Aruba Edge Services Platform (ESP)

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• IT Service Management (ITSM)
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2021

AIOps Intelligent Management Features

On June 23, 2021, Hewlett Packard Enterprise introduced a set of updated features and solutions for the Aruba ESP (Edge Services Platform) platform. They help optimize network operations and optimize the efficiency of enterprise IT infrastructures.

Aruba ESP

According to the company, the updates include AIOps intelligent management, Internet of Things support and security for Aruba Central, a cloud-based network management platform and artificial intelligence analytics that underpins Aruba ESP. In addition, additions to the portfolio of Aruba CX switches specially designed for intelligent Edge networks were presented.

The events of 2020 had a serious impact on the activities of companies and challenged traditional business models. At the very beginning, organizations had to find ways to quickly adapt to changing conditions in order to ensure business continuity.

As of June 2021, based on the lessons of 2020, companies are not just adapting, but also conducting their business in existing realities. Moreover, in order to be ready to meet any business challenges that may arise in the future, enterprises are increasing investment in technology to create a more flexible and sustainable IT infrastructure.

Another important factor facing enterprises as of June 2021 is the distributed nature of the business. Not only applications and workloads are distributed across data centers and clouds. Users themselves are also dispersed across offices, data centers, branch offices, and remote workplaces. In addition, the fragmentation of the network has increased due to its use of different architectures and disparate management tools. All this makes it difficult to provide IT services in distributed structures.

As a result, the complexity of the IT landscape can negate all opportunities from deploying technologies such as IoT and the cloud, reduce employee productivity, and reduce customer experience. During the digital transformation of companies, the IT team has a much greater burden than before, due to the need to implement automation, as well as technologies and solutions that optimize operations and reduce the complexity of the IT infrastructure.

One way to reduce the complexity of the enterprise IT landscape is to implement a unified infrastructure that can be managed centrally from a single point of control. Companies can achieve this network optimization using the continuously changing Aruba Central platform and the ArubaOS 10 Unified Network Operating System (AOS 10), which provides support for both wireless (WLAN) and software-defined WAN (SD-WAN) networks.

Thus, by using a single architecture with a single management console, IT professionals are able to effectively manage the distributed network environment of the enterprise (including head office, branch offices, and micro-offices), ensuring the quality of service to users.

Cloud-based management capabilities in Aruba Central include:

• Artificial Intelligence-based AIOps features for self-healing, allowing you to automatically identify and fix problems without the involvement of IT specialists before they negatively affect user performance or business efficiency.
• IoT Operations service, which extends the capabilities of network control and management of various IoT infrastructure, including sensors, connectors, etc., as well as an integrated application store.
• Updated cloud-based authentication and policy enforcement capabilities that enable users to log on automatically and securely from a wide range of devices, including those that use SIM cards.

By working together, these changes contribute to Aruba's vision of delivering a unified infrastructure and further streamlining network management procedures, enabling IT teams to focus on other business-critical tasks.

As of June 2021, Aruba Central manages network access of more than 100 million client endpoints and 1.5 million devices in 100,000 organizations around the world.

To better support your network connectivity needs, Aruba is expanding its portfolio of CX series switches by launching two lines:

• The Aruba CX 4100i is a family of industrial switches designed to operate at extreme temperatures and under harsh operating conditions. Provide high-speed wired communication with PoE support, which is especially in demand in industrial IoT applications.
• The Aruba CX 6000 is a low-cost, Tier 2 switch designed to meet the network needs of remote offices as well as small and medium businesses.

The events of 2021 prove that the architecture of geographically distributed enterprises came for a long time. This is primarily due to the fact that organizations are looking for ways to ensure maximum flexibility of their business and optimize its fault tolerance in order to be able to quickly adapt to any emerging difficulties. Our research clearly demonstrates that as of June 2021, enterprises are striving to accelerate their digital transformation processes, preferring projects that provide higher levels of performance, security, and interaction efficiency. However, these widely distributed work environments increase the complexity of IT infrastructures. Therefore, in the market for June 2021 there is a hype demand for technologies and solutions that provide more flexibility and deeper optimization of operations through the use of automation and data analysis. noted Bob Laliberte, Director of Practice and Senior Analyst at Enterprise Strategy Group

Aruba Central software updates and CX series switches will be available in the fall of 2021. Starting prices for the Aruba CX 4100i and Aruba CX 6000 series switches will be United States dollars $4,999 and $1,049 USA , respectively. Both solutions are available in the form of a subscription service (as-a-service), a managed service, as well as through HPE GreenLake for Aruba.

Integration of Aruba Threat Defense with the EdgeConnect platform

On April 13, 2021, Aruba introduced an expanded set of integrated security components from the network border to the cloud for the entire Aruba ESP (Edge Services Platform) portfolio. Updates include the integration of the secure network access system ClearPass Policy Manager with the Aruba EdgeConnect SD-WAN Edge platform, formerly known as Silver Peak; integration of Aruba Threat Defense with the EdgeConnect platform and expansion of the multivendor partner security ecosystem Aruba ESP.

