The manufacturer D-Link has two ways of managing the wireless network, the first of which is Nuclias Connect, which is local management, either in hardware (DNH-100) or through software installed on a PC. We also have Nuclias Cloud , a solution that allows us to centrally manage unlimited Wi-Fi access points and switches , and all this from the cloud, without the need to install anything, we will only need an Internet connection to remotely monitor and manage the entire network. . Today at RedesZone we are going to explain why you should choose Nuclias Cloud for your business , but we will also tell you about the weak points of this network management solution.
Reasons to use Nuclias Cloud
Nuclias Cloud is D-Link’s flagship solution for the centralized management of the manufacturer’s Wi-Fi switches and access points. It is a solution that is in the manufacturer’s cloud , and is designed to have unlimited scalability , this means that we have the possibility of adding unlimited switches and APs, as many as we buy. In addition, we also have great versatility when it comes to creating different networks , with the aim of centrally managing the networks of different branches, and all this in a simple way with an administration website.
Depending on the profile you have, you are interested in this solution for one reason or another:
- If you are a network and systems integrator , this solution is also of interest to you as long as you provide remote management services as an added service, in this way, you will save a lot of time and money on travel, because all the changes we make can be done from our office , from home or if we are traveling, we will only need an Internet connection to make the changes and it will automatically be displayed. We will not need to use a VPN, which is usual, or set up a reverse proxy in the company, we simply need an Internet connection and a web browser.
- If you are the IT manager of a large company , with multiple offices spread throughout the country and even in other countries, if you are in charge of the IT maintenance of a chain of hotels and even schools, this multi-site remote administration solution will help you It will allow the different networks to be managed much more efficiently. In addition, we can receive notifications by email in the event that a switch or AP goes down, in order to be able to act accordingly.
The key features of this Nuclias Cloud solution are as follows:
- Zero-Touch Deployment – This means that we simply have to connect the switch or WiFi access point to the network, wait a minute until it is turned on. Next, we have to add the equipment through the serial number that we have on the sticker, and it will automatically be added to the cloud management network. Once added, it is enough to configure it with the network and site that we want so that it is automatically configured without us having to do anything else.
- Role Based Administration – We can create different users with different permissions. If we are administrators, we can manage all the networks and sites that we have registered. We can also create administrators of a certain network in particular and not of all, and even only of one site. Thanks to this powerful permission management, we can carry out network maintenance with our team.
- Advanced configurations at switch and AP level : all the configurations that we would have in a standalone solution we also have here. We will be able to configure VLANs in both switches and APs, authentication with RADIUS and WPA3 to have maximum security, individual and group firmware updates for APs and switches, we also have the possibility of authentication through a captive portal via WiFi and much more. plus.
Some very important options that we have available are the automated monitoring alerts , this means that if there is any type of problem in the network, it will not only notify us in the administration panel, but it will also notify us by email of what is happening, to take it into account and fix it as soon as possible. Of course, we will have a full network event log with the ability to search for a certain error.
You should also keep this in mind
Nuclias Cloud is a really powerful solution for managing APs and switches in the cloud, however, it is not perfect, and we will have to pay to use it . The license form is to pay for each WiFi access point and for each switch that we have in the network, and the price is annual:
- Price of WiFi access points: €36/year
- Switch price: €14/year
For the purchase of an AP or switch we will have a one-year license incorporated , however, there are offers that include up to 3 years of license completely free for the purchase of the device. We must also bear in mind that, depending on the number of APs and switches that we buy for the company or business, D-Link will surely offer us significant discounts.
Assuming that we have to pay for the use of the Cloud, in a small network of two switches and three WiFi access points, we are talking about having to pay €136 per year just for managing all the equipment centrally . A price that we must scale as we add more switches and APs to the network, so this Cloud management price could increase. In the event that we do not renew the license, the network will continue to work as usual, but we cannot perform any type of configuration on the equipment, we cannot update the firmware, nor will we have monitoring options.
Depending on your business model, it will be worth using Nuclias Cloud to offer customers remote technical support and also troubleshooting. In addition, we must bear in mind that we will not have to travel to the company in question, since everything is does from the cloud. You will also not need to set up a VPN to access the controller locally, nor set up complicated configurations such as a reverse proxy to access it more securely.