Overview, Nac solution overview, Key functionality – Enterasys Networks 9034385 User Manual
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Enterasys NAC Design Guide 1-1
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Overview
This chapter provides an overview of the Enterasys Network Access Control (NAC) solution,
including a description of key NAC functions and deployment models. It also introduces the
required and optional components of the Enterasys NAC solution, and presents a comparison
between the inline NAC Controller for implementation of inline network access control and the
out‐of‐band NAC Gateway for implementation of out‐of‐band network access control.
NAC Solution Overview
Enterasys NAC is a centralized network access control solution that combines authentication,
vulnerability assessment, and location services to authorize network access and determine the
appropriate level of service for an end‐system. The NAC solution ensures that only valid users
and devices connecting at the proper location, at the right time, and with appropriate security
postures, are granted access to your network. For end‐systems which are not compliant with
defined security guidelines, the NAC solution provides assisted remediation, allowing end users
to perform self‐service repair steps specific to the detected compliance violation.
Key Functionality
The Enterasys NAC solution supports the five key network access control functions: detection,
authentication, assessment, authorization, and remediation. These five functions can be deployed
in various combinations, as described in the following section on deployment models.
Here is a description of the five key NAC functions:
Detection
Identify when and where a device connects to the network.
Authentication
Verify the identity of the user or device connecting to the network. Enterasys NAC supports the
“pass through” authentication (proxying to a backend RADIUS server) of 802.1X, web‐based
(PWA), and MAC authentication requests, as well as local MAC authentication. This provides
access control for both user‐centric and machine‐centric end‐systems in the enterprise
environment.
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