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Cisco® Network Assistant is a network management application, available for OS X and Windows, optimized for wired and wireless LANs for growing businesses that have 40 or fewer switches and routers. By using Cisco Smartports technology, Cisco Network Assistant simplifies configuration, deployment, and ongoing management and maintenance of Cisco Systems® networks. The application provides a centralized network view through a user-friendly GUI. The program allows network administrators to easily apply common services, generate inventory reports, synchronize passwords, and employ features across Cisco switches, routers, and access points. Cisco Network Assistant is available at no cost and can be downloaded from: http://www.cisco.com/go/cna.
New in Cisco Network Assistant Release 5.6
Cisco Network Assistant 5.6 now employs an optional call home feature to help Cisco better understand in-use hardware and software features. Participating will enable customers to participate in future early field trials, and betas of exciting new Cisco software geared at making the operator's management of network hardware much easier.
New in Cisco Network Assistant Release 5.4
Cisco Network Assistant 5.4 provides a straightforward way to configure Cisco Integrated Security Features (CISF). Dynamic ARP Inspection, DHCP Snooping, and IP Source Guard can be configured on Catalyst 4500 and Catalyst 4900 devices.
New in Cisco Network Assistant Release 5.0
Topology View Enhancements
Increased Device Limits
Cisco Network Assistant now supports up to 40 devices, including any combination of supported switches and routers. The number of supported access points and IP phones is determined by the type and number of devices in the network.
Tree View
Devices can now be accessed from the tree view when working in the topology view. When users click a device icon in the tree view, it pops up in the topology view. All functions available by right clicking in the topology view are also available in the tree view.
Zoom
With the increase of devices in the topology view, users can enlarge the view of a specific segment of the topology - such as phones, routers, or a subnet. Zoom is accessible from the keyboard or the combo box located on the menu bar.
Enhanced Discovery
Discovery is now enhanced to allow for more control when discovering devices in the network. It is now possible to discover devices by entering a seed IP, range IP, subnet IP, or single IP address. This feature provides more flexibility and time savings when designing the topology.
Health Monitoring
With Cisco Network Assistant, users can quickly access the status of switches, including packet errors; temperature; Power over Ethernet (PoE); and bandwidth, CPU, memory, and ternary content addressable memory (TCAM) usage - all from the same window. Users can select the health categories they wish to monitor; for each category selected, the switch with the highest usage is displayed in the quick view. Users can access a more comprehensive view by clicking the Details button.
Power Supply Feature
The power supply features support the redundant power supplies for the Cisco Catalyst® 3500 and 3700 Series products as well as the Cisco Catalyst 4500 and 4500 E-Series power supplies. Users can prioritize the switch order for drawing power. The amount of power drawn, what switch is drawing power, and switch priority can all be easily configured and viewed. For the Cisco Catalyst 4500 and 4500 E-Series, this feature provides a convenient way to examine and configure all system and inline power settings, per device and per module.
Power over Ethernet
The PoE feature gives users access to configure power guarantees per port, and the ability to police ports and shut faulty ones down. Users can view the power runtime status, the amount of power consumed, and the device that is connected to the port.
Diagnostics
Administrators can keep their network healthy by running their own diagnostic tests; tests are scheduled from the Diagnostics window.
CLI Preview
Prior to applying features, users now can view the command lines of certain features.
File Management
The new File Management feature provides an overview of all devices in the community. At a glance the user can determine the status of all device file systems in their community. Files are displayed in an easy-to-navigate and familiar file explorer interface.
A file can be managed on all file systems concurrently. Devices that use Class B file systems, such as the Cisco Catalyst 4500 and 4500 E-Series and some Cisco routers, support functions for undeleting files and squeezing file systems to reclaim space.
VLAN Highlighting
From the topology view, users can associate VLAN numbers with colors to quickly view what devices are in a VLAN. Devices that are associated with more than one VLAN display two or more colors with a candy-cane effect.
Cross-Launch Switch Device Managers
Network administrators can now cross-launch the switch device manager from the topology view in Cisco Network Assistant by right-clicking on the device icon to access the device manager.
Telnet Session
Users can access a Telnet session by right-clicking on a device icon from the topology view or front panel view. Cisco Network Assistant automatically derives the IP address and launches the Telnet session. This enhancement provides additional convenient access to devices.
Printing
The enhanced print option allows users to print the Topology View or Front Panel View windows on one page using the "fit to page" option. In addition, reports are now printed in an easier-to-read format.
Annotated Text
Additional text can be added under devices in the topology view to further describe aspects of your network, such as the name of a building, floor, or closet.
Performance Enhancements
The following performance improvements have been implemented on Cisco Network Assistant to save time with configuration and management:
• Launching process of Cisco Network Assistant
• Loading of the topology view and discovering devices
• Accelerated Cisco Smartports propagation speed
• Concurrent multiple-port configuration propagation
Localization
Cisco Network Assistant is available in six additional languages: Japanese, simplified Chinese, French, Italian, German, and Spanish. All portions of Cisco Network Assistant are translated; Cisco IOS® Software commands to and from a remote device will remain in English. Localized versions of Cisco Network Assistant are available for download at http://www.cisco.com/go/cna.
