Remote Connect Improves Cloud Management

IT Administrators Can Manage Nearly Any LAN Device Through NetCloud Manager

The scope of things that organizations must connect to their enterprises network continues to expand, with seemingly no end in sight. In response, there are exciting new options for network administrators and IT teams to simply and securely access, manage, and troubleshoot virtually any device — from routers to just about anything that lives on the LAN.

Cradlepoint’s NetCloud Manager Remote Connect allows IT administrators to instantly and securely access devices remotely through the cloud. Remote Connect gives IT administrators a suite of functionality including secure, real-time remote cloud management of both Cradlepoint devices and third-party, LAN-connected devices — allowing them to be cloud-managed from a single pane of glass with no additional setup.

Remotely Connect to LAN Devices

Remote Connect LAN Manager allows administrators to connect to nearly any device that can get an IP address on the LAN through Cradlepoint NetCloud Manager (NCM). Essentially, this makes third-party devices that previously were inaccessible now capable of being managed securely through the cloud — without any additional software or hardware.

Until now, management of devices on the LAN — everything from switches and access points to security cameras and digital signs — has been complex, to say the least. IT specialists had to set up a variety of complex routing rules, port forwarding, and more, plus they potentially had to purchase third-party software for each and every device.

Today, the entire process is simpler — in the cloud — through Remote Connect. Once plugged in, a device that lives behind a router on the LAN is accessible from anywhere in the world through NCM’s single pane of glass. That device, with its IP address and host name, immediately appears in the NCM platform; the IT team can make it cloud managed with one click.

The cost savings potential of Remote Connect are vast, as IT managers can avoid purchasing individual cloud management services for the rapidly growing list of devices on their network. They can also avoid on-site IT or truck rolls for troubleshooting, setup, and diagnostics of devices that were previously inaccessible, accept from the LAN.

Advanced Out-of-Band Management (OOBM)

With a traditional network architecture, when wired-line connectivity is down, an IT team cannot manage the primary router. However, if the organization is using a Cradlepoint router for failover LTE connectivity, an IT professional can use advanced OOBM to traverse through a Cradlepoint router and troubleshoot or config any generic primary router remotely (or any device with a serial console port).

Advanced OOBM affords IT staff the same capabilities as if they were sitting next to and plugged into the primary router — regardless of whether the wired line is up or down. Then the IT staff can troubleshoot and determine — if not implement — potential fixes.

The business benefits and ROI of advanced OOBM are substantial, including the ability to troubleshoot and repair the primary router without sending someone to the location. OOBM also eliminates the need to rely on a non-IT, on-site employee to help with troubleshooting and eliminates the monthly POTS (analog) circuit subscription for OOBM.

Robust Real-Time Info & Troubleshooting

Each Cradlepoint router runs the NetCloud Operating System (NetCloud OS), which network administrators now can access remotely via Remote Connect for robust real-time statuses, troubleshooting information, and logs.
Router-level data available through NCM’s Remote Connect GUI is more fine grain, including information such as Connection Manager interface status, VPN tunnel status, router tables, system logs, connected client list, firewall tracking and hit counter, and many more. Also, access is highly secure, with no static IP or open SSH / SSL ports required.

It’s just like local access to each router’s UI — but anytime, from anywhere, through the cloud. Organizations can leverage this service for highly valuable real-time trouble-shooting, with always-available insights into routing tables, which clients are connected, and how much data clients are using.

Router Console Access

Remote Connect allows IT teams to connect remotely to the console of a Cradlepoint router, and recently this feature has undergone some improvements. Now the data available to IT departments through CLI access is more in-depth than ever. Access to more robust real-time analytics is particularly helpful for troubleshooting. Suspected router issues such as slow service or misdirected traffic can be viewed via real-time routing tables. This real-time data stream means IT professionals can provide real-time fixes as well.

Additional Software-Defined Solutions

Many organizations today are looking to not only perform device administration and management remotely, but to actually create an easy, flexible, instant, secure network over commodity Internet from anywhere at any time. NetCloud Engine, Cradlepoint’s Software-Defined Perimeter (SD-P) solution, allows IT teams to instantly create always-on Virtual Cloud Networks over any Internet connection that allows IoT devices, administrators, and resources to have constant communication with each other.