SUNNYVALE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aruba Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARUN), a leading provider of next-generation network access solutions for the mobile enterprise, today announced that Quinnipiac University, a private co-educational university in Hamden, Conn., is deploying a new unified access network based on the Aruba Mobile Virtual Enterprise (MOVE) architecture.
The University, which is consistently ranked among the best regional universities by U.S. News & World Reports, selected the Aruba MOVE architecture to deliver robust, reliable and secure network access to all students, staff and faculty across its three campuses in the Hamden area. The new infrastructure is designed to accommodate the significant increase in users, mobile devices and applications accessing the network and provide the University’s Information Technology department with comprehensive visibility and control of both wired and wireless network resources.
Quinnipiac will also leverage the MOVE architecture at its new state-of-the-art Frank H. Netter MD School of Medicine, which is scheduled to open in March 2013 for faculty and staff and in August for students. In a first for medical school facilities, the University is building its new School of Medicine from the ground up with pervasive wireless LAN (WLAN) technology. The building’s technology infrastructure will enable the faculty to leverage wireless in every facet of teaching, including videoconferencing, video streaming and lecture capture. Students also will be able to access scanned images in the gross anatomy lab.
In addition to upgrading its WLAN to 802.11n, Quinnipiac is replacing 250 legacy Cisco access switches with Aruba S3500 Mobility Access Switches to support the increase in users, devices and applications at the University. The Aruba S3500 switches will make network operations more efficient by enabling the identification of individual users on the wired network along with their roles, devices and applications, while providing users with seamless connectivity.
The new unified access network will also include eight M3 Series Mobility Controllers and one 3200 Series Mobility Controller, nearly 2,000 AP-125 and AP-135 access points (APs) and the Aruba AirWave network management system. AirWave was a key factor in selecting the Aruba solution because it uses a user-centric approach to identify who is on the network, where they are accessing the network, which mobile devices they are using and how much bandwidth is being consumed by specific devices. These capabilities were an important feature for Quinnipiac because many of its 6,200 undergraduate and 2,300 graduate students visit at least two of the University’s three campuses daily.
The new Aruba deployment covers all of Quinnipiac’s academic buildings and residence halls and is designed to allow an average of 20,000 devices to connect to its network each day. Users access a wide range of applications such as Blackboard, Microsoft Sharepoint, MS Communicator and other academic and administrative systems.
The University is passionate and committed to using wireless technology that enhances student learning as well as the overall student experience. “Today’s mobile wireless devices and applications allow our students to access the information and tools they need to master the subjects they are studying more quickly and conveniently,” said Brian Kelly, director of network operations and information security officer for Quinnipiac. “Aruba delivers the security, reliability and robustness that these devices and applications require. It also provides visibility into all aspects of our network, allowing our small staff of six IT professionals to more efficiently and easily manage the network. We spend less time troubleshooting and more time researching and acquiring the mobile devices and applications that enhance our students’ educational experience.”
In a move that promises to make its new medical school the most technologically advanced medical school facility in the United States, Quinnipiac is completely outfitting its new three-story School of Medicine with end-to-end Aruba wired and wireless LAN technology. The infrastructure will support applications such as clinical skills assessment, lecture hall examinations and interactive collaborative classrooms, as well as the delivery of content to multiple devices. The new School of Medicine facility will open with a class of 60 and plans to grow to 500 medical students by 2017.
“Quinnipiac University illustrates how leading higher education institutions are embracing unified wired and wireless LAN technology to improve the educational experience for their students,” said Gerry Festa, director, industry solutions marketing for Aruba Networks. “These institutions are actively incorporating new wireless devices and applications to enhance student learning and it is crucial that they have an advanced, dependable network infrastructure like Aruba’s to support their innovative educational environments.”
About Aruba Networks, Inc.
Aruba Networks is a leading provider of next-generation network access solutions for the mobile enterprise. The company’s Mobile Virtual Enterprise (MOVE) architecture unifies wired and wireless network infrastructures into one seamless access solution for corporate headquarters, mobile business professionals, remote workers and guests. This unified approach to access networks enables IT organizations and users to securely address the Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) phenomenon, dramatically improving productivity and lowering capital and operational costs.
Listed on the NASDAQ and Russell 2000® Index, Aruba is based in Sunnyvale, California, and has operations throughout the Americas, Europe, Middle East, Africa and Asia Pacific regions. To learn more, visit Aruba at http://www.arubanetworks.com. For real-time news updates follow Aruba on Twitter and Facebook, and for the latest technical discussions on mobility and Aruba products visit Airheads Social at http://community.arubanetworks.com.
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