Key Features and Benefits
Community
Community is the next-generation discovery mechanism that allows application of common services to supported switches, routers, and access points. These services include Cisco IOS Software upgrades, configuration management, inventory reports, network events, alerts, and password synchronization.
Community Security
Cisco Network Assistant provides a Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) connection between the Cisco Network Assistant client and each connected device in a community to help ensure security of all sensitive information.
Drag-and-Drop Cisco IOS Software Upgrade
The Drag-and-Drop Cisco IOS Software Upgrade feature allows users to upgrade Cisco IOS Software on a Cisco Catalyst switch, router, or access point simply by dragging the Cisco IOS Software from the PC desktop and dropping it onto the icon of the target device depicted in the topology view. This process removes the requirement to type the Cisco IOS Software filename or select a particular Trivial File Transfer Protocol (TFTP) server IP address.
Dynamic Application Update
Users can stay up-to-date on the latest versions and patches of Cisco Network Assistant through dynamic application updates. With this function, users can be assured that when a newly purchased Cisco device is added to the network, it is automatically supported and secured with the latest update.
Event Notification
The new Event Notification feature alerts users when a new version of Cisco Network Assistant is available for download, if a potential problem arises with a device in your network, or if a configuration change is required. A dialogue box provides all necessary information regarding the event such as time, description, and, if applicable, suggestions to resolve the problem.
Guest Port
Guest Port enables companies to provide visiting guests with Internet access, thereby allowing them to establish VPN connectivity to their company resources. Guest Port users are separated from internal network traffic so that the confidential "intranet access only" information and services remain secure from unauthorized guest users.
Network Synchronization
This feature detects inconsistent settings in the network such as VLAN mismatches, centralized time, and security policies. Working in concert with the Troubleshooting Advisor, these inconsistencies are detected and fixed easily.
Online Help
A detailed, transparent help function embedded in the framework of Cisco Network Assistant provides an extensive glossary and powerful search engine that takes users to the correct (requested) window or related links to apply specific settings. Online Help empowers the user to find instruction and troubleshoot without having to call for technical support.
Cisco Smartports Advisor
Cisco Smartports Advisor is an embedded tool that discovers devices connected in the network and recommends appropriate Cisco best practice configurations for security, availability, and quality-of-service (QoS) features on switch ports. This feature saves time by proactively recommending Cisco best practices and removes the need for network administrators to consult detailed design guides or documentation. Cisco Smartports technology saves time for network administrators; avoids human error; and helps ensure the configuration of the switch, router, or access point is optimized for these applications.
Topology and Front Panel Views
Users can monitor their network from two perspectives: the physical topology view or the front panel view. The rich topology view graphically represents the types of devices in the network as well as detailed information about device status, physical connections, and various monitoring capabilities - all from a single view. The front panel view displays switches in the network simultaneously along with the state, duplex, and speed of switch ports. The front panel view also allows users to apply features across multiple ports or multiple switches when configuring features such as VLANs. In addition, real-time comprehensive reports are available for inventory, ports, QoS, and access control list (ACL) statistics.
Exclusive Features For The Cisco Catalyst Express 500 Series
Task-Based Menu
Navigating through Cisco Network Assistant is intuitive and simple. The main toolbar is divided into four categories so users can easily find the important tasks and features to manage their Cisco Catalyst Express 500 Series Switch: Configure, Monitor, Troubleshoot, and Maintenance.
Secure Wireless
As WLAN becomes universal, enabling WLAN security is necessary, even for small businesses. Using the intelligence built into the Cisco Catalyst Express 500 Series, Cisco Network Assistant guides users through the configuration of setting up Service Set Identifier (SSID) and encryption on Cisco Aironet® wireless access points.
Security Slider
Network security and access to your Cisco Catalyst Express 500 Series Switches are facilitated by choosing the desired level (Low, Medium, or High) on the Security Slider in Cisco Network Assistant. The Low setting (default) provides port security and protection against broadcast storms. The Medium setting adds MAC address authentication. The High setting adds IEEE 802.1x authentication for media-level access control, offering the capability to permit or deny network connectivity and control VLAN access based on user or machine identity.
Troubleshooting Advisor
The Troubleshooting Advisor offers an enhanced method of simplified troubleshooting by automatically identifying potential network problems and documenting them with a graphical trend chart. Examples include cabling problems, configuration errors, and other potential network problems. Users receive an explanation of the problem, and the corrective action is as simple as a single mouse click.
Platforms
Table 1 lists the devices that Cisco Network Assistant 5.x supports.
Table 1. Managed and Supported Devices
Device Limits
Cisco Network Assistant supports 40 devices in any combination. The number of access points and IP phones is limited by the number of switch ports in your network.
System Requirements
Table 2 lists the system requirements for Cisco Network Assistant 5.0.
Table 2. System Requirements
Availability
Cisco Network Assistant 5.X is available for free at: http://www.cisco.com/go/cna.