Cisco Cisco Prime IP Express 8.2 White Paper
© 2014 Cisco and/or its affiliates. All rights reserved. This document is Cisco Public Information.
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White Paper
Cisco Prime IP Express: Connect Millions of
Devices Securely, Reliably, and Easily
Devices Securely, Reliably, and Easily
What You Will Learn
Enterprises face a deluge of new devices and network connections. And with the emergence of the “Internet of
Everything,” the number of connected devices will only grow. This trend underlines the importance of anywhere,
Everything,” the number of connected devices will only grow. This trend underlines the importance of anywhere,
anytime network access to the enterprise. That access depends on core Domain Name System (DNS), Dynamic
Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP), and IP address management (IPAM) (DDI) capabilities that make basic
network connectivity possible.
But along with proliferating devices, a number of other technology trends - new applications, growing security and
availability needs, virtualization and the cloud - make DDI far more complex. The basic DNS/DHCP tools and
manual IP address management processes that enterprises have used in the past cannot scale with new business
needs.
Cisco Prime
™
IP Express provides the answer to these DDI challenges for today’s enterprise network. Built on the
same industrial-strength Cisco
®
DDI technology that service providers have used for years, Cisco Prime IP Express
automates and simplifies every aspect of DNS, DHCP, and IP address management. It helps lower operating
expenses, enhances security, and positions enterprises to address growing “bring your own device” (BYOD)
expenses, enhances security, and positions enterprises to address growing “bring your own device” (BYOD)
requirements.
Connectivity Gets Complicated
The world is growing more connected, and the enterprise is too.
connected “things” worldwide, growing to 29.7 billion by 2020. This number includes consumer devices like mobile
phones, TVs, tablets, and laptops - many of which are now used in the enterprise - as well as sensors, industrial
equipment, and millions of other devices.
Together, these connections make up what analysts refer to as the “Internet of Things.” But that’s just one part of
the connectivity equation that enterprises need to accommodate. Enterprises need to be ready for “The Internet of
Everything,” which includes people (and all the ways they connect and communicate), processes, and data, as well
the connectivity equation that enterprises need to accommodate. Enterprises need to be ready for “The Internet of
Everything,” which includes people (and all the ways they connect and communicate), processes, and data, as well
as machine-to-machine connections.
Nowhere is this more apparent than in the growing BYOD trend, as employees use their personal smartphones,
tablets, and other devices in the workplace. Cisco VNI forecasts that there will be 565 million mobile business
users worldwide by 2016.
Facilitating network connections for all these new devices is no longer a “nice-to-have”
proposition. Providing anywhere, anytime, any-device access to network applications is becoming mission-critical
for every business. An organization’s ability to connect employees reliably however they choose - over Wi-Fi,
for every business. An organization’s ability to connect employees reliably however they choose - over Wi-Fi,
cellular, wired, or VPN connections - has a direct impact on employee productivity and satisfaction.