Cisco Certified Network Consulting and Support

Network management tools assist companies to implement network infrastructure efficiently, look up client details rapidly, track system health, debug issues, defend against and respond to cyber attacks, and optimize responsiveness. Network management systems can help detect inefficient or inappropriate uses of network resources such as streaming media or peer-to-peer file sharing that can burn up bandwidth, lower employee output or leave you vulnerable to data leaks. A well planned network management solution can also assist organizations to make smart capacity planning moves by exposing tendencies in resource usage for various times or jos.

Cisco has developed a diverse and growing portfolio of network management solutions that allow unified management for on-premises, cloud-based, or hybrid network models. With Cisco's later generation of security, switching, and Wi-Fi networking devices, you can choose among Meraki, DNA Center, or CLI management platforms for network management. For example, you can connect the latest Catalyst or Meraki switches and Catalyst or Meraki WiFi 6/6E APs to the Meraki dashboard to monitor and manage critical components of your IT infrastructure from the cloud. Progent's Catalyst WiFi AP experts, Cisco Meraki WiFi access point consulting experts, Catalyst switches consultants, and Meraki switches consulting experts can help you to design, implement and optimize a modern solution for network infrastructure monitoring and management.

Legacy Network Management Tools from Cisco and Others
An abundance of network management products from Cisco and other suppliers underscores the importance and difficulty of supporting IT infrastructure. Progent's Cisco-certified network management engineers are expert at assisting companies develop management strategies based on Simple Network Management Protocol, SYSLOG services, and Cisco Netflow protocols to build powerful tools for tracking network utilization and latency, viewing important router and switch operational characteristics, and identifying traffic patterns, applications, and appliances utilizing available services.

Progent can help customers to utilize a broad selection of open source and proprietary management products to maintain Cisco infrastructure. Utilities familiar to Progent's consultants include MRTG, Nagios, PRTG, Cisco Adaptive Security Device Manager (ASDM), Cisco Network Assistant, CiscoWorks, Cisco Security Manager, OpenView, Concord E-Health, AlterPoint DeviceAuthority, Adventnet Netflow, Big Brother, and Necordia NetMRI.

Network management platforms can help IT administrators to be aware of existing system utilization and effectively prepare for downstream capacity expansion. Network management tools can also be used to detect inefficient or improper utilization of network resources, for example streaming multimedia, peer-to-peer file sharing, etc. that can eat up valuable or scarce network resources. An efficiently crafted network management strategy can also aid companies to make intelligent choices on network enhancements once they understand how much network resources really required at various times.

Putting an efficient network management platform in place ahead of time is critical to prevent major problems that can result from Denial Of Service (DoS) attacks and dangerous viruses. Such events can leave the network unusable and in the absence of proper tools it can be difficult, and sometimes practically impossible, to discover the source of the problem.

Network Management Solutions from Cisco
Cisco has developed a selection of effective utilities that should form the foundation for any network management strategy. Utilized in conjunction with appropriate outside vendor tools, Cisco's network management software can improve the business value of networks for organizations of any size by dealing with important areas such as system utilization, performance, availability, protection, repair, and scalability. Cisco's top network management products include:

Cisco ASDM is a web Java applet that lets you configure and monitor the software built into security appliances. Cisco Adaptive Security Device Manager is installed by the network device, and allows you to set up, monitor, and control the device.

Monitor Manager is a management and monitoring solution intended for the needs of small and midsize businesses (SMBs). Cisco Monitor Manager actively tracks important device processes on voice and data networks serving five to 250 users and equipped with up to 250 IP phones. The application offers:

• Real-time scanning of key device processes on small and midsize business-class network appliances, Cisco Unified Communications Manager Express, Unity Express, security appliances, WAPs, and Cisco Unified IP Phones
• Support for the Unified Communications 500 appliance for organizations with as many as 50 workers

• Network discovery and physical topology
• Device and process views of Cisco Unified Communications implementation
• Networkwide device identification logging and documentation
• Advanced security and reliable communication
• Appliance performance monitoring
• Cisco Unified IP Telephony monitoring
• Connection status and data traffic monitoring
• Real-time alerts and notices
• Reports
• Setup archive

Cisco Network Assistant is a desktop-hosted management application optimized for wired and wireless LANs (WLANs) for growing companies that have as many as 40 Cisco switches and routers. By running Cisco's Smartports mechanism, Cisco Network Assistant streamlines configuration, deployment, and continuing administration and support of Cisco networks. It provides a unified network view and permits network administrators to employ its functions across switches, routers, and WAPs.

