VARs Wooed With WLAN Wares

AirDefense, a fledgling WLAN security vendor based in Atlanta, is set to ship this week a new version of its WLAN security and monitoring system.

"The biggest news here is support for one integrated sensor that can monitor airwaves for all three standards [802.11 a/b/g]," said Jay Chaudhry, AirDefense CEO.

The new products include the AirDefense 3.5 system, a base platform for the new AirDefense RogueWatch, which provides realtime monitoring of airwaves to identify all unauthorized WLAN activity, and AirDefense Guard, which introduces policy enforcement intrusion protection and management through access points.

Pricing for the platform with AirDefense Guard is $24,900; with AirDefense RogueWatch it is $14,900. AirDefense Guard 1120, an entry-level solution, is priced at $9,999, Chaudhry said.

Bob Martin, vice president of mobile solutions at DigitalNet, a Herndon, Va.-based solution provider, said AirDefense products are impressive, particularly RogueWatch, which helps drive incremental business. DigitalNet also uses RogueWatch in its headquarters and field offices, Martin said.

"If they light up an access point, we know it," Martin said. "[RogueWatch] is just one of the newer products that now make us more confident about the pieces of the WLAN [infrastructure]."

Meanwhile, Funk Software, a Cambridge, Mass.-based WLAN security vendor, this week plans to launch Odyssey Server 2.0 and Odyssey Client 2.2. Odyssey Server 2.0, priced at $2,500 for the server and 25 clients, adds policy management and enhanced accounting capabilities for 802.1x-based networks, said Trevor Failor, Funk Software's channels manager for North America.

As for new channel programs, Vernier Networks, a WLAN vendor based in Mountain View, Calif., is set to officially unveil Monday its Key Partner Program, which features discounts of up to 48 percent for qualified partners.