting. Hopefully there were no hangups or drops along the way. Seems simple, right? Hardly. That call took a path from a computer through the Wi-Fi network and out to a service provider. Then maybe it went through yet another transit provider, up to the cloud, back through the internet, and finally to the office headquarters. The quality of that video call could have been affected at any point along the way. 

A roadmap for digital resilience 

Digital resilience means that you continue to deliver a good user experience in the face of any disruption. For networking, that’s proactive intelligence, predictive recommendations, and (if something goes wrong) automated remediation. 

IT leaders are expected to deliver experiences that feel seamless, connected, and whole. But that is easier said than done as teams wrestle with how to manage the ever-growing complexity of devices, networks, and data centers they own—plus the service providers, SaaS providers, and public cloud infrastructure they don’t own.  

Because every user experience depends on both owned and unowned infrastructures, solving IT problems in silos (LAN, WAN, and cloud) no longer works. We must begin to think of this combination of owned and unowned as the global area network. Visibility across every part of the infrastructure is now essential. If you can see and understand everything, you can fix anything. 

IT leaders repeatedly tell Cisco that they feel hampered in assuring digital experiences and achieving digital resilience across the global area network. According to the 2024 Global Networking Trends Report, 41% of respondents think providing service reliability to ensure predictable and consistent user experiences is an area for significant improvement. 

For over 40 years, network professionals have been waiting for that superpower. Today, that is going to change. Cisco is introducing Digital Experience Assurance from Cisco ThousandEyes. We’re doing for the global area network what GPS and driver data do for driving—providing IT with a clear view of the entire journey, even the parts they don’t control.  

Digital Experience Assurance is a fundamental change from where the industry has been for decades. Now, IT can use AI-native capabilities to show what’s happening with users and applications across the entire global area network—phones, tablets, laptops, home broadband gateways, switches, and routers. Digital Experience Assurance is part of the Cisco Networking Cloud platform, providing continuous intelligence with predictive analytics and automated remediation, from user to cloud and everything in between.  

It doesn’t just change how IT teams work. It also gives IT leaders time to focus on accelerating the business while reducing operational (and even emotional) stress. 

Networking for the generative AI industrial revolution 

The need for AI-ready infrastructure has never been more important as AI workloads, driven by generative AI models, continue to grow. According to our own survey of more than 8,000 senior leaders with responsibility for AI, 95% believe AI will increase the workloads of their IT infrastructure—but fewer than half believe their infrastructure is ready.  

In partnership with NVIDIA, we are now bridging that gap by bringing operational simplicity to AI data centers with Cisco Nexus HyperFabric. It is the world’s first cloud-managed AI infrastructure solution that gives enterprises everything we’ve learned from deploying AI at hyperscalers. Using a Meraki-style operational model, we automate the entire fabric across networking, NVIDIA accelerated computing, storage, optics, and NVIDIA AI Enterprise software, including NVIDIA NIM inference microservices.  

This makes it easier for IT teams to deploy their own enterprise AI clusters where the on-premises data resides, in large data centers, colocation facilities, or edge locations enabling generative AI anywhere. 

Multidomain operational simplicity 

We are also announcing Cisco Workflows for consistent automation across domains as part of the Cisco Networking Cloud platform. In a complex network, making any change or spinning up a new site can be very complicated or may even compromise another domain. Workflows makes it easier.  

With Workflows, you can reduce repetitive tasks and manual errors while eliminating multi-step, multi-app, and probably multi-meeting ordeals. With Workflows as part of Cisco Networking Cloud, you are the IT hero. You create automations across network domains and fix issues at scale. You eliminate trivial, error-prone tasks that used to take hours.  

Cisco Networking Cloud 

Our Cisco Networking Cloud platform has made phenomenal progress toward continuous intelligence, predictive analytics, and automated remediation over the past 12 months. This is just a sampling of the new additions that will help you transform the world. AI-native operations, assurance, secure networking, and infrastructure for AI are all coming together in the Cisco Networking Cloud platform. 

All experiences have a digital component. All experiences will be defined by the network. Cisco will continue to help IT modernize for the future and deliver their most critical business outcomes.  

