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Meraki MX Routers Make the Net Work

In January, Meraki introduced the industry’s first cloud-managed routers, the Meraki MX50 and MX70. Through Meraki’s Cloud Controller, they bring valuable insight and control into wired networks, making it easy for administrators to monitor and fine tune the network, ensure optimal performance, and solve client or network issues.

During our Meraki MX router introductory webinar on February 3rd, we polled the attendees and asked them a few questions about their networks and the issues that give them headaches. The results of the poll clearly reveal their concerns:

Biggest Challenges in Managing Remote Networks

Figure 1: Challenges in Managing Remote Networks

It is easy to see that asset visibility and traffic monitoring aspects of network management are at the top of this list. Who wouldn’t like to know what type of data is being transferred on the network? The reality of today’s networks makes it imperative to know what peer-to-peer traffic or possibly copyrighted material is being sent across the network, what applications or clients are using the most bandwidth, and how the traffic profile affects the performance and health of the network.

Managing many remote networks just adds to the complexity. Administrators can’t just look at one location, instead they need to see their entire network, or even several networks, at a time. We asked our attendees about the size of the remote networks they manage. This is how they responded:

Number of remote offices managed

Figure 2: Number of remote offices managed

The 1-to-4 remote office size category had the most responses, but there were still many attendees managing more than 10 remote offices. This hints at the challenges these administrators have to deal with every day. Meraki’s cloud-managed networks make it easy to get up and running for those managing just a few networks, without the need for extensive training or a complicated deployment. At the same time, the simplicity Meraki provides also brings comprehensive and centralized management for those who are responsible for dozens and dozens of networks, without overly complex configuration and specialized certification.

And the survey says: People love it!

During the webinar, we gave an overview of the Meraki MX series’ features that most benefit users who are concerned about traffic and the effects it has on their network performance. Another poll at the end of the webinar asked which of these benefits most appealed to our audience:

Popular MX50 and MX70 tools and features

Figure 3: Popular MX50 and MX70 tools and features

The Meraki MX routers’ application visibility and traffic shaping capability was very desirable. Simplicity also ate a large chunk of the pie, approaching one-third of the responses. Visibility and simplicity go hand-in-hand with Meraki’s Cloud Controller, giving network administrators the insight and control they crave. Below, figure 4 shows an example of clear, easy-to-understand application and throughput metrics for a one-week period.

Figure 4: Traffic shaper pie chart and application details

Figure 4: Traffic shaper pie chart and application details

At Meraki, we realized so many people want better visibility into their networks across multiple locations, and they want powerful network management tools that are easy-to-understand and use. As Figure 1 shows, 55% of respondents have network visibility and traffic monitoring concerns, and we’ve set out to solve these issues in the best way possible. We’re excited to bring these features to our customers and help them get better control over their networks. You can find more information about our Meraki MX router series online.

Figure 1: Meraki MX70

Figure 5: Meraki MX70

Did you miss the webinar? You can attend the next one, on March 2nd, or you can watch it online. Feel free to check out all our available online webinars.

Want to get your hands on a Meraki MX router? Sign up for a free trial online, or call us at 1-888-490-0918 (outside the US: +1 415 632 5800). We look forward to hearing from you!