OBM

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Communication Devices, Inc. (CDI) is a US manufacturer that has been furnishing solutions for Out of Band Management for over four decades. When we speak with our customers at client meetings and trade events, we always ask, “Why CDI”?

The most common answer to “Why CDI”, is the trust business invest in their CDI Out of Band Management system OBM. CDI helps customers operate their network as efficiently as possible, and Out of Band Management access provided by CDI is critical to standing up and maintaining sensitive networks. At the heart of this organization is the OBM software, let’s look at some of the functionality that OBM can provide.

OBM (Out of Band Manager) is a management tool that is designed to automate, protect, and record all Out of Band Management sessions. OBM software provides Network users/operators a simple path to connect to serial console devices, while maintaining high levels of security within your organization.

Important to mention is that OBM software can provide an encrypted path to remote network equipment, even if your existing security tools are unavailable. AD/RADIUS/TACACS+ are the tools consistently used for In-band access, but what if the remote site is Out of Order? The design of OBM allows for full AES 256 CFB encryption, even when traditional network security tools are down.

Since operators connect to different sites, sometimes using different comms, OBM will help you organize all remote sites, creating an organized management platform for OOB sessions. LTE, IP, and sometimes even analog sessions will be used to create a remote serial console connection. Users can be confident that encryption is “On” with OBM, as the network operators screen will turn a bright red color, indicating that all keystroke sessions are being encrypted, and recorded for forensic purposes.

In addition to providing always on 2FA encryption, and keystroke logging, the OBM also will provide polling to remote site location. Polling, or Real Time Heartbeat (RTH) is a tool that ensures communications is Live to remote sites, and will alarm the OBM operator if a site becomes unavailable. RTH is critical for a large, distributed architecture wherein multiple parties are responsible for 24x7x365 global operations.

A final consideration for network management is Roll Based Access Control (RBAC). OBM software provides details & Access Control down to the individual serial port level. The ability for administration to restrict port access, can be critical in joint or co-managed environments. With OBM, administration can be certain that controls are in place, and all sessions will be tracked and recorded.

OBM is a powerful tool for Out of Band network management, and is available to trial at your convenience. Please visit https://www.commdevices.com/product/enterprise-software/ for more information or, www.commdevices.com.