Background: Addressing Legacy Deployment Challenges
A U.S.-based industry leader, based in Portland, Oregon, produces high-purity quartz glass essential for the global semiconductor industry. This company operates as a key division of a large, multinational corporation. Collaborating with their trusted technology partner, Matrix Networks, the manufacturer identified a critical need to enhance its on-premise network security through robust Network Access Control (NAC).
Avoiding Costly 802.1X Implementation Pitfalls
The primary challenge was to implement effective NAC without repeating the complex and costly experience of their parent company. Two years prior, the parent organization had attempted to deploy a traditional, 802.1X / RADIUS-based NAC solution from another vendor. That project resulted in a difficult and protracted deployment, taking nearly two years to complete.
A major obstacle encountered by the parent company was the discovery that numerous small, unmanaged switches across their vast network did not support the 802.1X protocol. This forced a time-consuming and expensive hardware replacement project before any NAC policies could even be enforced. The subsidiary was determined to achieve the same high security goals while entirely avoiding the significant operational disruption and hidden costs associated with a mandatory hardware overhaul.
Solution: Genian’s Rapid, Non-Disruptive Approach
Advised by Matrix Networks, the manufacturer chose Genian NAC Cloud Enterprise. The decisive differentiator was Genian’s unique ability to provide robust network access control without the prerequisite of 802.1X protocol support. This eliminated the need for costly network reconfigurations or hardware replacements.
The manufacturer deployed Genian NAC Cloud Enterprise for 1,500 devices. The solution leveraged its non-disruptive, Layer 2 enforcement capabilities, specifically its ARP-based enforcement method. This approach delivered:
- Comprehensive Visibility: Gaining full insight into all connected devices across their existing network infrastructure.
- Dynamic Policy Control: Enabling fine-grained control over device access and behavior based on established security policies.
- Zero Hardware Overhaul: Critically, this implementation completely eliminated the need to replace their functional-but-unmanaged network switches, allowing them to secure their environment swiftly and efficiently, as-is.
Genian NAC’s cloud-based delivery further streamlined deployment and management, providing the agility required for meeting urgent audit timelines.
Summary: Efficient Deployment, Strategic Impact
By implementing Genian NAC, the company successfully deployed a powerful NAC solution in a fraction of the time and cost it took their parent company. They gained immediate, comprehensive visibility and granular control over all 1,500 devices on their network without undertaking a disruptive hardware refresh project.
Setting a New Standard for Enterprise NAC Deployment
This efficient and successful implementation, championed by Matrix Networks, stands in stark contrast to the parent company’s previous experience. It now serves as a compelling internal case study within the multinational corporation, creating significant potential for the parent organization to reconsider its current NAC strategy in the future. Furthermore, it strengthens Genians’ position for potential broader adoption by the top-level global corporation, showcasing a superior, more flexible approach to enterprise-scale network security.
