Major additions have been made to the solutions portfolio of wireless networking innovator Xirrus. In a press release submitted to ChannelPro-SMB, Xirrus says the Xirrus XR-520 represents an access point that “delivers the advanced services of the Xirrus XR modular Array family in a low-cost, two-radio AP option for smaller office spaces, class rooms, hotel guest rooms, hospital patient rooms, and more.”
In addition the new access point, the wireless networking company has also announced the release of the Xirrus Management System (XMS), which introduces XMS Cloud, a Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) deployment option for XMS that delivers the full feature set of the existing on-premises offering without the need to maintain on-site equipment.
Finally, Xirrus also introduced this week the Xirrus Activation Server, a service that enables zero-touch provisioning and deployment of a Xirrus wireless network.
“A flexible and extensible range of solutions is required to meet all of the wireless SMBs’ needs,” says Xirrus vice president of marketing Bruce Miller. “With the introduction of the XR-520 and Cloud Management, Xirrus extends its wireless solutions to meet the needs of a wide range of deployments, including those that are more cost-sensitive, but without compromising the functionality and performance typically seen in other, low-cost offerings.”
Xirrus XR-520
The XR-520 represents an access point with Application Control, which enables firewall, QoS, and rate-limiting policies to be enforced at an application level directly at the network edge. This is meant to help IT administrators manage wireless usage in today’s BYOD.
“The XR-520 is the only software-programmable AP in its class with a radio that can run in either the 5 GHz or 2.4 GHz bands,” states the Xirrus press release. †
The XR-520 features an integrated wireless controller and a dual-core Cavium network processor, and supports a full suite of integrated services, including wireless IDS/IPS, stateful firewall, spectrum analysis, guest access, and Bonjour Director for Apple iOS device optimization.
Xirrus Management System
The new XMS 6.4 release provides a cloud-based option for managing a Xirrus wireless network. The hosted cloud solution delivers the same functionality as on-premises XMS solutions in a single option.
Upon installation, Xirrus Arrays or the new XR-520 AP automatically connect to the new online Xirrus Activation Server to obtain a license. IT administrators then connect to their XMS to begin managing their network, whether deployed as an on-premise system or via an online portal to their XMS Cloud instance.
Availability
The Xirrus XR-520, XMS 6.4, and†zero-touch automated licensing capabilities are available February 2013. XMS Cloud is available initially in North America and in International markets mid-2013. †