A version of this article also appears on the Cisco Blog

The post It’s Time to Take Control of Experiences and Transform Infrastructure Operations for AI appeared first on The Meraki Blog.

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Cisco Live 2024: Ensure Digital Resilience, Pervasive Security, and Simpler Operations

As organizations race to meet customer and employee demands for seamless digital experiences, it’s the network operations team answering the call. But especially with users everywhere, applications in data centers and the cloud, and the mainstream adoption of AI, the complexity that IT faces grows.

Networking leaders know that to deliver unified, differentiated experiences—remote, branch, in-store, and other, encompassing a myriad of applications—they need to stop thinking about the LAN and the WAN as silos. Instead, they must ensure experiences work across a global area network, spanning campus, branch, cloud, software as a service (SaaS), and other connections.

In this environment, the challenge IT leaders face is maintaining the quality of every experience across infrastructure they own and don’t own.

Resilience through digital experience assurance, simplified operations, and enhanced security

One company that is embracing this challenge is modern home furnishings and decor retailer Room & Board. Their challenge —and competitive advantage—is building strong relationships with customers throughout the design process, delivering exceptional experiences that span both digital and in-store interactions. To make good on that promise, they need to ensure a seamless, secure, and data-intensive experience, no matter how customers connect. In order to solve this complex problem, Room & Board needed a networking and IT platform that could give them visibility and control across the owned and unowned parts of their global network, simplified operations across sites, and the ability to ensure security and customer data privacy. They found the answer in Cisco Networking Cloud, the only IT platform that can deliver:

  • Digital experience assurance with AI-insights, proactive and pre-emptive recommendations, and automated operations to help deliver flawless digital experiences
  • End-to-end secure networking for consistent policy enforcement and automatic security measures—regardless of how users and devices connect across the digital landscape—by integrating networking and security
  • Simplified, AI-native operations to help efficiently scale support and drive business resilience by unifying and automating operations throughout the owned and unowned digital landscape

At Cisco Live US, we are unveiling new capabilities for Cisco Networking Cloud designed to help our customers at any scale achieve more resilient digital experiences across their diverse networks.

Delivering assurance across the global area network

At the heart of our ability to provide Digital Experience Assurance (DXA) across the global area network is Cisco ThousandEyes. With Cisco ThousandEyes, IT teams can instantly see every network they rely on, owned or unowned, as if it were their own environment. With ThousandEyes, identifying issues anywhere along the digital delivery chain is not only automated but proactive, preemptive, and simpler.

And importantly, ThousandEyes enables closed-loop workflows that automate and accelerate critical remediation and optimization actions for our customers across all domains. Room & Board relies on ThousandEyes to provide visibility into the cloud-hosted and internet-enabled services that are outside of the company’s direct control.

“ThousandEyes helps us deliver the quality experience that we want to put forward to our employees and customers,” said Mark Rodrigue, a senior network engineer at Room & Board. “It’s enabled our customers to feel confident in their interactions with us.”

High throughput, end-to-end security with zero trust protections

When users and apps are connected across the global area network, IT teams need a more flexible and resilient WAN backbone to connect and protect every interaction on the network. A Cisco secure WAN edge is the backbone for the digital enterprise, combining high-performance routing, intelligent SD-WAN with integrated Next-Generation Firewall (NGFW), and flexible multicloud connectivity in an architecture purpose-built to extend security and assurance to every touchpoint across the network.

Managed through Cisco Networking Cloud, this WAN architecture defends the entire network by consistently enforcing security policy across campus, branch, industrial environments, remote users, and the cloud. It’s perfect for customers of all sizes, from local retailer showrooms to a global network of bank branches.

At Cisco Live US, we’re debuting innovations across the WAN edge to help our customers build this critical backbone for today’s dynamic workforce and tomorrow’s AI-powered workloads.

  • The new Cisco Catalyst and Meraki SD-WAN fabric interconnect allows IT teams to select the best WAN platform for every type of site they operate, without sacrificing security, simplicity, or scale.
  • Cisco Meraki Secure Connect is now integrated with Cisco Secure Access, our powerful cloud-based security service edge (SSE) solution, to help connect and protect dynamic remote workforces in a zero-trust model. Along with powerful next-generation firewall (NGFW) capabilities powered by Cisco Talos, this native integration gives customers a seamless path to a unified, scalable SASE solution.
  • The new Meraki MX650 extends the Meraki MX secure SD-WAN portfolio, more than doubling throughput for high-performance branch routing and security.

