Cablers_JonPaul

We have helped quite a few schools in the south east with BYOD and 1:1 deployments and i will be happy to see if those network managers will have a chat with you Tribal Tiger. If you drop me some contact details in a PM i will pass them round to schools that have done it.

A 12 mile round trip is very do-able. Don't over complicate it to start with or spend loads of dosh until you know that you like it and will keep it up. You may decide only to do a couple of days a week on the bike which will still be beneficial to you. A rucksack will do you at first and leave a change of clothes and a towel and wash bits at work just in case the weather catches you out one day. You don't need to carry water for such a short journey but i do recommend a spare tube, pump and multi-tool. All that should fit in a reasonable sized saddle bag. Go here for great cycling advice: CycleChat Cycling Forum - Road Bikes, Cycle Rides, Commuting Good luck with it, Ive lost nearly two stone since i got on my bike. Oh one more thing, A HELMET and HI VIS is a must, it wont protect you from all idiots on the road but it helps.

Can you afford to give up bandwidth for them? Let them get their own separate line in. If not then charge them a fortune for using yours.

If any school is on the cusp of operating a BYOD solution they should look at a solution like onBoarder as well as the wireless provisioning. It is one tool for delivering network services, secure radius authentication and transparent proxy services making any network managers life a little easier. Whether its a simple secure Guest deployment or full BYOD with active directory integration, onBoarder has all the tools to successfully deploy and monitor the new network. With its onboard proxy service users can connect to the network without the need for proxy settings or downloading profiles or wpad files. onBoarder works with your inhouse or upstream filtering to ensure that filtering policies are being applied to the devices. It was developed working with Ruckus but will it will work with wireless solutions from other providers too. We have it deployed in large secondaries with similar usage patterns to yours. We have installed several of the wireless poll choices in schools and i have no hesitation in recommending Ruckus for your wireless. A word of caution for AC. Their will soon be two types of AC ratified so you will have to decide what route you go down as they will not be compatible. Phase two is looking a better option at the moment. You will also need to be very careful when buying new equipment to work on AC. You will need multi-spacial stream wireless cards installed which can really push the price of laptops etc to the point of unaffordable for schools. Site wide deployment of AC can be self defeating with interference problems. It can be great in a dense high usage area such as a hall or lecture theatre and can integrate with a standard wireless deployment. AC is a really big can of worms and there are too many people trying to sell it for the sake of selling it. Get some good advice from a wireless specialist first. Contact us direct if you want to know more.

