With accelerated frequency, customers are transitioning their IT network management to the cloud. However, they are often stuck because a significant portion of their network consists of legacy products that can only be managed with on-premises solutions. Of course, nobody has the budget to rip-and-replace the whole network at the same time. Even worse, networking vendors will have the customers purchase a separate set of hardware products and a unique set of licenses when the customer wants to migrate to the cloud.
As shown in Figure 1, when you purchase a Universal Platform (Switch, AP, Router) and a Universal Subscription License, you can select and configure your device in any operating mode (Cloud, Controller, Fabric, IP) and in any deployment option (Public, Private, On-Premises). You can change operating modes or move between deployment options as often as you need to throughout the entire operating life of the device. Additionally, you have the flexibility to manage your devices on-premises with observability both locally and in ExtremeCloud using ExtremeCloud IQ-Site Engine, or cloud-natively using ExtremeCloud IQ. Additionally, you have the flexibility to manage your devices on-premises with ExtremeCloud IQ-Site Engine for both local and cloud visibility. Or simply manage your device cloud-natively using ExtremeCloud IQ.
Furthermore, with Universal Platforms, gone are the days of complex licensing. Instead, licensing is poolable and portable. A customer pays one price for any device with full portability across any device.
Introducing, ExtremeCloud IQ – Site Engine, a product that allows you to migrate to the cloud at your own pace. As an Extreme customer, you might already be familiar with Extreme Management Center, a time-tested on-premises management solution for Extreme switches and Wireless LAN (WLAN) controllers via the ever-reliable protocol, SNMP. Extreme Management Center can now be upgraded to run as ExtremeCloud IQ – Site Engine which also talks directly with ExtremeCloud IQ. As shown in Figure 2, customers can continue to leverage the already familiar on-premises management platform but with cloud visibility.
Even if you are a customer stuck with some old dinosaur devices from a different networking vendor, you have a path to visibility in the cloud. As shown in Figure 3, instead of accelerating your refresh cycle, you can use ExtremeCloud IQ – Site Engine to manage both Extreme devices and third-party vendor networking devices with the same cloud-management user interface.
ExtremeCloud IQ – Site Engine extends Extreme’s flagship cloud management solution to third-party devices and non-cloud native devices, to deliver end-to-end network management, automation, insights, and assurance. The dashboard provides one centralized view of your entire network with visibility of all network devices — cloud-native, non-cloud native, and third-party devices. Additionally, ExtremeCloud IQ – Site Engine provides the flexibility to manage your network in the cloud or on-premises.
This blog was originally authored by Jeevan Patil, Senior Director, Product Management