Simplified operations with drag and drop, point and click automation workflows

In today’s complex, distributed networks, making a config change or spinning up a new site can be time-consuming and accident-prone. But now even entry-level admins can confidently create and run complex, multi-step workflows across campus, branch, and data center environments with Cisco Workflows.

Cisco Workflows is the new automation and orchestration service at the heart of Cisco Networking Cloud. Workflows simplifies complex automation through a visual, low-code interface to help admins quickly and confidently configure, provision, and approve networking changes.

New services can quickly be created by connecting and creating automations across Cisco and third-party systems. A catalog of templates, distilled from Cisco Validated Designs (CVDs), is available with drag-and-drop features that make it easy to create and customize automations. With Cisco Workflows, there’s no need to move between different dashboards, so organizations can achieve business outcomes faster while reducing human error.

Innovations with an immediate ROI

Great digital experiences, simplified IT, and stronger end-to-end security. These are just some of the significant benefits companies can enjoy as we help you harness the power of the global area network. Learn more about how Cisco Networking Cloud can help you achieve resiliency through digital experience assurance, end-to-end secure networking, and simplified operations.

See how Cisco Networking Cloud can help you achieve unified, differentiated experiences.

The post Cisco Live 2024: Ensure Digital Resilience, Pervasive Security, and Simpler Operations appeared first on The Meraki Blog.

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Cisco Live 2024: Ensure Digital Resilience, Pervasive Security, and Simpler Operations

As organizations race to meet customer and employee demands for seamless digital experiences, it’s the network operations team answering the call. But especially with users everywhere, applications in data centers and the cloud, and the mainstream adoption of AI, the complexity that IT faces grows.

Networking leaders know that to deliver unified, differentiated experiences—remote, branch, in-store, and other, encompassing a myriad of applications—they need to stop thinking about the LAN and the WAN as silos. Instead, they must ensure experiences work across a global area network, spanning campus, branch, cloud, software as a service (SaaS), and other connections.

In this environment, the challenge IT leaders face is maintaining the quality of every experience across infrastructure they own and don’t own.

Resilience through digital experience assurance, simplified operations, and enhanced security

One company that is embracing this challenge is modern home furnishings and decor retailer Room & Board. Their challenge —and competitive advantage—is building strong relationships with customers throughout the design process, delivering exceptional experiences that span both digital and in-store interactions. To make good on that promise, they need to ensure a seamless, secure, and data-intensive experience, no matter how customers connect. In order to solve this complex problem, Room & Board needed a networking and IT platform that could give them visibility and control across the owned and unowned parts of their global network, simplified operations across sites, and the ability to ensure security and customer data privacy. They found the answer in Cisco Networking Cloud, the only IT platform that can deliver:

  • Digital experience assurance with AI-insights, proactive and pre-emptive recommendations, and automated operations to help deliver flawless digital experiences
  • End-to-end secure networking for consistent policy enforcement and automatic security measures—regardless of how users and devices connect across the digital landscape—by integrating networking and security
  • Simplified, AI-native operations to help efficiently scale support and drive business resilience by unifying and automating operations throughout the owned and unowned digital landscape

At Cisco Live US, we are unveiling new capabilities for Cisco Networking Cloud designed to help our customers at any scale achieve more resilient digital experiences across their diverse networks.

Delivering assurance across the global area network

At the heart of our ability to provide Digital Experience Assurance (DXA) across the global area network is Cisco ThousandEyes. With Cisco ThousandEyes, IT teams can instantly see every network they rely on, owned or unowned, as if it were their own environment. With ThousandEyes, identifying issues anywhere along the digital delivery chain is not only automated but proactive, preemptive, and simpler.

And importantly, ThousandEyes enables closed-loop workflows that automate and accelerate critical remediation and optimization actions for our customers across all domains. Room & Board relies on ThousandEyes to provide visibility into the cloud-hosted and internet-enabled services that are outside of the company’s direct control.

