Founded in 2006, Cisco Meraki has grown to become an industry leader with Google and Apple as early adopters.
An industry leader with over 230,000 customers and 3 million network devices worldwide, Cisco Meraki comprises of a comprehensive set of IT and network solutions. This includes wireless, switches, firewalls and CCTV.
One of their most popular problems is their Wi-Fi. Cisco Meraki leverages the power of the cloud to provide a one-of-a-kind experience. It’s managed through a cloud-based dashboard interface allowing any business looking to take a proactive stance in the security and efficiency of their Wi-Fi network and the devices that rely on it.
This cloud-based approach allows businesses to manage their Wi-Fi networks from anywhere, reducing the complexity of on-premises solutions. Meraki also provides adaptive security features, seamless scalability and insights, making it an attractive choice for organizations seeking reliable and secure wireless connectivity.
When secure, powerful connectivity solutions are more critical for organisations than ever, Meraki is a great option. In this blog, we explore Cisco Meraki Wi-Fi in more detail.
How does Cisco Meraki work?
All Cisco Meraki products are completely cloud-managed, with fully integrated networking and security features under a single dashboard. Devices are automatically connected to the Meraki cloud over a Secure Socket Layer (SSL), registered with your network and downloaded with their configuration.
The in-built analytics and intelligence will enable your network manager to have full visibility of network usage, down to a specific user’s browsing activity. It also enables admin users to make restrictions, so bandwidth on the network can easily be controlled before it becomes overloaded. Traffic can also be closely monitored to quickly identify any sources that slow down the network.
Admin users can set application specific policies and rules that disallow the use of certain applications and websites permanently or for a specific period. This flexibility promotes efficiency, enables performance monitoring and improves productivity within the workplace.
These features bring extensive benefits to businesses. Let’s delve into them further.
The benefits of Cisco Meraki for businesses
Easy to manage
As Cisco Meraki is managed via the cloud, it offers multi-site management for both wired and wireless networking hardware.
The centralised and intuitive dashboard shows your businesses networks under a single dashboard. This enables zero-touch provisioning for rapid deployment of your Cisco Meraki products.
The speed of deployment also enables network administrators to manage and identify faults remotely with minimal on-site visits required. This saves time and reduces management costs.
The Meraki dashboard also provides deep network insight that enables smarter working network management.
Scalable
Your business network needs to be able to scale alongside your organisation without compromising on security or performance. Cisco Meraki’s Layer 3 handles inter-VLAN routing directly, simplifying network design and management. This reduces congestion within your business network and provides redundancy for mission critical environments.
As such, Cisco Meraki is a scalable networking tool that benefits organisations from SME to enterprise-level.
Highly secure
Optimum security is assured with a Cisco Meraki solution. They come with layer 7 firewall technology out-of-the-box, at no additional cost. This protects you against threats.
Meraki also has built-in analytics and intelligence that enables a network manager to have full visibility of network usage across the business, down to a specific user’s browsing activity. They can then make restrictions if necessary to promote security.
All traffic to and from the management interface is sent through an encrypted and secure traffic layer. Your business can also be confident that you’re complying to applicable data laws such as GDPR and ISO 20071.
The Meraki service has multiple global secure datacentres which ensures that you are never without access to the network environment. Two-factor authentication can also be enabled to add an extra layer of security to an organisation’s network by requiring access to an administrator’s phone, in addition to their username and password.
Management traffic is segregated from the regular network communication, which limits any malicious attempts to the management interface. AirMarshal is Meraki’s own intrusion prevention solution, which looks for threats over the wireless network and neutralises them. AirMarshal is integrated into every Cisco Meraki access point, proving flexible and intuitive protection from cyber threats.
Automatic updates
Cisco Meraki products are automatically updated with the latest features and firmware.
Automatic updates come as standard with any Cisco Meraki Cloud dashboard-enabled devices. Patches, firmware updates and new features are rolled out each quarter for no additional cost. You can also trigger updates manually. This means that your business is never left without the latest software, keeping you innovative and secure.
Accessibility
As Cisco Meraki is a cloud-managed platform, it’s possible to access your network even when you’re not in the office. Not only can the dashboard be accessed by any internet-enabled device, but it’s also always available in the event of a network outage.
Get started with Cisco Meraki
Businesses choose Cisco Meraki for its cloud-managed approach, which enhances security, operational efficiency and productivity. Centralised management through the Meraki dashboard streamlines network configuration, monitoring and troubleshooting, saving time and effort. Reliable Wi-Fi, seamless scalability and insights empower employees to work efficiently, collaborate effectively, and stay productive.
If you’re looking to implement Cisco Meraki Wi-Fi into your organisation, we can help. Infinity Group are Cisco Meraki partners and an official Cisco Meraki reseller. Our expert team are Meraki certified, with full knowledge of the solution to guide you.
Fill in the form below to enquire, or get in touch today.
