Extreme Upgrades Wi-Fi, Wireline Management

Extreme Networks Inc. is ready to match features with the likes of Trapeze Networks in providing a management tool for combined wireline and 802.11 Wi-Fi networks.

Release 1.2 of Unified Access adds an RF planning software suite, manufactured by an unidentified vendor, which Extreme calls the RF Manager.

Extreme also is enhancing its access-point family with power-over-Ethernet (POE) features. It has also developed a special module for the Alpine departmental chassis-based switch, so that users can add POE to eight ports at a time, scaling from self-powered ports within the switch to full ports powered by an external power supply.

Varun Nagaraj, Extreme's vice president of product management, called the launch of UA 1.2 "an extension in both breadth and depth." The addition of a detachable antenna option to the Altitude family of access points, in conjunction with the RF Manager software tool, means that corporate networks combining wireless LANs and wireline Ethernet can scale to more complex mixes of network, Extreme said.

The new antenna option for 802.11 networks is a full-diversity antenna with 6 dBi of gain, compatible with 802.11a/b/g networks.An important driver for PoE in both the access point and the configurable switch is voice-over-Internet Protocol, where local power options providing the equivalent of the lifeline power provided to circuit-switched phones.

When VoIP is provided in a PoE environment, said director of marketing Scott Lucas, the advantage of packetized voice in both corporate Ethernet and 802.11 environments is clear.

As for security, Unified Access 1.2 now includes full 802.1x features for WPA certification, Web-based authentication using Secure Sockets Layer, and authentication on a simple Layer 2 MAC address. The latter is particularly important for "dumb" embedded devices that are part of secure corporate networks, such as bar-code readers and Web cameras.

The RF Manager software is a site planning, deployment and optimization tool, offered in a standard version for $4,995, or an advanced version for larger corporate RF environments, priced at $13,995.

Extreme now has extended Wi-Fi switching support from its original base in the fixed-configuration Summit 300 Ethernet switch, to the configurable Alpine switch. The PoE module offered for Alpine for Wi-Fi connectivity provides 32 ports of 10/100/1000-TX powered Ethernet using RJ-45 connectors.Users can scale power up to the modules, choosing the number of ports that are PoE-enabled, and whether the full 15W power of Class 0 and 3 is offered, the 4W of Class 1 or the 7W of Class 2.

All switch and access point options will be available by April. The Altitude 300 access point is priced at $750 with either an embedded antenna (15700) or detachable antenna (15701). The 32-port PoE module for Alpine, compatible with Alpine models 3808, 3804 or 3802, is $2,995.