According to the company, since organizations as of April 2021 face problems arising from the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and strengthening the position of the norm from any location, the introduction of cloud services will continue to accelerate. This change in style reinforces the need to transform conventional data centers, Multiprotocol Label Switching (MPLS) networks, and VPN networks into a SASE cloud architecture that provides more functional, secure network services at the same time as end-to-end data protection from the edge of the network to the cloud.

Aruba Central Security Dashboard

In parallel, digital conversion leads to a significant increase in the number of IoT devices connected to the network, which creates problems that are not solved only using cloud security. Because IoT devices do not have built-in agents, IT departments do not have the ability to install a security client in them or redirect the traffic of these devices to cloud security services. That is why the zero-trust security concept of Zero Trust must be applied at the WAN boundaries.

To realize all the capabilities of the cloud and support further digital transformation, companies will need to implement Edge solutions at the border of the WAN network with local and cloud security mechanisms based on the Zero Trust concept. This allows you to implement SASE Secure Edge Access technology, which protects both users when they connect to the SaaS or public cloud, and IoT devices. With Aruba ESP integrations, enterprise users can now use comprehensive identity-based security mechanisms all the way from the network edge to the cloud, thus providing secure connectivity and protection for users and devices.

Integration of ClearPass Policy Manager with Aruba EdgeConnect Integration of ClearPass Policy Manager with the Aruba EdgeConnect SD-WAN Edge Platform optimizes the degree of application intelligence by obtaining user and IoT device identity, roles, and security status, which forms the basis for SASE technology at the WAN edge. Combining role and protection status analysis with advanced dynamic segmentation capabilities helps eliminate the complexity of implementing hundreds of VLANs for all types of users and devices, optimizing network administration and management. Integration of ClearPass Policy Manager with EdgeConnect provides unified and automated role definition that can be performed by a user device located anywhere in the network - both local and global.

Integration of Aruba Threat Defense with the Aruba EdgeConnect SD-WAN platform extends the capabilities of intrusion detection and prevention (IDS/IPS) on physical and virtual devices. EdgeConnect This enables the EdgeConnect platform to leverage Aruba's threat protection infrastructure and share critical threat information between Aruba Central and EdgeConnect, providing network-wide transparency.

Such opportunities of the unified management of protection against threats (Unified Threat Management) UTM help the enterprises to ensure comprehensive safety, including protection of a local exit in from Internet branches, and can be centrally developed as locally, and in a cloud. With a common threat protection infrastructure and data links to Aruba ESP, network management and security managers can centrally enforce and monitor enterprise-wide security policies.

Together with the updated service orchestration algorithm, the Aruba Orchestrator management console (formerly Silver Peak Unity Orchestrator) contains pre-configured parameters of the closest cloud security partner services to the user. In this way, network administrators can connect their Aruba branch offices and branches to partner presence points and cloud data centers. Security vendors such as Check Point, McAfee, Netskope, Palo Alto Networks, Symantec and Zscaler are part of Aruba's vast ecosystem of technology alliance partners as of April 2021.

The Aruba ESP platform provides a set of secure Edge solutions for wired, wireless, and WAN wide area networks. The Edge product portfolio for WAN networks includes:

• Virtual Intranet Access Client (VIA) - the right mobility for users from anywhere, whether they connect to private or public networks
• Remote Access Points (RAPs) - Minimum size for mobile, remote, and temporary workstations and secure enterprise network connectivity
• SD-Branch - Integrated and simple unified management of WLAN, LAN, and SD-WAN networks with Zero Trust integrated security policy
• EdgeConnect - the optimal level of user experience of network services (Quality of Experience, QoE) from the network border to the cloud thanks to the SD-WAN Edge platform and unified SASE components

2020: Aruba ESP Platform Presentation

On June 10, 2020, it became known that Hewlett Packard Enterprise introduced a cloud platform based on artificial intelligence technologies - Aruba ESP (Edge Services Platform), which predicts and solves problems at the network border before they arise. Aruba ESP is an automated platform based on AIOps (artificial intelligence for IT management) and implements the Zero Trust model for network security. This platform is based on a unified architecture for local area networks (LANs), data centers, branch office networks, and remote workstations. The Aruba ESP platform continuously analyzes network data, monitors SLAs, identifies anomalies, and optimizes, while ensuring visibility and protection of unknown devices on the network.

According to the developer, Aruba ESP provides Cloud Services at the edge of the network and can be used as a service in the cloud, or in a local environment as a managed service through Aruba partners or in the format of "network as a service" through. In HPE GreenLake accordance with changing economic requirements, customers can also take advantage of financings HPE the Financial Services system.

