Trapeze upgrade eases WLAN mgmt.

By John Cox
Network World, 01/17/05

A new version of Trapeze Networks' wireless LAN design and management application lets administrators configure and monitor large wireless networks more easily.

In Version 3.1 of RingMaster, Trapeze introduces graphical wizards to configure the company's wireless-LAN switches and access points, and a client/server framework for monitoring WLANs that might have hundreds of devices, including clients.

Despite the changes, RingMaster remains a complex application that requires training to use its many features effectively, one Trapeze user says.

"RingMaster is a complex program, and it has a lot of capabilities for [WLAN] design, site management, and mobility management," says Chip Greel, senior network architect at Finisar, a fiber-optic subsystem vendor, and a Trapeze customer in Sunnyvale, Calif. "The hardest thing is to understand the confluence of these three areas. . . . It's not the kind of product you can buy and use off-the-shelf without having your hand held by customer support."

The RingMaster software has been a key element of Trapeze's wireless-LAN switch offering from the beginning. Users can import a CAD drawing of a building, select some network criteria, and the software will create a map that shows where to place the Trapeze access points, and how to configure them.

Once the access points and switches have been installed, RingMaster uses the same data to configure these devices. It then monitors them, and the entire radio signal environment, using the original data as a baseline for identifying changes, such as an unauthorized access point, a drop-off in performance or a change in a radio signal's strength.

Trapeze says RingMaster is one of the few wireless-LAN management applications that blends a range of features into one program. Some rivals, including Cisco and Airespace, have several separate applications. Aruba Wireless Networks, another competitor, has a somewhat similar product in RF Director, although both vendors emphasize different features.

Version 3.1 has added a set of graphical wizards to walk administrators through the process of setting up the Trapeze switches and access points.

Another new feature is automatic verification. RingMaster now checks the settings being made during configuration. The software now can catch a mistake during the setup process, and suggest a fix. The administrator simply clicks a button to make the change.

Trapeze also has revamped its configuration features for the new version. One change is the introduction of what Trapeze calls distributed monitor servers. These are software programs that can be loaded on servers around a campus or in remote offices. Several administrators can access these servers from PCs anywhere on the network. The servers continuously monitor the WLAN infrastructure and clients, which now can number hundreds, or even thousands, according to Bruce Van Nice, vice president of marketing at Trapeze.

"It's a cool feature, for sure," Finisar's Greel says. "If you have three or four people managing [the WLAN], which you'd need in a really big mobility domain, then it would be really useful."

With this client/server framework, there is now also one window, dubbed the dashboard, that consolidates all of RingMaster's monitoring functions. Previously, the software had separate monitoring tools, each with a separate user interface.

With these monitoring changes, administrators now can open windows that show wireless-LAN activity for specific access points and their associated clients, or even individual client devices, anywhere on the WLAN, Van Nice says.

A greatly expanded reporting capability is also new. RingMaster can store and analyze data for the WLAN over as long as 30 days. Administrators can run a variety of ready-to-use reports to see trends in performance, traffic, radio behavior, client activity and the like. "It's a huge improvement," Greel says. "There's more flexibility and more detail [in reports]."

Pricing starts at about $2,000 for up to five Trapeze switches.

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