“ThousandEyes helps us deliver the quality experience that we want to put forward to our employees and customers,” said Mark Rodrigue, a senior network engineer at Room & Board. “It’s enabled our customers to feel confident in their interactions with us.”

High throughput, end-to-end security with zero trust protections

When users and apps are connected across the global area network, IT teams need a more flexible and resilient WAN backbone to connect and protect every interaction on the network. A Cisco secure WAN edge is the backbone for the digital enterprise, combining high-performance routing, intelligent SD-WAN with integrated Next-Generation Firewall (NGFW), and flexible multicloud connectivity in an architecture purpose-built to extend security and assurance to every touchpoint across the network.

Managed through Cisco Networking Cloud, this WAN architecture defends the entire network by consistently enforcing security policy across campus, branch, industrial environments, remote users, and the cloud. It’s perfect for customers of all sizes, from local retailer showrooms to a global network of bank branches.

At Cisco Live US, we’re debuting innovations across the WAN edge to help our customers build this critical backbone for today’s dynamic workforce and tomorrow’s AI-powered workloads.

  • The new Cisco Catalyst and Meraki SD-WAN fabric interconnect allows IT teams to select the best WAN platform for every type of site they operate, without sacrificing security, simplicity, or scale.
  • Cisco Meraki Secure Connect is now integrated with Cisco Secure Access, our powerful cloud-based security service edge (SSE) solution, to help connect and protect dynamic remote workforces in a zero-trust model. Along with powerful next-generation firewall (NGFW) capabilities powered by Cisco Talos, this native integration gives customers a seamless path to a unified, scalable SASE solution.
  • The new Meraki MX650 extends the Meraki MX secure SD-WAN portfolio, more than doubling throughput for high-performance branch routing and security.

Simplified operations with drag and drop, point and click automation workflows

In today’s complex, distributed networks, making a config change or spinning up a new site can be time-consuming and accident-prone. But now even entry-level admins can confidently create and run complex, multi-step workflows across campus, branch, and data center environments with Cisco Workflows.

Cisco Workflows is the new automation and orchestration service at the heart of Cisco Networking Cloud. Workflows simplifies complex automation through a visual, low-code interface to help admins quickly and confidently configure, provision, and approve networking changes.

New services can quickly be created by connecting and creating automations across Cisco and third-party systems. A catalog of templates, distilled from Cisco Validated Designs (CVDs), is available with drag-and-drop features that make it easy to create and customize automations. With Cisco Workflows, there’s no need to move between different dashboards, so organizations can achieve business outcomes faster while reducing human error.

Innovations with an immediate ROI

Great digital experiences, simplified IT, and stronger end-to-end security. These are just some of the significant benefits companies can enjoy as we help you harness the power of the global area network. Learn more about how Cisco Networking Cloud can help you achieve resiliency through digital experience assurance, end-to-end secure networking, and simplified operations.

See how Cisco Networking Cloud can help you achieve unified, differentiated experiences.

The post Cisco Live 2024: Ensure Digital Resilience, Pervasive Security, and Simpler Operations appeared first on The Meraki Blog.

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Simplify 5G Fixed Wireless Access and Scale Secure Connectivity to More Places

5G fixed wireless access (FWA) is transforming the way businesses connect to the global network, especially in areas where fiber is not available. Market analysis from Wells Fargo recently indicated that nearly all net-new broadband accounts in the United States are FWA. Despite this demand, FWA point solutions inhibit the scale potential of FWA when expanding to multiple locations.
Businesses need a better way to implement 5G FWA across their growing branch footprints.