Promethean provide some great options with their interactive whiteboards The other prevalent interactive white board Cablers supply to schools are from Promethean who have also refreshed their range recently. (You can read my first post about Interactive Whiteboards here.) http://www.cablers.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/promethean-activboard-500-300x187.png http://www.cablers.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/Promethean-ActivBoard-500-Pro-300x147.jpg They come in three different varietys which are the Activboard500 Pro, Activboard300 Pro and the new entry level ActivboardTouch. Promethean no longer supply the Activboard100 to UK schools. Each of these Activboards is then offered in a range different sizes to suit all class rooms. (78" 87" 95" 88") As with most other class room multimedia solutions you can mount these boards to a wall, on a mobile stand or you can opt for a height adjustable option either fixed or mobile. We will be able to advise on the best solution once we understand how you want to use equipment. Promethean bundle their boards with ActivInspire software. Using it teachers transform traditional, lecture-based classrooms into learning environments infused with imaginative, interactive experiences that captivate students’ attention while granting them the freedom to take ownership of their achievement. Designed to foster collaboration and active learning, ActivInspire empowers users to blend real-time assessment and real-world experience into the learning process. ActivInspire provides you with everything you need to create differentiated lessons filled with rich, hands-on activities in a fraction of the time. With it you will simplify lesson preparation and delivery. Its intuitive interface allows teachers to easily create lessons, enhance collaboration and engage students through interactive tools. With curriculum-based templates and an assortment of tools, images and activities, ActivInspire provides you with all the building blocks you need to create an interactive learning environment. Connect with Promethean Planet, one of the world’s largest online educator communities, to discover a wide variety of free resources for use in the classroom. Although you can order your Promethean board to be bundled with one of Prometheans own brand projectors, either short throw, ultra short throw or extreme short throw. We would recommend that you speak to your installer about having your board supplied with a projector that has a dedicated education warranty from a third party such as Epson. It will often save you money and it allows you more freedom to specify which connections you want with your installation that will best suit your existing class room equipment and the new technology coming through. Promethean utilise capacity resistive touch technology for their board control which senses a pen or finger with infra red. What ever ActivBoard you pick it will require installation by a Certified Promethean Installer like us here at Cablers. Contact us for some friendly advice about your class room multimedia options. We can also help get the most out of your IT investment by training your staff to use Activinspire. (Please see the Promethean board comparison chart below) [TABLE=class: mce-item-table] [TR] [TD][/TD] [TD][/TD] [TD][/TD] [/TR] [/TABLE] Product Comparison [TABLE=class: mce-item-table] [TR] [TD][/TD] [TD]ActivBoard 500 Pro[/TD] [TD]ActivBoard 300 Pro[/TD] [TD]ActivBoard Touch[/TD] [TD=width: 200][/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD=width: 145]Installation Options[/TD] [TD=width: 200]Mount, Adjustable, Fixed, Mobile[/TD] [TD=width: 200]Mount, Adjustable, Fixed, Mobile[/TD] [TD=width: 200]Mount[/TD] [TD=width: 200][/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD=width: 145]Board Sizes[/TD] [TD=width: 200]78", 87", 95"[/TD] [TD=width: 200]78", 87", 95"[/TD] [TD=width: 200]78", 88"[/TD] [TD=width: 200][/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD=width: 145]Dual User[/TD] [TD=width: 200]Yes[/TD] [TD=width: 200]Yes[/TD] [TD=width: 200] Yes Dependent upon application software and operating system[/TD] [TD=width: 200][/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD=width: 145]Types of Interactivity[/TD] [TD=width: 200]Touch and ActivPen[/TD] [TD=width: 200]ActivPen[/TD] [TD=width: 200]Touch[/TD] [TD=width: 200][/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD=width: 145]Integrated Speakers and Amps[/TD] [TD=width: 200]Yes[/TD] [TD=width: 200]Yes[/TD] [TD=width: 200]Add ActivSound System[/TD] [TD=width: 200][/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD=width: 145]Wireless Connection Option[/TD] [TD=width: 200]-[/TD] [TD=width: 200]Add Wireless Upgrade Pack[/TD] [TD=width: 200] -[/TD] [TD=width: 200][/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD=width: 145]Two USB Ports[/TD] [TD=width: 200]Yes[/TD] [TD=width: 200]Yes[/TD] [TD=width: 200] -[/TD] [TD=width: 200]-[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD=width: 145]Software Included[/TD] [TD=width: 200]ActivInspire Professional Edition or Promethean ActivOffice; Promethean Apps[/TD] [TD=width: 200]ActivInspire Professional Edition or Promethean ActivOffice[/TD] [TD=width: 200]ActivInspire Professional Edition[/TD] [TD=width: 200][/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD=width: 150]Operating Systems[/TD] [TD=width: 200]Windows, Mac, Linux[/TD] [TD=width: 200]Windows, Mac, Linux[/TD] [TD=width: 200]Windows[/TD] [TD=width: 200][/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD=width: 150]Standard Warranty[/TD] [TD=width: 200]Three Years *[/TD] [TD=width: 200]Three Years *[/TD] [TD=width: 200]One Year *[/TD] [TD=width: 200][/TD] [/TR] [/TABLE] [TABLE=class: mce-item-table] [TR] [TD]* Extended Warranty available. Terms and Conditions apply. http://www.prometheanworld.com/gb/english/education/products/[/TD] [/TR] [/TABLE]

