* Testing 13 all-in-one NAC products
Seeing as I am both the editor charged with managing Network World’s Clear Choice Test program and the author of this weekly newsletter, I’m commandeering this space to make a shameless plug for one whopper of a review we plan to publish on July 30.
This test, being conducted by Network World Lab Alliance member Mandy Andress, a practicing security professional herself, comprises an amazing 13 all-in-one Network Access Control (NAC) products.
In April, Joel Snyder – another Lab Alliance member — assessed the role that a separate 30 NAC products played in the larger NAC schemes defined by either Cisco’s Network Access Control (CNAC) initiative or Trusted Network Connect working group of the Trusted Computing Group (See What can NAC do for you now?).
In that first test venture, we found that the basic functions of NAC can be carried out within either scheme, but not all IT shops have the time, inclination, network infrastructure or resources to deploy a full-blown NAC framework.
Enter the “all-in-one” approach to NAC – single products that provide authentication and authorization, endpoint security assessment, NAC policy enforcement and overall management of access control.
The products Ms. Andress has been testing since late March are built by the vendors listed in alphabetical order: Bradford Networks, Check Point, Cisco, ConSentry Networks, ForeScout, Juniper, InfoExpress, LockDown Networks, McAfee, StillSecure, Symantec, Trend Micro, and Vernier Networks.
We are doggedly putting the finishing touches on this test package that will comprise over 15 text and graphical elements. While I’d like to be able to give readers of this newsletter a sneak peak on the top place finishers, I would be out of order if I leaked the results before the publication date.
So as a consolation prize, I’d like to point you in the direction of the Network World NAC Buyer’s Guide where you can slice and dice product information on over 30 products with ties to the NAC market. Couple the Buyer’s Guide with the past and upcoming test results, and you could be well on your way to having your NAC short-list in the bag.
