You know that updating your wireless network has a lot of benefits.

But one of the challenges of an organization updating its own network is the speed in which it can be done. You want to make sure your new network is deployed quickly AND correctly. Universidad EAFIT located in Medellin, Antioquia Colombia wanted a new network but were dismayed to learn how long the project would take.

With 16,600 students spread out over 28 school buildings and eight annex houses, Universidad EAFIT occupies a lot of acreage. They found that timeframe network upgrades took was way too long. It was estimated that a crew of 25 IT employees would need two to three weeks to equip each building with the new technology.

The university felt this was far too long.

After considering other vendors, Universidad EAFIT chose Cisco to implement the new solution. With more than 200 wireless access points (Cisco Aironet 2700 and 3700) running with Cisco Catalyst 3500, 3700, 4500 and 6800, the university was able to set up the network and improve WiFi performance quickly.

The reason? Easy deployment. Engineers were able to configure and monitor each switch and access point from the Cisco Prime Infrastructure manager. This was a much better-and less time consuming-solution than individually configuring each of the wireless devices. Add Cisco Identity Service Engine for simple security deployment and the college was set up in a fraction of the time.

"The web interfaces for Cisco Prime and Identity Service Engine (ISE) are very easy for even entry-level admins to understand and use," said Hugo Giraldo, Head of IT Infrastructure Universidad EAFIT. "Three people can equip an entire building with 400 computers in just two days."

The new network has proven to be a great upgrade for the university as professors are creating connected classrooms. The college has even started offering courses via virtual classrooms. In the future, Universidad EAFIT is planning to improve its efficiency with smart lighting and air conditioning as well as digitizing its library collections.

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