Accelerating time-to-market with cloud management

Cisco is pleased to introduce its first 5G standalone (SA) cloud-managed FWA devices, the Meraki MG52 and MG52E cellular gateways, to accelerate the way businesses open and connect branches. Managed through the Cisco Networking Cloud, these devices help businesses scale robust, always-on, 5G-connected experiences to more people and places without compromising scale and performance.
For branch-based businesses and organizations with remote operations, the MG52 and MG52E deliver:

  • Faster “day zero” operations by enabling businesses to purchase and activate AT&T data plans with an integrated complimentary introductory period directly from the Cisco Meraki dashboard
  • Lower operating expenditures by enabling businesses to streamline deployment with instant-on provisioning via Cisco IoT Control Center and Meraki
  • Higher return on investment by ensuring long-term compatibility with multigeneration cellular service (4G, 5G NSA, 5G SA) and reducing upgrade costs with future-ready 5G SA

Simplifying the 5G journey

Businesses often suffer from delayed time to market due to long lead times associated with disjointed processes and multivendor complexities in opening and connecting branches. AT&T and Cisco saw an opportunity to reach customers more quickly with a jointly developed, innovative, out-of-the-box experience, offering a deep integration with AT&T Wireless WAN services to help businesses get started even faster.
Businesses can now immediately connect full-stack, secure Cisco SD-Branch and SD-Campus networks with 5G FWA at all their branches—up to thousands at once. AT&T enables business IT leaders to prepurchase FWA data plans directly from the Meraki dashboard to leverage cloud-managed eSIM on the MG52 and MG52E.
“Together with Cisco, we are making it faster and easier than ever for companies to reimagine their networks and conduct business with next-level connectivity,” said Mike Troiano, Senior Vice President, Product and Pricing, AT&T Business. “This offer is yet another way we are demonstrating our commitment to simplifying business challenges and enhancing the end-user experience.”

Consistent, unwavering, robust performance

5G FWA is often the best choice for WAN when a business needs to immediately connect a site with minimal downtime, provide connectivity diversity and redundancy, or conduct a large branch deployment. It is also the best WAN choice for:

  • Rural and remote regions where wired WAN can take over nine months to deploy
  • Single-occupancy real estate where a wired WAN connection doesn’t exist
  • Space-constrained locations where a WAN gateway must be deployed in small, tight spots
  • Pop-up sites where a wired WAN is implausible to deploy
  • Nonconventional locations such as basements or rooftops too far from wired WAN

Discreet, versatile, pervasive connectivity

The MG52 and MG52E enable businesses to open branches immediately, boost network resiliency, and increase ROI on FWA investments. Multisite, branch-based verticals, such as retail, food services, hospitality, healthcare, financial services, manufacturing and supply chain, transportation, logistics, and more, can expand their charters and offer services to new customers in new markets. Well-orchestrated deployments can also offer greater business agility, getting to market faster with same-day, full-stack SD-Branch and SD-Campus connectivity with Cisco Meraki or Cisco Catalyst networks.

Intuitive, streamlined, scalable management

Wired remains a highly reliable and fast-performing WAN option for businesses. For most use cases, FWA offers a strong complement to wired WAN, particularly when using SD-WAN, SD-Routing, or routing to take advantage of Cisco traffic orchestration features such as load balancing, traffic shaping, uplink selection, and more.
Businesses can extend secure connected experiences everywhere using Cisco Talos-powered cybersecurity capabilities—firewall policies, content filtering, intrusion detection and prevention (IDS and IPS), advanced malware protection (AMP), and more—using both wired WAN and FWA.

Partnering with telecommunications industry leaders

For businesses looking to partner with a managed service provider, Cisco is teaming up with AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon Business to provide robust, reliable, same-day cloud-managed 5G FWA by offering the MG52 and MG52E as a fully managed solution.
T-Mobile is teaming up with Cisco to enhance its Connected Workplace offering by making the MG52 and MG52E available as part of its fully managed, end-to-end 5G FWA solution.
“When we launched Connected Workplace earlier this year, one of our primary objectives was to continually enhance the solution to meet the evolving needs of our customers,” said Chris Melus, VP of Product Management, T-Mobile for Business. “The addition of the MG52 and MG52E means our customers have a 5G SA gateway that leverages the full power of T-Mobile’s nationwide 5G SA network. It also gives them more choice when it comes to optimizing their networking infrastructure, reducing IT workload and enhancing operational efficiency.”
Verizon Business and Cisco are partnering to offer businesses full-stack, cloud-managed, scalable networking with Verizon 5G FWA built around the flagship MG52 and MG52E FWA devices.
“Businesses need an easy, powerful, and scalable way to deploy high-performance 5G fixed wireless access,” said Debika Bhattacharya, Chief Technology Solutions Officer, Verizon Business. “We’re proud to partner with Cisco to bring businesses reliable 5G connectivity with an emphasis on simplicity, optionality, and capability.”

