Cisco Certified Expert Network Consultants

Network management tools assist organizations to deploy infrastructure efficiently, access client information rapidly, monitor system operation, troubleshoot problems, protect against and respond to cyber attacks, and optimize responsiveness. Network management tools can spot inefficient or inappropriate uses of network resources like streaming multimedia or peer-to-peer file sharing that can burn up bandwidth, lower worker output or allow data leakage. A prudently crafted network management solution can also assist organizations to make informed network enhancement moves by showing trends in resource usage for various times or jos.

Cisco offers a diverse and growing catalog of infrastructure management solutions that allow unified management for on-premises, cloud-based, or hybrid network architectures. With Cisco's newer generation of security, switching, and Wi-Fi networking devices, you can choose among Meraki, Cisco DNA Center, or CLI management platforms for network management. For example, you can connect the latest Catalyst or Meraki switches and Catalyst or Meraki Wi-Fi access points to the Meraki dashboard to monitor and manage vital components of your corporate infrastructure from the cloud. Progent's Catalyst Wi-Fi AP consulting experts, Cisco Meraki Wi-Fi access point consulting experts, Catalyst switches consulting experts, and Cisco Meraki switches consultants can assist you to plan, deploy and tune a modern solution for network infrastructure monitoring and management.

Traditional Network Management Tools from Cisco and Others
An abundance of network management utilities from Cisco and third-party vendors highlights the importance and complexity of supporting IT infrastructure. Progent's Cisco-certified network management engineers are experienced at assisting businesses design network management solutions utilizing on Simple Network Management Protocol, SYSLOG services, and Cisco NetFlow to create effective tools for understanding network utilization and latency, monitoring important router and switch operational metrics, and recognizing traffic profiles, processes, and appliances that use network resources.

Progent can help customers to deploy a rich selection of open source and license-based monitoring and management utilities to manage a Cisco-powered environment. Tools familiar to Progent's engineers include Cacti, Nagios, Paessler Router Traffic Grapher, Cisco Cisco Adaptive Security Device Manager, Cisco Network Assistant, CiscoWorks, Cisco Security Manager, OpenView, AlterPoint DeviceAuthority, Adventnet Netflow, Solarwinds Orion, and NetMRI.

Network management tools can allow organizations to be aware of existing network utilization and effectively prepare for future traffic increases. Network management utilities can also be deployed to identify inefficient or inappropriate uses of network resources, for example streaming video, peer-to-peer file sharing, etc. that can use up valuable or scarce network resources. A carefully planned network management solution can also help businesses to make informed choices on wide and local area network improvements once they understand the amount of system resources really required at various times.

Having an effective network management system in operation beforehand is essential to avoid major problems that can follow Denial Of Service attacks and malicious viruses. Such events can render the network unstable and in the absence of appropriate tools it can be time consuming, and in some cases practically impossible, to find the source of the trouble.

Network Management Products from Cisco
Cisco has developed an assortment of effective utilities that should be the foundation for any management strategy. Utilized in conjunction with the top third-party applications, Cisco's network management software can enhance the competitive value of networks for companies of any size by helping with key areas such as resource utilization, throughput, resilience, security, troubleshooting, and capacity planning. Cisco's most popular network management products include:

Cisco ASDM is a browser-based Java applet that allows you to set up and monitor the management utilities built into security appliances. ASDM is installed by the Cisco device, and allows you to configure, track, and manage the unit.

Cisco Monitor Manager is a management and monitoring application developed to address the requirements of small and midsize businesses (SMBs). Cisco Monitor Manager actively scans important appliance parameters on voice/data networks serving five to 250 workers and equipped with as many as 250 VoIP phones. The application offers:

• Real-time tracking of important appliance processes on SMB-class routers and switches, Cisco Unified Communications Manager Express, Unity Express, security devices, WAPs, and IP phones
• Support for the Unified Communications 500 communications appliance for businesses with as many as 50 workers

• Network discovery and topology
• Physical and process views of Cisco Unified Communications deployment
• System wide inventory logging and reporting
• Advanced security and dependable communication
• Appliance performance tracking
• VoIP Telephony tracking
• Connection status and data traffic monitoring
• Real-time alarms and notifications
• Reports
• Configuration log

Network Assistant is a desktop-based management application designed for for wired and wireless LANs (WLANs) for growing companies with as many as 40 Cisco switches and routers. By utilizing Cisco's Smartports mechanism, Cisco Network Assistant streamlines setup, installation, and continuing administration and maintenance of Cisco networks. It offers a unified network view and permits IT managers to deploy its features across Cisco switches, routers, and access points.