Cisco Security Manager is a highly functional but simple to operate solution for managing all aspects of appliance set up and security policies for firewalls, virtual private networks (VPNs), and Intrusion Prevention Systems (IPS). The solution effectively manages even small environments with fewer than ten appliances, but also expands to control enterprise networks composed of thousands of Cisco routers, security appliances, and switch services modules. Expansion is enabled through intelligent policy-driven management procedures that can simplify administration. Key features of Security Manager include:

• Supports control of Cisco routers configured with a Cisco IOS security image, ASA 5500 security appliances, Cisco PIX security appliances, IPS 4200 Series inline security appliances, and Cisco Catalyst 6500 family security services modules
• Reacts faster. more rapidly to attacks: specify and apply new security policies to thousands of appliances in a few simple steps
• Rich GUI provides exceptional ease-of-use
• Multiple views that offer versatile methods to control devices and security policies including the option to administer the security environment graphically on a topology map
• Extensive animated help for the first-time operator to accelerate training period
• Globally specify which policies are shared and automatically inherited by new appliances to ensure corporate policies are implemented consistently, while providing optional flexibility to customize policies at the local device level
• Capability to create a common firewall rule table for all Cisco platforms with smart analysis of firewall policies to detect anomalies within the rule base
• Quickly set up location-to-location, hub-spoke, full-mesh IPsec, or extranet VPN links by means of a few mouse clicks
• Compatibility with Cisco ACS for granular role based access management to devices and administration functions
• Operation with Cisco security MARS to compare monitored data with related security appliance rules to promote faster decision making and increased system availability
• Capability to allocate specific jobs to each administrator in the course of the deployment of a rule, with formal change management and tracking; allows the security and systems operations staff to work together as a single group with efficient coordination

Progent can also show you how to utilize network management tools to analyze and categorize network data to implement traffic shaping, which allows you to configure Cisco routers to enforce different throughput constraints on designated classes of processes according to the priorities you specify. By storing and sorting excess packets that exceed your committed rates, and by assigning preference to business-critical applications, traffic shaping can prevent Internet Service Provider overage penalties from spinning out of reach and/or avoid lost worker productivity resulting from indiscriminate enforcement of your network bandwidth restrictions during peak use.

Progent's CISM and CISSP security professionals can help you to create a comprehensive security strategy that incorporates your network management solution, and Progent's remote and on-site support experts and Cisco CCIE and CNA qualified engineers can use the latest network management tools to identify and remediate problems quickly to keep your IT system productive.

To find out more information concerning Progent's engineering assistance for Cisco solutions, pick a subject:

• Introduction to Cisco Network Support
• Fast Remote Support from a Cisco CCIE Engineer
• Cisco Firepower NGFW Firewalls: Integration and Management Support
• ASA 5500-X Firewall with Firepower: Integration and Management Support
• Cisco ASA 5500 Firewalls Management Services
• PIX 500 Firewall Engineering Assistance
• Cisco Routers Configuration and Troubleshooting Expertise
• Cisco Wireless Network Design Expertise
• Cisco Aironet Wireless APs Engineering Services
• Cisco Small Business 100, 300 and 500 WiFi Access Points Deployment Expertise
• Catalyst Wi-Fi 6/6E Wireless APs Planning, Configuration and Debugging Expertise
• Cisco Wireless Controllers Support Services
• Cisco Meraki Access Points Engineering Support
• Cisco Unified Communications Manager (CUCM or Unified CM) and Cisco CallManager Consulting and Technical Support
• Cisco Voice over IP (VoIP) Phones and IP Video Desktop Phones Consulting and Cisco Wireless IP Phone Integration
• Cisco Jabber Deployment Services
• Catalyst Switches Engineering Expertise
• Nexus Switches Deployment Expertise
• Meraki MS Switches Consulting and Support Expertise
• Cisco VPN and Network Security Engineering Help
• SIP and CUBE Infrastructure Solutions: SIP Trunks and CUBE Integration Consulting
• Cisco Duo MFA Two-factor Authentication (2FA) Services for At-Home Workers
• Design and Support for Cisco-powered Datacenters
• Infrastructure Optimization Expertise for Internet Service Providers