With the vast array of multimedia options available for the classroom these days it is easy to get a bit lost or confused. By the time you reach the end of this article i hope you will be a little more informed which will make your future buying decisions a little easier. I will start with Smart Boards, they have been around for the longest time and in our experience seem to be the most popular multimedia addition to a classroom. They come bundled with the fantastic SMART Notebook Advantage collaborative learning software. This software sets the standard for creating delivering and managing interactive lessons all within a single application. Teachers can easily create engaging interactive lessons, and then save notes or content from those lessons to share with other staff and students. SMART Notebook software also provides a common platform for linking a variety of classroom technologies and student mobile devices. This licensed Smart Notebook software is a part of the Advantage software package and Notebook comes free forever . It is linked directly to the board you have purchased. It is no longer transferable to other boards or touch screens you have in your school. You can not legally use it for any other device. Especially non Smart products. For the first year you will also been given free access to a suite of tools as part of Smart Notebook Advantage software package such as: SMART Response VE Seamlessly transition between lesson delivery and assessment. Students can respond to planned and spontaneous questions and quizzes from any Internet-enabled device, anywhere. SMART Notebook 3D tools Provide truly immersive learning through the use of 3D objects directly in your SMART Notebook lesson. SMART Notebook Connect Find and explore new content, resources and professional development within SMART Notebook. XC basic Stimulate collaboration and discussion whilst incorporating mobile devices into your SMART Notebook lessons in new and exciting ways. SMART Notebook Maths Improve maths functionality for all year levels with more than 55,000 maths content objects and interactive activities for geometry, algebra, calculus and statistics. It supports both Mac and PC. New tools Easily create and deliver engaging lessons with new functionality in SMART Notebook, including a paintbrush pen and image editing tool. Ink editing Enhance instruction with automatic handwriting recognition and conversion combined with intuitive text editing capabilities. Now you can edit, move, delete, modify or insert text objects without reaching for a keyboard. At the end of your 12 month free trial of these add on's you can continue to use Smart Notebook for free and lose the use of the plug in's or carry on enjoying the full benefits of SMART Notebook Advantage by paying an annual subscription which ensures that you can upgrade to the latest version of SMART Notebook, unlock add-ons and plug-ins and access live technical support. For further details on the new software licensing for Smart Notebook Advantage and costs i ask that you contact us directly. The range of boards offered by Smart has recently been refreshed, they no longer use the resistive touch technology which relied on pressure applied to the board to sense touch and all now come with DViT (Digital Vision Touch) this technology uses cameras to distinguish between different actions and respond accordingly . A very effective and reliable solution. They come in three distinct flavors the 400, 600 and 800 series from which you should be able to find the perfect match for your needs. You can use a Smart Board with any projector, we would recommend you use an Ultra Short Throw which look great and cut down on shadows cast across the working area when in use but a short throw or standard throw projector will fulfill the task effectively enough. You will also need to consider what type of audio you want installed with your chosen Smart Board. We prefer to install wall mounted speakers and amps while providing wall mounted connections for your most common devices such as VGA, HDMI, USB etc. You should talk to your installer well in advance of your installation to specify what your preferred connections are. Integrated speakers are available on some of the premium Smart Boards models and we can also source Smarts own speakers which hang on the side of the boards and look integrated. All boards can be wall mounted or mounted on a fixed or height adjustable mobile stands allowing you more flexibility in their use. (For advice on installations, projectors & audio options give us a call 01621 859384) Smart Boards Explained http://www3.cablers.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/400-series-smart-baord.jpg400 Series The entry level 400 series now comprises of just one variant. The Smart Board 480. This easy-to-use, touch-sensitive interactive whiteboard combines quality and affordability. It enables teachers and students to interact with lesson content in a natural way using either their finger or a pen. It is a single touch model so it can only be used by one person at a time and it will not support gestures such as flicking or pinching an image. The 77" (195.6 cm) 4 x 3 touch sensitive display uses two cameras to track user input and the board is a good size which can been seen from the back of your average classroom. http://www3.cablers.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/600-series-smartboard.jpg600 Series The mid range 600 series is comprised of four variants. The Smart Board 680, 680i, 685 & 685i. Students and teachers can naturally interact with content, writing, erasing and performing mouse functions using a finger or pen. Its a dual touch board so will support two users using single touch or one user using intuitive gestures such as flick, rotate and zoom, which makes content easier to conceptualize and comprehend. All models in the 600 series use two cameras to track user input. The i models are the same boards as the numbered variants but come bundled with Smarts own projectors, they also come with projector controls that are integrated into the pen tray for basic projector management. Because of this they come at a premium price and i models may not offer the best value for money option. The 680 has a 77" (195.6 cm) 4 x 3 display. The wide-format 685 has a 87” screen giving you more workspace and room to show images and videos. It’s ideal for classrooms that use widescreen laptops and monitors. http://www3.cablers.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/800series-smart-board-262x300.jpg800 series The 800 series is a new class of interactive whiteboard available in two variants.The Smart Board 880 & 885. Both are powerful multitouch interactive whiteboards, which enable two users to simultaneously interact on the system’s surface while using different tools or their fingers to write, draw and manipulate lesson content with gestures utilizing four cameras encased in the boards surrounding bezel. The boards will also support four users at the same time using single touch. The 880 has a 77" (195.6 cm) 4 x 3 display The wide-format 885 has a 87" (221 cm) screen provides you with 20% more working space than the standard 77" interactive whiteboard and is ideal for classrooms that use widescreen laptops and monitors. Whatever Smart Board you decide suits your requirements best you will be joining millions of students and teachers around the world who use a SMART Board interactive whiteboards to help improve learning outcomes. Combining the simplicity of a whiteboard with the power of a computer, the SMART Board interactive whiteboard lets you deliver dynamic lessons, write notes in digital ink and save your work – all with the simple touch. If this article helped explain the Smart Board range please keep checking our site as i will be posting similar articles that will cover Promethean interactive whiteboards and also the most popular large format touch screens in our blogs section. For expert advice on classroom multimedia solutions contact Cablers.

