Businesses today need to connect their workplaces with Wi-Fi technologies so that people and systems work seamlessly, wherever they might be.

Whether that’s in the head office, the factory floor, a hospital’s wards, or in the classroom, we all rely on wireless connectivity. A few years ago, managing large Wi-Fi networks was a hit or miss affair, with each access point needing to be individually configured and attached to the wider network. That leads to poor coverage, lack of security and an unreliable service that’s simply not fit for today’s interconnected organizations.

The Alcatel-Lucent OmniAccess® Stellar WLAN range of Wi-Fi access points solves those specific problems, and helps enterprises and small businesses create wireless networks that are easy to manage, are highly reliable and scalable, perform at the highest levels of data throughput, and are secure.

As you might expect from market leaders for enterprise-class Wi-Fi provisioning, the Stellar solutions are simple to set up and deploy, with a unified management framework. The OmniAccess Stellar WLAN portfolio delivers multiple access points with optimal coverage patterns, via a distributed control architecture that ensures maximum uptimes, with automatic failover to continue coverage even in the event of a unit being taken offline.

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The network offers a Unified Policy Authentication Manager (UPAM) to connect users securely, both employees and guests, with guests either self-registering (social platform log-in as an option) or requiring employer sponsorship. Users and access points can be easily assembled and grouped, making management easier, with operational simplicity that won’t take hundreds of hours in administration from IT teams.

The platform’s Unified Access technology means that security policies can be set centrally and applied globally, over networks comprising up to 4,000 access points. The solution also picks up on unauthorized activities with Smart Analytics monitoring and enforcement, to ensure all users’ safety and the company’s WLAN remains secure and reliable.

The OmniAccess Stellar WLAN portfolio is highly scalable and is suitable for deployments ranging from a single unit upwards. Oversight and control over complex Wi-Fi networks are via the management capabilities of OmniVista® Cirrus, a secure, resilient cloud-based management platform. For those that prefer an on-prem solution, there’s the option to install the OmniVista 2500 to provide comprehensive and powerful NMS (Network Management Service). Both options provide everything needed for infrastructure and device configuration, including the setting of security red flag alerts, quarantining and downtime resolution.

OmniAccess Stellar WLAN access points can also work effectively as standalone installs in self-regulating and manageable networks. Thanks to the distributed control and management system, a web interface onto one device’s administration interface lets teams manage users, security, guest access policies, and a high degree of captive portal customization, right across the network of multiple devices.

Source: Alcatel-Lucent Enterprise

It goes without saying that the OmniAccess Stellar WLAN solution is fast, secure and reliable as a result of its underpinning technology, but it’s also designed with a new wave of connectivity in mind – that of IoT (Internet of Things). Standard access points often fail to cope with the tsunami of data from even the smallest IoT deployment, with the failures passed onto users, who suffer long latencies, poor connectivity and network speeds dropping to a crawl.

However, the Alcatel-Lucent WLAN solution was designed for the high data throughput and containment technologies needed by today’s IoT, so there’s little overhead for ‘traditional’ connections running in parallel.

As the infrastructure adapts and changes (Gartner suggests 21 billion devices will be online by 2020), you can rely on the OmniAccess Stellar portfolio to cope with new and expanding networks that will help empower the business as it proceeds down its digital transformation journey. With management and oversight, security and reliability, the wireless network of the future is here, today.

The OmniAccess Stellar WLAN portfolio is designed to support your business or organization as it grows and new technologies come on board, whether you’re a startup, small business, or global-spanning multinational. In education, healthcare, transport, manufacturing or logistics, the seamless coverage and robust management of your wireless network needs a seamless solution, and one that’s based on the very latest technologies, innovations, and advanced services.

Speak to a representative from Alcatel-Lucent Enterprise today to see which of the comprehensive range of OmniAccess solutions will best suit your needs.