Cisco Certified Network Consultants

Network management tools help organizations to implement infrastructure effectively, access user details rapidly, monitor network health, debug issues, defend against and react to cyber attacks, and optimize responsiveness. Network management systems can help detect inefficient or improper uses of network services such as streaming media or peer-to-peer file sharing that can waste bandwidth, reduce employee productivity or enable data leaks. A well planned network management solution can also assist organizations to make informed network enhancement decisions by showing trends in network usage for various periods or types of activities.

Cisco offers a diverse and expanding catalog of infrastructure management solutions that support centralized management for on-premises, cloud-based, or hybrid network architectures. With Cisco's newer security, switching, and wireless infrastructure devices, you can run Meraki, Cisco DNA Center, or CLI management platforms for network management. For instance, you can interface newer Catalyst or Meraki switches and Catalyst or Meraki WiFi 6/6E access points to the Meraki dashboard to manage vital components of your network infrastructure from the cloud. Progent's Cisco Catalyst Wi-Fi access point consultants, Meraki WiFi access point consulting experts, Catalyst switches consultants, and Meraki switches experts can help your organization to plan, implement and tune an up-to-date solution for network monitoring and management.

Traditional Network Management Tools from Cisco and Others
An abundance of network management products from Cisco and other vendors underscores the value and difficulty of network management. Progent's Cisco qualified network management engineers are experienced at helping businesses develop network management strategies based on Simple Network Management Protocol, SYSLOG services, and NetFlow protocols to build powerful tools for tracking network utilization and latency, monitoring important router and switch operational metrics, and recognizing traffic patterns, processes, and devices utilizing available services.

Progent can assist customers to deploy a broad selection of open source and proprietary management utilities to maintain a Cisco network. Tools familiar to Progent's consultants include MRTG, Cacti, Nagios, PRTG, Cisco Adaptive Security Device Manager (ASDM), Cisco Monitor Manager, Cisco Network Assistant, Cisco Security Manager, OpenView, AlterPoint DeviceAuthority, Adventnet Netflow and Firewall Analyzer, Big Brother, and NetMRI.

Network management platforms can allow IT administrators to be aware of existing network usage and intelligently plan for downstream traffic increases. Management tools can also be deployed to identify inefficient or inappropriate utilization of network resources, such as streaming multimedia, peer-to-peer sharing, etc. that can use up valuable and limited network resources. A well designed network management plan can also help businesses to make informed choices on network upgrades after they appreciate the amount of network bandwidth really required at any one time.

Having an effective network management solution in operation ahead of time is essential to prevent severe problems that can be caused by DoS attacks and dangerous viruses. These events can leave the network unusable and without appropriate tools it can be time consuming, and in some cases virtually impossible, to discover the source of the problem.

Network Management Tools from Cisco
Cisco offers a selection of powerful utilities that should be the basis for any network management solution. Utilized in combination with the top outside vendor applications, Cisco's network management offerings can improve the business value of network infrastructures for companies of all sizes by addressing key areas such as resource utilization, performance, resilience, security, repair, and scalability. Cisco's most familiar network management products include:

Adaptive Security Device Manager (ASDM) is a web utility that allows you to configure and operate the management utilities built into network devices. Cisco Adaptive Security Device Manager is installed by the Cisco device, and enables you to configure, track, and control the device.

Cisco Monitor Manager is a management solution developed to meet the needs of small and midsize businesses (SMBs). Monitor Manager continuously tracks important appliance processes on voice/data environments used by 5 to 250 workers and with as many as 250 Voice over IP phones. The application offers:

• Up-to-date tracking of important appliance processes on SMB-class routers and switches, Unified Communications Manager Express, Unity Express, security devices, wireless access points, and IP phones
• Support for the Unified Communications 500 Series appliance for businesses with as many as 50 users

• Network discovery and topology
• Device and service level views of Unified Communications implementation
• Networkwide device identification collection and documentation
• Highly secure and reliable operation
• Device performance tracking
• VoIP Telephony tracking
• Interface status and traffic monitoring
• Real-time alerts and event notification
• Documentation
• Setup archive

Network Assistant is a desktop-hosted management application designed for for LANs and WLANS for expanding businesses with up to 40 Cisco switches and routers. By running Smartports, Network Assistant streamlines setup, deployment, and ongoing management and support of Cisco-powered environments. It offers a centralized system view and allows IT administrators to deploy its features among switches, routers, and access points.

