Cisco Network Consulting

A wealth of network management tools from Cisco and other vendors underscores the value and complexity of supporting IT infrastructure. Progent's Cisco qualified network management engineers are expert at assisting businesses design network management solutions based on Simple Network Management Protocol, SYSLOG services, and Cisco Netflow protocols to create powerful mechanisms for tracking network utilization and network latency, monitoring important router and switch performance metrics, and identifying traffic profiles, processes, and appliances utilizing network services.

Progent can help businesses to utilize a rich range of open source and license-based monitoring and management products to maintain a Cisco network. Tools familiar to Progent's consultants include MRTG, Cacti, Nagios, Cisco Cisco ASDM, Cisco Monitor Manager, Cisco Network Assistant, Cisco Security Manager, OpenView, Concord E-Health, AlterPoint DeviceAuthority, Adventnet Netflow and Firewall Analyzer, Big Brother, Solarwinds Orion, and NetMRI.

Network management tools can help IT administrators to be aware of current system usage and effectively prepare for future capacity expansion. Management utilities can also be used to identify poor or improper utilization of network services, such as streaming video, peer-to-peer file sharing, etc. that can eat up expensive and scarce network bandwidth. A carefully crafted network management strategy can also assist companies to arrive at intelligent choices on system upgrades once they understand how much network resources historically required at any one time.

Having an efficient network management platform in operation in advance is critical to avoid major disruptions that can result from Denial Of Service (DoS) attacks and dangerous viruses. These events can leave the network unstable and without appropriate utilities it can be time consuming, and in some cases virtually impossible, to identify the location of the trouble.

Network Management Solutions from Cisco
Cisco has developed an array of powerful tools that should be the foundation for any network management strategy. Utilized in combination with appropriate third-party tools, Cisco's network management offerings can enhance the business value of network infrastructures for organizations of all sizes by helping with important areas such as resource utilization, throughput, availability, protection, repair, and scalability. Cisco's most popular network management tools include:

Adaptive Security Device Manager (ASDM) is a web utility that allows you to configure and operate the management utilities on security appliances. Cisco Adaptive Security Device Manager is installed by the adaptive security device, and enables you to configure, monitor, and control the device.

Monitor Manager is a management and monitoring solution developed to meet the needs of small and medium-sized organizations. Cisco Monitor Manager actively tracks key device processes on voice/data networks used by 5 to 250 workers and with as many as 250 Voice over IP phones. Cisco Monitor Manager offers:

• Up-to-date monitoring of key device processes on SMB-class routers and switches, Cisco Unified Communications Manager Express, Unity Express, security devices, WAPs, and IP phones
• Ability to manage the Unified Communications 500 Series appliance for organizations with as many as 50 users

• Voice and data network discovery and physical topology
• Physical and process views of Cisco Unified Communications implementation
• System wide device identification collection and documentation
• Advanced security and dependable communication
• Device operations tracking
• Cisco Unified IP Telephony tracking
• Interface status and traffic tracking
• Real-time alarms and notices
• Documentation
• Setup log

Cisco Network Assistant is a desktop-based management application designed for for wired and wireless LANs (WLANs) for expanding companies with as many as 40 Cisco switches and routers. By utilizing Cisco's Smartports technology, Cisco Network Assistant simplifies configuration, installation, and ongoing administration and maintenance of Cisco-powered environments. Network Assistant offers a unified system view and permits IT managers to deploy its features among Cisco switches, routers, and wireless access points.

Security Manager is a feature-rich but simple to operate solution for centrally provisioning all aspects of appliance configuration and policies for firewalls, VPNs, and IPS. Security Manager efficiently handles even small environments with no more than than ten appliances, but also expands to control enterprise systems with thousands of appliances. Expansion is enabled through smart policy-driven control procedures that can streamline administrative overhead. Highlights of Cisco Security Manager include:

• Supports provisioning for Cisco router platforms running an IOS security image, Cisco ASA 5500 family adaptive security appliances, Cisco PIX firewalls, IPS 4200 family inline security appliances, and Catalyst 6500 Series security modules
• Reacts more quickly to threats: define and apply updated policies to thousands of devices in a few easy steps
• Rich GUI offers exceptional ease-of-use
• Multiple looks that provide flexible ways to control devices and policies such as the capability to manage the security network graphically on a topology map
• Extensive animated training for the first-time user to reduce learning time
• Globally specify which policies are shared and automatically inherited by additional devices to make sure corporate policies are implemented consistently, while providing sufficient versatility to modify policies at the individual appliance level
• Ability to create a common rule database for all Cisco platforms with smart analysis of firewall policies to determine conflicts within the rule base
• Quickly set up location-to-location, hub-and-spoke, full-mesh IPsec, or extranet Virtual Private Network connections by means of a few mouse clicks
• Compatibility with Cisco Access Control Server (ACS) for granular role based access management to devices and management services
• Operation with security MARS system to associate monitored data against related security appliance rules to enable faster management decisions and enhanced system up time
• Ability to assign particular tasks to each administrator in the course of the implementation of a policy, with formal change control and logging; allows the security and systems operations team to act together as a single group with efficient teamwork

Progent can also assist you to utilize network management applications to analyze and classify network data to enable traffic shaping, which allows you to set up routers to enforce different throughput restrictions on certain types of activity according to the importance you specify. By buffering and queuing data packets that exceed your contracted volume, and by giving preference to business-critical applications, traffic shaping can keep Internet Service Provider overage charges from spinning out of control and/or avoid lost worker productivity resulting from brute force policing of your network traffic volume restrictions during peak demand.

Progent's CISM, CISSP, and ISSAP security consultants can help you to develop an end-to-end security plan that incorporates your network management solution, and Progent's remote and on-site network experts and Cisco CCIE and CNA qualified consultants can use the latest network management technology to isolate and repair trouble rapidly to keep your IT system in business.

To learn additional information concerning Progent's consulting support for Cisco solutions, choose a topic:

• Overview of Cisco Expertise
• Timely Remote Help from a CCIE Network Engineer
• Cisco Firepower Firewalls: Integration and Management Support
• ASA 5500-X Firewalls with Firepower Services: Consulting and Management Support
• ASA 5500 Series Firewall Integration Support
• PIX 500 Series Firewall Maintenance Services
• Cisco Routers Engineering Services
• Cisco Wireless Consulting Expertise
• Cisco Aironet Wireless Access Points Consulting Help
• Cisco Small Business 100, 300 and 500 WiFi Access Points Engineering Help
• Catalyst 802.11ax Access Points Solution Design, Deployment and Debugging Services
• Cisco WiFi Controllers Support Services
• Meraki Wireless Access Points Consulting Expertise
• Cisco Unified Communications Manager (CUCM or Unified CM) and Cisco CallManager Configuration and Troubleshooting
• Cisco VoIP Phones and IP Video Phones Consulting and Wireless VoIP Phone Integration
• Cisco Jabber Integration Services
• Cisco Catalyst Switches Configuration and Maintenance Services
• Nexus Switches Support and Troubleshooting Expertise
• Meraki Switches Consulting and Support Expertise
• Cisco VPN and Security Integration Assistance
• SIP and CUBE Integration Solutions: SIP PSTN Trunks and Cisco CUBE Integration Expertise
• Infrastructure Design for Cisco-based Datacenters and Colocation Centers
• Infrastructure Optimization Expertise for Internet Service Providers