Customer Needs Assessment

Evaluate the Existing Network Environment

If you plan to implement endpoint integrity, you should also determine if the switch supports port mirroring, which may be necessary to allow NAC 800s to detect endpoints. (Depending on the switch, this feature might be called port monitoring, local traffic mirroring, or port spanning.) Do any of the switches support remote traffic mirroring, which allows one switch to mirror traffic to another switch? The ProCurve 3500yl, 5400zl, 6200yl, and 8200zl Switches all support this capability. This capability will give you some addi- tional flexibility if you are using the 802.1X deployment method for the NAC 800.

As you begin to record information about the switches, you should identify the switch vendor, model number, and firmware version. For easy reference, you can record each switch’s capabilities in a table such as Table 2-3. The table provides two examples and then some space for you to record information about your company’s switches.

Table 2-3. Recording Information about Network Switches

Switch Vendor and

Firmware

Location

Authentication Methods

Port Mirroring/

Model Number

Version

 

Supported

Monitoring/

 

 

 

 

Spanning

5400zl Switch

K.12.14

North building, area 1

802.1X, local and RADIUS

Remote intelligent

 

 

 

MAC-Auth, Web-Auth

mirroring

 

 

 

 

 

5300xl

E.10.61

North building, area 2

802.1X, local and RADIUS

Port mirroring

 

 

 

MAC-Auth, Web-Auth

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

You should also record information about your company’s APs. For example, do the APs on your network support the strongest security for wireless networks—802.1X with Wi-Fi Protected Access (WPA/WPA2)?

Do your switches and APs include an 802.1X supplicant, which allows them to authenticate to the network? This capability helps prevent hackers or even well-meaning employees from attaching a rogue AP to the network. (See Figure 2-3.)

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HP Access Control Client Software manual Recording Information about Network Switches, Switch Vendor Firmware Location