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Napera Networks Helps Customers Take Control of Wireless Network Access With Strong Wi-Fi Integration in New Version of Its Network Security Solution

Napera Extends Network Access Control Capabilities to 802.11 Environments and Adds Further Computer Health Check Features for Mac OS X Devices

Providing secure wireless access for customers, contractors, or employees is now achievable for small and medium-sized enterprises. Napera Networks (www.napera.com) today launched a new version of its network access control solution, featuring strong Wi-Fi integration. The Napera N24 works with new or existing 802.11 deployments for secure, user-based wireless access for both employees and guest users. Other new features in this version include expanded health checks and automated remediation for Mac OS X computers.

With this launch, Napera extends its capabilities for computer health check, identity enforcement and access control to wireless environments, ensuring only healthy computers and authorized users access the Internet or corporate network from Wi-Fi access points. Companies can now use a single wireless access point for both guests and employees, managing health and authentication requirements and controlling network access. Guest access is automatically limited to the Internet or specific printers.

"We chose a wireless infrastructure to keep costs and administration simplified, but we were not enabling all guests to use our wireless access due to security concerns around the health of those computers and the inability to limit guest access to the Internet," said Ben Oliver, Executive Administrator, Starfire Sports, a non-profit organization dedicated to providing world-class soccer facilities for all youth. "Napera has removed the complexity and security issues by adding a layer of security and control to our Wi-Fi deployment and enabling us to easily manage both guest and employee access with a single solution."

Security is the number one concern for SMEs wanting to deploy or expand wireless networking, according to industry experts. The Napera solution works with existing or new Wi-Fi access points, and wireless user authentication integrates with Active Directory or the local Napera database. Napera supports 802.11 wireless access points with WPA/WPA2 Enterprise authentication, which is a powerful, standards-based security technology for Wi-Fi networks. With this integration, Napera greatly simplifies the configuration of WPA/WPA2 with Active Directory, eliminating the need for any back-end server configuration or complexity.

For Macintosh computers, Napera now provides automated alerts and remediation support for firewall and software updates, ensuring the system is compliant with health requirements before being allowed network access. Napera directly uses the NAP agent in Windows-based computers but developed its own Mac OS X health agent to provide health enforcement across both Windows and Mac devices.

This latest release is part of an aggressive roadmap Napera is delivering to provide a complete portfolio of complementary network security products and services for the SME market. The company is currently on a two to three month innovation cycle, delivering incremental releases that provide new features and a seamless upgrade for customers.

"We are taking a dynamic approach to our product development and roadmap, working closely with our partners and customers to anticipate the market's needs and help companies solve their security challenges," said Todd Hooper, Founder and CEO of Napera Networks. "You could call this the Web 2.0 approach to network security, as the product is continually refined and improved in line with a clear product vision."

The Napera solution is available through Napera's worldwide channel of value added resellers, system integrators and other strategic partners. All current Napera customers will receive the upgrade as part of their yNapera.com subscription. The Napera N24 appliance is available for $3,495.00, which includes the first year subscription to the MyNapera.com online service and one-year hardware and software maintenance.

About Napera Networks

Napera Networks helps small and medium-sized enterprises succeed at network security. Napera offers a line of integrated network access control products and Web services that ensure only healthy computers and authorized users access the network. With Napera, IT professionals can confidently allow worker mobility, wireless networking, and guest Internet and printer access, while keeping the network safe and secure. Napera is the only network access control solution that is purpose-built for the SME but with enterprise-class performance and security. For more information, go to www.napera.com.