Cisco Security Manager is a powerful but easy-to-use application for centrally provisioning all aspects of appliance configuration and policies for Cisco PIX and ASA security appliances, virtual private networks, and Intrusion Prevention Systems. Cisco Security Manager efficiently manages even small networks consisting of no more than than ten appliances, but also expands to control enterprise networks composed of thousands of appliances. Expansion is enabled through smart policy-driven control techniques that can streamline administration. Key features of Security Manager include:

• Supports control of Cisco routers running an IOS security software image, Cisco ASA 5500 Series security appliances, PIX security appliances, Cisco IPS 4200 family inline security appliances, and Catalyst 6500 Series security services modules
• Reacts more quickly to threats: specify and apply new security policies to many hundreds of appliances in a few simple steps
• Intuitive GUI provides superior ease-of-use
• Multiple views that provide versatile methods to control devices and security policies including the ability to manage the security environment visually on a system topology image
• Extensive animated training for the first-time operator to reduce learning period
• Centrally specify which policies are common and automatically inherited by additional appliances to make sure corporate policies are configured consistently, while offering sufficient flexibility to modify policies at the local device level
• Capability to create a common firewall rule database for all Cisco firewalls with smart evaluation of firewall policies to detect conflicts within the rule table
• Quickly configure location-to-location, hub-spoke, full-mesh IPsec, or extranet Virtual Private Network interfaces with a few mouse clicks
• Integration with Cisco ACS for low-level role based connection control to devices and administration services
• Integration with security MARS system to correlate monitored data against related security appliance rules to enable quicker decision making and enhanced network availability
• Capability to assign specific jobs to each manager in the course of the deployment of a rule, with structured change control and tracking; permits the security and network operations staff to act together as a single unit with efficient teamwork

Progent can also help you to utilize network management utilities to monitor and categorize system data to enable traffic shaping, which allows you to program Cisco routers to enforce a variety of throughput restrictions on designated classes of processes according to the priorities you assign. By buffering and queuing excess packets that exceed your contracted rates, and by assigning priority to business-critical processes, traffic shaping can keep ISP excess usage penalties from spiraling out of control and/or eliminate gaps in productivity caused by indiscriminate enforcement of your network bandwidth restrictions during periods of heavy demand.

Progent's CISM and CISSP security professionals can show you how to create an end-to-end security plan that incorporates your network management solution, and Progent's remote and in person network specialists and Cisco CCIE and CNA qualified engineers can utilize advanced network monitoring and analysis tools to isolate and repair trouble quickly to keep your network productive.

To see additional information about Progent's engineering expertise for Cisco products, pick a subject:

• Overview of Cisco Engineering Services
• Fast Remote Support from a Cisco Certified Internetwork Expert (CCIE) Consultant
• Cisco Firepower NGFW Firewalls: Integration and Troubleshooting Expertise
• ASA 5500-X Series Firewall with Firepower Services: Integration and Troubleshooting Support
• Cisco ASA 5500 Series Firewall Engineering Assistance
• PIX Firewall Consulting Expertise
• Cisco Routers Consulting Services
• Cisco Wireless Deployment Services
• Cisco Aironet Wireless Access Points Consulting Support
• Cisco Small Business 100, 300 and 500 Wireless Access Points Consulting Expertise
• Catalyst Wi-Fi 6/6E Wireless Access Points Solution Design, Configuration and Troubleshooting Services
• Cisco WiFi Controllers Support Services
• Meraki Wireless Access Points Consulting Services
• Cisco Unified Communications Manager (CUCM or Unified CM) and Cisco CallManager Integration and Technical Support
• Cisco VoIP Phones and IP Video Desktop Phones Consulting and Wireless VoIP Phone Configuration
• Cisco Jabber Configuration and Troubleshooting Expertise
• Catalyst Switches Engineering Expertise
• Cisco Nexus Switches Consulting and Support Services
• Meraki Switches Support and Troubleshooting Expertise
• Cisco VPN Consulting Help
• SIP and CUBE Infrastructure Solutions: SIP PSTN Trunks and Cisco CUBE Integration Expertise
• Cisco Duo MFA Two-factor Authentication Services for an At-Home Workforce
• Design Solutions for Cisco-powered Datacenters
• Infrastructure Design Expertise for Service Providers