Leading Public Research University Blankets Five Campuses with Always-On Wi-Fi to Connect 116,000 Unique Devices Daily
Aruba, a Hewlett Packard Enterprise company (NYSE: HPE), today announced
that the University of Minnesota is delivering secure, high-performance
wireless to its 48,000 students and 18,000 faculty and staff with an
Aruba mobile-first network. The new network is instrumental in allowing
the University to reliably connect 116,000 unique devices daily,
including 3,600 Internet of Things (IoT) devices.
With the University’s previous network, performance lagged, resulting in
user complaints, and the IT team had a difficult time authenticating
devices onto the network which prevented them from moving confidently
towards IoT. After a thorough evaluation of multiple vendors and a
proof-of-concept test, the University chose Aruba.
Working with channel partner, Pier
Group, the University installed more than 10,000 Aruba access points
running ArubaOS
8 software, across its five campuses, including residence halls, to
boost its wireless coverage and performance, while enhancing its users’
experience. The ArubaOS 8 Live Upgrade capability allows the
University’s small IT team to update the network quickly and easily
without interrupting service, so they no longer need to schedule
downtime for these upgrades.
The University is also using Aruba’s unique AirMatch RF optimization
feature, which enables the Wi-Fi network to automatically select the
best channels to deliver the highest quality user experience possible,
even in very congested areas. With Aruba AirWave for network management,
the IT team is also benefiting from a wealth of capabilities they did
not have previously including rogue detection, built-in application
tuning, and easy-to-use management troubleshooting dashboards.
“With Aruba’s AOS 8 software features and AirWave, our team can quickly
find and mitigate problems,” said Steve Fletty, Network Design Engineer
at the University of Minnesota. “This saves us time and allows us to
focus on more strategic priorities.”
The University’s IT team is also using Aruba ClearPass for secure
authentication of devices including game consoles, Amazon Echos, Google
Homes and other IoT devices in the residence halls. Prior to deploying
ClearPass, the IoT devices on campus were limited to approximately 200,
but increased to 3,600 once ClearPass was installed.
“With ClearPass, we can create a separate security domain for these IoT
devices that tend to be more personal in nature,” said Louis Hammond,
Service Owner, Voice and Data Network Services, and Next Generation
Network Project Owner, for the University of Minnesota. “This gives us
the confidence that we can continue to connect new devices to the
network as they appear without worrying about security breaches.”
Hammond says that beyond the immediate benefits for the IT team,
students and faculty are enjoying an improved user experience throughout
the campus. Within classrooms and lecture halls, applications like
Moodle can keep up with real-time activity on the app, and professors
can now allow students to use their personal devices for clicker-enabled
applications. The University’s nursing school, which had issues with the
previous wireless network kicking students off during their interactive
board testing, is now reporting that its students can complete their
exams the first time through.
“Overall, complaints about the network have been greatly reduced,”
Hammond said. “We’re receiving praise from students and faculty alike,
who have noticed a big difference in the performance. We’re hearing that
instructors are feeling encouraged to use technology in the classroom to
improve student learning.”
In the near future, the University plans to extend its coverage to
additional outdoor areas. Currently, the outdoor deployments are limited
to specific areas and use cases such as for researchers using iPads in
the fields of the St. Paul campus to enter and track data about water,
bacteria and other natural elements. According to Hammond, the
University would like to expand the outdoor coverage to campus common
spaces and athletic fields.
Added Hammond, “We plan to continue building upon this network
foundation, adding more devices and applications, and covering more of
our campus to satisfy our University’s needs.”
About Aruba, a Hewlett Packard Enterprise company
Aruba, a Hewlett Packard Enterprise company, is a leading provider of
next-generation networking solutions for enterprises of all sizes
worldwide. The company delivers IT solutions that empower organizations
to serve the latest generation of mobile-savvy users who rely on
cloud-based business apps for every aspect of their work and personal
lives.
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
.
Aruba, a Hewlett Packard Enterprise company
Pavel Radda, +1-408-419-0294
pavel.radda@hpe.com
or
Lori Hultin, +1-818-879-4651
lori.hultin@hpe.com