Business continuity starts now

Together with cloud-managed eSIM integration with AT&T, the MG52 and MG52E offer many new capabilities to elevate the way branch-based businesses get connected and serve their customers. With same-day connectivity, the flexibility to be deployed anywhere, and robust, reliable performance, IT teams can help drive their organizations forward with greater ease and success.

The post Simplify 5G Fixed Wireless Access and Scale Secure Connectivity to More Places appeared first on The Meraki Blog.

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Systems Manager Scores Nod of Approval

Let’s talk about the modern complexities of device management. It’s hectic out there, and the Cisco Meraki Systems Manager (SM) mobile device management (MDM) team is in the trenches, working hard to keep things under control with security and management across the evolving tech terrain.

In fact, we’re amping up our game to stay ahead of the curve in this fast-paced IT world, and we’ve got some great new updates and accolades to share about our continuous rise as a top-tier device management vendor.

Android Enterprise Silver Partner status—achievement unlocked

The Meraki SM team is all about delivering stellar, flexible device management to all our customers, regardless of device operating systems, and we’ve just been recognized as an Android Enterprise Silver Partner. But what does that mean? We have been given a stamp of approval after meeting Android’s tough standards, and we can now be considered part of the top tier in the Android ecosystem, ensuring smooth integration and hitting Android’s high industry marks.

Next-level Android powers with Meraki SM

Meraki Systems Manager isn’t new to the game; we’ve been helping thousands of our customers manage their org’s devices for a while. But just because we’ve been around for a while doesn’t mean we don’t have great new things to show off. We’ve added some new tools like kiosk mode and zero-touch enrollment to the tool kit. Kiosk mode is all about turning devices into mission-focused machines, locked in on important tasks. With zero-touch enrollment, our customers can set up a fleet of Android devices through a streamlined and hassle-free process.

Leading the charge in innovation

As a part of Cisco—the largest networking technology provider with a massive, powerful networking data lake—Meraki Systems Manager comes with a treasure trove of integration capabilities. We’re blending Meraki technology with powerhouse Cisco security features like Umbrella, Advanced Malware Protection (AMP), and Identity Services Engine (ISE). These integrations have helped our customers take a full-platform approach to organizational security from end to end.

The silver lining

Achieving Android Enterprise Silver Partner status is a game-changer for Meraki Systems Manager. It’s a testament to our commitment to pushing boundaries and delivering top-notch technology services. As the IT scene gets more tangled, we’ll continue to innovate in our work as a trailblazer to help simplify the complex. Stay tuned and learn more here—the adventure is far from over.

Learn more about
Systems Manager MDM

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Do More With Less Using Cloud-Based Security

Cloud-based security has transformed the way businesses manage their security operations. Unlike their on-premises predecessors, cloud technology has given IT and security teams greater flexibility and scalability.

System administrators no longer need to be on-site to keep tabs on their buildings. Instead, the cloud has given them the ability to do more with less. They can monitor access points, provision key cards, and implement system changes from anywhere. However, a new iteration of cloud-based physical security is improving how enterprises, commercial real estate companies, schools, and more interact with their security.

What do we mean by a single view of security?

This approach to security connects otherwise disparate hardware and software infrastructure into one platform. For example, an enterprise team could integrate and see surveillance video cameras all within their access control dashboard. This automation helps IT and security teams save time when monitoring their security and speeds up emergency response time.

It also extends beyond integrating video management systems with access control. Manufacturers offer a wide variety of our API integrations that connect platforms like chat software, visitor management, Internet of Things, mobile credentials, and workforce management, delivering a streamlined way for system administrators to manage security.