As noted in HPE, the world is entering an era of data analysis based on IoT (IoT), AI, and automation supported by computing systems and network infrastructure to leverage the generation of applications and workloads that are distributed at the edge of the network. As a result, enterprises generate large amounts of unstructured data at the edge of the network, which, subject to their correct analysis and actions, can be used to increase performance, improve quality of work and business results.

The key to transforming real-time data into constructive knowledge is to analyze and process this data at the point of its origin - at the border of the network, where people, devices and things connect to the digital world. The ability to generate the knowledge needed for practical application is relevant when enterprises, employees and the corporate network need to adapt to the changing needs of the business, HPE emphasized.

Using unstructured data at the edge of the network requires a system that uses AI through network telemetry to process this data at a speed and volume that exceeds the level of human capabilities. This also requires a sixth-sense infrastructure based on artificial intelligence that proactively recognizes impending problems, recommends solutions, and uses automation to transform them into logical actions, and all without manual operator intervention. According to the developer's statement, through continuous analysis, knowledge about the network, users and devices, Aruba ESP converts information into information, helps organizations accelerate transformation and maintain business continuity through a single, cloud-based platform that can be located in both the local environment and the cloud, and that ensures security and unification of the infrastructure based on the following basic principles:

• The AIOps platform is a component of Aruba ESP, which uses AI and analytics to quickly localize root causes with an accuracy of more than 95%, automatically fix network problems, proactively monitor users' work, configure the network to prevent problems before they occur, and use comparative testing and recommendations to constantly optimize and ensure network security;
• Unified infrastructure combines all network operations for switching, Wi-Fi and SD-WAN in LAN, data centers, branch offices, and remote work environments managed by Aruba Central. It is a single cloud system that correlates all network events to reduce problem resolution time and manual management errors. The Aruba unified architecture approach allows the controller to be located in the cloud, providing flexibility across the enterprise;
• Zero Trust Network Security combines built-in role-based access technology, dynamic segmentation, and identity-based intrusion detection to authenticate, authorize, and manage each user and device connected to the network, while detecting, preventing, isolating, and stopping attacks before they affect the business.

According to the developer, Aruba ESP is a scalable full-size cloud platform for wired, wireless and SD-WAN environments, which combines several network elements for centralized management and control. Aruba ESP is based on open standards and provides integration with various third-party solutions and services. Among the possibilities:

• Cloud Management for Businesses of All Sizes - Aruba Central provides mission-critical networking with services ArubaOS it is a controller-free platform based on usage, Cloud which provides comprehensive management and operation of wired, wireless and SD-WAN infrastructure within the building, Data center, branch offices, and remote workstations. As of June 2020, Aruba Central is available to customers in two options - as cloud service or as a local system (on-premises);
• Simplified day-to-day operation with a single infrastructure - Together with access to a common data lake through Aruba ESP, Aruba Central has updated simplified navigation, search, and context views to consolidate multiple aspects of information into a single management point, virtually eliminating the need for disparate tools to collect and compare information across multiple domains and locations;
• detailed visibility of applications, devices, and the network. Additional capabilities in Aruba Central allow you to use user-centric analytics from User Experience Insight to quickly identify client, application, and network performance issues;
• Reduce data conversion time with AI and automation - Based on simulation data, Aruba AI Insights reduces troubleshooting time by detecting difficult-to-detect network configuration issues and identifying root causes, providing guidance, and automated troubleshooting for continuous network optimization
• IT performance based on AI. AI-based Aruba Central offers AI Search, a natural language search and query service that allows IT teams to use English-language queries to extract user and device data from the common data lake of the ESP platform to quickly address issues. For more complex issues, AI Assist uses an event-driven automation system to collect and compare all data for both internal technical support and the Aruba Technical Support Center (Aruba TAC);
• Aruba introduced Developer Hub, a developer resource that includes a description of the Aruba API and documentation to simplify the development of applications using the Aruba ESP open platform;
• Expanding the range of switches for distributed businesses and midsize businesses - To help organizations accelerate Edge transformation, Aruba has expanded its CX Switch portfolio to include the Aruba CX 6200 Switch Series. This series provides built-in analysis and automation capabilities at the edge of the network, where users and devices connect, thereby creating knowledge that helps achieve business results. The CX 6200 series allows customers to use a single operating system in both local area and branch office networks and data centers.

"Our network covers several campuses and training centers that use applications with high network performance requirements to keep students, scientists, and researchers connected and productive. We chose a cloud-based approach to infrastructure management, and the capabilities of Aruba Central and ArubaOS give us visibility and understanding to simplify operations while reducing space, occupied by equipment, and the safe management of our large campuses and distributed offices from the cloud, which allows us to identify and fix problems before they disrupt[1], noted Ron Gardner, Senior Infrastructure Engineer at James Cook University

Notes