Security Manager is a feature-rich but easy-to-use solution for centrally provisioning all facets of device configuration and policies for PIX and ASA firewalls, virtual private networks (VPNs), and Intrusion Prevention Systems (IPS). The solution effectively manages even small environments with no more than than ten appliances, but also expands to control enterprise networks with thousands of routers, switches, and firewalls. Scalability is enabled via smart policy-driven control techniques that can simplify administrative overhead. Key features of Security Manager include:

• Allows provisioning for Cisco router platforms running a Cisco IOS security image, Cisco ASA 5500 Series firewalls, PIX security appliances, Cisco IPS 4200 Series sensors, and Cisco Catalyst 6500 family security modules
• Respond more quickly to attacks: define and assign updated policies to many hundreds of devices in a few easy steps
• Rich graphical user interface offers exceptional ease-of-use
• A variety of looks that provide versatile methods to control appliances and policies including the capability to administer the security network graphically on a system topology map
• Comprehensive video training for the new operator to reduce training period
• Globally specify which policies are shared and automatically inherited by new devices to ensure company-wide policies are implemented regularly, at the same time providing optional versatility to customize policies at the individual device level
• Ability to build a single rule table for Cisco platforms with intelligent evaluation of firewall policies to determine anomalies in the rule table
• Quickly set up location-to-location, hub-spoke, full mesh, or extranet Virtual Private Network links by means of a few mouse clicks
• Compatibility with Cisco ACS for granular role based access management to devices and management services
• Integration with security MARS to compare monitored data with corresponding firewall rules to support faster management decisions and enhanced system up time
• Ability to assign specific jobs to each manager in the course of the implementation of a rule, with formal change management and tracking; allows the security and network operations staff to act together as a single group with effective teamwork

Progent can also help you to use network management utilities to analyze and categorize network data to implement traffic shaping, which allows you to program routers to impose different bandwidth constraints on designated classes of processes based on the importance you assign. By buffering and sorting excess packets that exceed your committed rates, and by assigning priority to the most important processes, traffic shaping can keep Internet Service Provider overage charges from spiraling out of control and/or eliminate lost productivity caused by brute force enforcement of your network traffic volume restrictions during periods of heavy demand.

Progent's CISM and CISSP security professionals can assist you to develop an end-to-end security strategy that encompasses your network management processes, and Progent's remote and on-premises network experts and Cisco CCIE-certified engineers can use advanced network management technology to identify and remediate problems quickly to keep your network in business.

To see more details about Progent's engineering help for Cisco networking products, pick a topic:

• Introduction to Cisco Engineering Services
• Fast and Affordable Online Access to a CCIE Engineer
• Cisco Firepower NGFW Series Firewalls: Configuration and Management Support
• ASA 5500-X Firewall with Cisco Firepower: Integration and Troubleshooting Expertise
• Cisco ASA 5500 Firewall Integration Services
• Cisco PIX 500 Series Firewall Management Support
• Cisco Routers Engineering Services
• Cisco Wireless Consulting Support
• Aironet Access Points Design Support
• Cisco Small Business WiFi Access Points Engineering Services
• Cisco Catalyst Wi-Fi 6/6E Access Points Solution Design, Configuration and Troubleshooting Services
• Cisco WiFi Controllers Experts
• Cisco Meraki Access Points Design Expertise
• Cisco Unified Communications Manager (CUCM or Unified CM) and Cisco CallManager Consulting and Troubleshooting
• Cisco VoIP Phones and IP Video Phones Consulting Services and Wireless IP Phone Configuration
• Cisco Jabber Integration Services
• Catalyst Switches Deployment Expertise
• Cisco Nexus Switches Support and Troubleshooting Expertise
• Meraki MS Switches Consulting and Support Expertise
• Cisco Security and VPN Integration Help
• SIP and CUBE Infrastructure Solutions: SIP PSTN Trunks and CUBE Integration Expertise
• Cisco Duo MFA Two-factor Authentication Services for an At-Home Workforce
• Design and Support for Cisco-based Datacenters
• Data Center Design Services for ISPs