* WLAN switch maker invades legacy 802.11 accounts
It will be interesting to see how wireless LAN architectures mutate within existing enterprise accounts over the next few years.
Cisco, which has long sold intelligent WLAN access points (AP) with increasing degrees of centralized management, has garnered more than 40% of the enterprise AP market for years. Unless you’ve been on sabbatical or are new to the WLAN market, you probably know that Cisco acquired WLAN switch start-up Airespace earlier this year.
That move happened when it became evident that growing enterprises wanted access to the innovative radio frequency (RF) tools and configuration and planning capabilities that the newer WLAN companies were bringing to the table.
In the meantime, though, former Airespace competitors are trying to beat Cisco/Airespace to the punch in permeating Cisco’s own accounts with interoperability solutions of their own. For example, WLAN switch-maker Trapeze Networks last week said that as of next month, Cisco Aironet 350, 1100, and 1200 access points can become members of a Trapeze-managed network with just a command-line change to the AP configuration. (Trapeze made the same announcement regarding Proxim AP2000s and AP4000s.)
A free upgrade to Trapeze’s Ringmaster switch software will allow the Cisco APs to be part of a Trapeze Mobility Domain, supporting Trapeze’s wireless planning, monitoring, and reporting capabilities, according to Bruce Van Nice, Trapeze vice president of marketing.
The fly in the ointment, though, will be that Cisco AP configuration will still need to be handled from a Cisco management tool, such as Cisco’s Wireless LAN Solutions Engine.
Centralized and automated WLAN tools are necessary as WLAN deployments hit mainstream areas of the enterprise and grow large and difficult to administer on an AP-by-AP basis. However, it’s not a shoo-in that distributed switches/controllers with slimmed-down APs are necessarily going to exclusively dominate the enterprise.
The soon-to-be-published Webtorials 2005 Wireless LAN State-of-the-Market Report indicates that a mix of architectures will prevail. More than half the respondents (55%) said they are using or likely to use intelligent APs with some centralized management and security capabilities; 33% are using or likely to use standalone intelligent APs, and another 33% are using or likely to use thin APs with WLAN switches. Note that respondents were allowed to select multiple architectures that they were using or intended to use.
More details on this very revealing report in future newsletters.
