The HPE Aruba Networking ClearPass Policy Manager provides role- and device-based network access control for employees, contractors and guests across multi-vendor wired, wireless and VPN infrastructures.
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Tempered Airwall
Score 10.0 out of 10
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Tempered Networks is network security technology from the company of the same name in Seattle, Washington.
We have quite a few visitors to our campus and we don't want to have a set PSK for the wireless so we have configured a guest network where visitors can create an account and gain access to the internet and we don't have to "manage" it since the accounts will expire after a certain time. We have RF scanners in our warehouses and we want them to be allowed on the network and be put into its own VLAN. ClearPass can do this flawlessly by keying off of the MAC address when it comes online and putting it into the correct VLAN. This makes it so we don't have to add each device individually to the system. The only time ClearPass would not be appropriate is in a small deployment where the cost to value wouldn't make sense.
It's very well suited for geographically dispersed organizations, where deploying and managing remote firewalls and other network security functions aren't practical. Once deployed, and the deployment isn't difficult after planning and understanding the data flows of the IoT devices, the system is easily managed and flexible. You're able to allow front line operations people to add devices into a role without sacrificing the integrity of the security model.
Getting data out of ClearPass is difficult. You can get some with SNMP but he API is lacking. There is only a limited amount of info that you can get from it. Even some data that shows up in ClearPass Insight is not available to import into a 3rd party application.
In the past, if you have hardware/software issues you could troubleshoot them yourself through the CLI in a Linux type interface but now they have locked everything down and it makes troubleshooting difficult. You have to rely on them for everything. As a person who likes to understand the ins and outs of the systems I manage it is somewhat frustrating.
Steep learning curve, although support can assist and their forums like airheads can be helpful. This is a complex system and can take a while to grasp how everything works and integrates.
Though Aruba ClearPass offers a lot of insight and features, it is not the easiest to navigate. A lot of other systems can be figured out as you go, but Aruba ClearPass often requires a lot of research in order to set something up correctly. It's not always easy to find what you're looking for. Once you learn the basics, it becomes a lot more manageable, but it's definitely worth investing in some sort of training.
This product has consistently provided the results needed from it and when issues arose, Aruba TAC was able to provide support effectively. In the previous question, I stated that Aruba Wireless is used as well. With those systems in place with ClearPass troubleshooting becomes much easier. I am sure other issues may arise if calling support while using another vendor for wireless such as Cisco, Juniper, etc.
It's pretty darned good for a new company. We had to hash through a couple of instances that no one had ever run into, but once we got to the right person on the engineering team, they were able to work through the solution pretty quickly. The nice thing is, unlike Cisco, once you fix something, you don't find three new things that have to be changed.
Clearpass provides seamless protection to the enterprise network without the need of many licenses to be procured. Hardware LAN and Wireless are protected from unwanted or unknown visitors to the network. Unlike other vendors, you don't need multiple licenses, one device or cloud setup will get you going to manage and monitor your network
The cost and complexity vs. ISE is as different as Uber and Lift are from trying to take a taxi in Duluth, Minnesota. The complexity of Cisco's IoT security is a joke. It was going to take us over a year just to deploy all the Cisco equipment, and that was if we could have gotten it all working together. We got the entire project deployed in just under 3 months, and that includes working out all the bugs and logistics. Honestly, I don't think all the Cisco parts would have ever been running like Cisco promised it would. It's just way too complicated.
Set and forget. It made a positive contribution in terms of labor and cost without needing much technical support. Since NAC and TACACS features come together, you can meet your needs with a single license.
The number of supporting companies may be limited in the country you are affiliated with. Therefore, agreements with third-party companies are expensive and your support requests may take a long time.