How this approach helps enterprises and more

Traditional security approaches often involve managing diverse systems and siloed information, leading to inefficiencies and security breaches—most evident to retailers losing billions of dollars to theft annually. While our security approach helps combat theft more effectively than businesses using multiple different systems, there are many other important features, including the following integrations:

  • Automate mobile and key card provisioning. By integrating security with workforce management platforms, like Okta or Azure AD, IT and security teams can automate the provisioning process. When a security team adds or removes a user from workforce software, that user’s key card or mobile badge updates accordingly. When a security team adds or removes a user from workforce software, that user’s key card or mobile badge updates accordingly.
  • Support visitor management. Many commercial real estate companies, enterprises, schools, hospitals, and more need a way to safely make sure that visitors get where they need to be. Cloud-based access control platforms can be integrated with visitor management to give temporary access to specific doors. When integrated, these systems work together with chat notifications to alert users when a guest arrives.
  • Simplify video management. Whether managing security for an enterprise, hospital, school, or commercial real estate company, video management has become more needed. If you’re working across multiple locations, a unified platform will provide a more organized way to view your entire portfolio.

How video security and access control work together

Cloud-based solutions such as Genea Security act as a hub for monitoring access control and video management. They also help teams monitor, analyze, and respond to threats more effectively for a proactive security posture.

For example, hospitals need robust security measures to protect patients, staff, and sensitive medical information. By integrating video management systems with access control, teams can establish a holistic approach. If a security incident happens, the hospital’s administrators can quickly pull up the appropriate video alongside information about the event within the access control dashboard.

Similarly, if a school experiences a lockdown incident, the security team can quickly pull up video of the appropriate access points, then take immediate action to lock down the necessary points, all from one dashboard.

How Genea + Cisco Meraki can help

Unifying surveillance, access control, and analytics allows IT and security teams to proactively safeguard their environments. Cloud-managed Cisco Meraki cameras and Genea Security integrate with ease, so organizations can log video records of access events for faster reaction time during emergencies. As technology in safety and automation continues to advance in today’s dynamic world, embracing the cloud’s holistic security model isn’t just a choice—it’s a necessity.

The post Do More With Less Using Cloud-Based Security appeared first on The Meraki Blog.

Posted on

Do More With Less Using Cloud-Based Security

Cloud-based security has transformed the way businesses manage their security operations. Unlike their on-premises predecessors, cloud technology has given IT and security teams greater flexibility and scalability.

System administrators no longer need to be on-site to keep tabs on their buildings. Instead, the cloud has given them the ability to do more with less. They can monitor access points, provision key cards, and implement system changes from anywhere. However, a new iteration of cloud-based physical security is improving how enterprises, commercial real estate companies, schools, and more interact with their security.

What do we mean by a single view of security?

This approach to security connects otherwise disparate hardware and software infrastructure into one platform. For example, an enterprise team could integrate and see surveillance video cameras all within their access control dashboard. This automation helps IT and security teams save time when monitoring their security and speeds up emergency response time.

It also extends beyond integrating video management systems with access control. Manufacturers offer a wide variety of our API integrations that connect platforms like chat software, visitor management, Internet of Things, mobile credentials, and workforce management, delivering a streamlined way for system administrators to manage security.

How this approach helps enterprises and more

Traditional security approaches often involve managing diverse systems and siloed information, leading to inefficiencies and security breaches—most evident to retailers losing billions of dollars to theft annually. While our security approach helps combat theft more effectively than businesses using multiple different systems, there are many other important features, including the following integrations:

  • Automate mobile and key card provisioning. By integrating security with workforce management platforms, like Okta or Azure AD, IT and security teams can automate the provisioning process. When a security team adds or removes a user from workforce software, that user’s key card or mobile badge updates accordingly. When a security team adds or removes a user from workforce software, that user’s key card or mobile badge updates accordingly.
  • Support visitor management. Many commercial real estate companies, enterprises, schools, hospitals, and more need a way to safely make sure that visitors get where they need to be. Cloud-based access control platforms can be integrated with visitor management to give temporary access to specific doors. When integrated, these systems work together with chat notifications to alert users when a guest arrives.
  • Simplify video management. Whether managing security for an enterprise, hospital, school, or commercial real estate company, video management has become more needed. If you’re working across multiple locations, a unified platform will provide a more organized way to view your entire portfolio.

How video security and access control work together

Cloud-based solutions such as Genea Security act as a hub for monitoring access control and video management. They also help teams monitor, analyze, and respond to threats more effectively for a proactive security posture.

For example, hospitals need robust security measures to protect patients, staff, and sensitive medical information. By integrating video management systems with access control, teams can establish a holistic approach. If a security incident happens, the hospital’s administrators can quickly pull up the appropriate video alongside information about the event within the access control dashboard.

Similarly, if a school experiences a lockdown incident, the security team can quickly pull up video of the appropriate access points, then take immediate action to lock down the necessary points, all from one dashboard.

How Genea + Cisco Meraki can help

Unifying surveillance, access control, and analytics allows IT and security teams to proactively safeguard their environments. Cloud-managed Cisco Meraki cameras and Genea Security integrate with ease, so organizations can log video records of access events for faster reaction time during emergencies. As technology in safety and automation continues to advance in today’s dynamic world, embracing the cloud’s holistic security model isn’t just a choice—it’s a necessity.

The post Do More With Less Using Cloud-Based Security appeared first on The Meraki Blog.

Posted on

Do More With Less Using Cloud-Based Security

Cloud-based security has transformed the way businesses manage their security operations. Unlike their on-premises predecessors, cloud technology has given IT and security teams greater flexibility and scalability.

System administrators no longer need to be on-site to keep tabs on their buildings. Instead, the cloud has given them the ability to do more with less. They can monitor access points, provision key cards, and implement system changes from anywhere. However, a new iteration of cloud-based physical security is improving how enterprises, commercial real estate companies, schools, and more interact with their security.

What do we mean by a single view of security?

This approach to security connects otherwise disparate hardware and software infrastructure into one platform. For example, an enterprise team could integrate and see surveillance video cameras all within their access control dashboard. This automation helps IT and security teams save time when monitoring their security and speeds up emergency response time.

It also extends beyond integrating video management systems with access control. Manufacturers offer a wide variety of our API integrations that connect platforms like chat software, visitor management, Internet of Things, mobile credentials, and workforce management, delivering a streamlined way for system administrators to manage security.

How this approach helps enterprises and more

Traditional security approaches often involve managing diverse systems and siloed information, leading to inefficiencies and security breaches—most evident to retailers losing billions of dollars to theft annually. While our security approach helps combat theft more effectively than businesses using multiple different systems, there are many other important features, including the following integrations:

  • Automate mobile and key card provisioning. By integrating security with workforce management platforms, like Okta or Azure AD, IT and security teams can automate the provisioning process. When a security team adds or removes a user from workforce software, that user’s key card or mobile badge updates accordingly. When a security team adds or removes a user from workforce software, that user’s key card or mobile badge updates accordingly.
  • Support visitor management. Many commercial real estate companies, enterprises, schools, hospitals, and more need a way to safely make sure that visitors get where they need to be. Cloud-based access control platforms can be integrated with visitor management to give temporary access to specific doors. When integrated, these systems work together with chat notifications to alert users when a guest arrives.
  • Simplify video management. Whether managing security for an enterprise, hospital, school, or commercial real estate company, video management has become more needed. If you’re working across multiple locations, a unified platform will provide a more organized way to view your entire portfolio.

How video security and access control work together

Cloud-based solutions such as Genea Security act as a hub for monitoring access control and video management. They also help teams monitor, analyze, and respond to threats more effectively for a proactive security posture.

For example, hospitals need robust security measures to protect patients, staff, and sensitive medical information. By integrating video management systems with access control, teams can establish a holistic approach. If a security incident happens, the hospital’s administrators can quickly pull up the appropriate video alongside information about the event within the access control dashboard.

Similarly, if a school experiences a lockdown incident, the security team can quickly pull up video of the appropriate access points, then take immediate action to lock down the necessary points, all from one dashboard.

How Genea + Cisco Meraki can help

Unifying surveillance, access control, and analytics allows IT and security teams to proactively safeguard their environments. Cloud-managed Cisco Meraki cameras and Genea Security integrate with ease, so organizations can log video records of access events for faster reaction time during emergencies. As technology in safety and automation continues to advance in today’s dynamic world, embracing the cloud’s holistic security model isn’t just a choice—it’s a necessity.

The post Do More With Less Using Cloud-Based Security appeared first on The Meraki Blog.

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