Are you replacing the iwb's & projectors with TV's or interactive flat panels? Apple TV works well but you pay for it, we have schools happy using AirServer too. Here is a comparison off of the AirServer web site between the two: AirServer - Compare

I cant disagree that the service for Apple education customers in the UK can be problematic sometimes, they have a far more joined up approach in the US and seem to look after their education customers much better on that side of the pond. Unfortunately many of the buying decisions have been made long before we turn up to to make them all work. We deal with the hand which we a dealt at each school on an individual basis. What the hell are you buying Chinese IWB's for? I agree that you can alawys get a better speced tablet/desktop/laptop for your money than any Apple offering but heads & SLT's are not always buying into specs when they choose Apple products, they are signing up to the kudos and image that brand portrays. Most don't think like techies. I will probably replace my old worn out i5 tosh with a surface 3 if i can stretch to it but i wont be chopping in my iPhone or iPad mini anytime soon either. As a personal device they take some beating for an easy trouble free user experience. They just work well.

We have got quite good at herding cats. (I do love the analogy and i am going to nick it for future use.) We wont ever tell a school what they should choose to use in the classroom, its normally decided by the time we get the phone call. I have had lots of calls that start with "We have bought 30/60/100 iPads how do we get them on the network?" You cant tell a head they are wrong for choosing Apple over Windows or Android. Whatever route a school goes down a solution needs to be facilitated which incorporate those chosen devices onto the network so that they can extract the most from them and then they are able to use them in the classroom the way they want to. Your always trying to make sure that the end users are happy with the results but occasionally compromises need to be made. These compromises are normally left to be managed by the IT guru. You shouldn't expect teachers and students to make them. Some platforms require more work on the part of the IT department or support staff. Its not always easy but some things are worth making the effort over. Its wrong to expect a school to use a device that's not so good but its easier to manage. Most heads and teachers i know are like myself and own Apple devices for their own use. I couldn't hold my hand up and say that my iPad is not the best tablet that i have used or that i don't like IOS better than Android etc and that the Apps Store is better than Google Play etc. If a head feels the same about their iPad why wouldn't they want what they then perceive to be the best for their students. I would also be telling fibs if i didn't say Apple products didn't need more work to be integrated on the network and managed correctly. Schools must plan and budget for infrastructure along with device management and not just shiny tablets and other mobile devices. I didn't mean for this to sound like a cheer leading post for Apple, as Ive said in a previous post i know lots of schools that are using Android tablets that are integrated on the network and they are really pleased with them. Its horses for courses and budgets always play a massive part in choosing the route a school goes down. Its just my opinion but you should buy the best that you can afford at the time and the device should be chosen on how it delivers at the sharp end in the classroom and on the availability of useful and trusted apps. Device management is important but defiantly lower down the list. Its always hard weighing this all up within budget.

Loads of schools we work with use Android, and Learnpads which are on the Android platform. Its hard to see why Apple tablets cost so much in comparison until you use them.

Sorry Fiza, I forgot to reply. Steljes have advised that you give the vents a regular hoover to avoid any build up and keep the air flowing efficiently, they also said that it does not do any harm to clean dust from the lamp enclosure occasionally. They do not recommend taking the units down for this and it is easy to do in situ. They do not recommend using any cleaning products on the lenses or mirrors to reduce the risk of abrasion. Apart from this minor preventive maintenance its best to leave your projectors well alone. Especially while under warranty. All of this can be done by a caretaker or an IT tech and shouldn't need the services of a company charging quite a lot of money for not much work. Treat the IT office to a dust buster!

Why Get Interactive Projectors? Modern teaching practices rely increasingly on digital media to get results and keep learners engaged. Schools and colleges are benefiting from providing well connected multimedia rich environments and interactivity that can be used across all subject areas. An interactive projector provides an option that integrates the interactivity of a whiteboard into a projector, you could think of it as a virtual whiteboard. With an interactive projector: Students and teachers can write directly on the projected image using an interactive pen, finger or both with some of the more advanced models. Students can interact with content using control gestures just like they do on their mobile devices. Users interact with the projected content on nearly any flat, light-coloured surface. Some models allow interaction from a distance using pointing devices. Teachers can face the class without the interference of a bright projector light shining in their eyes. Installing a classroom multimedia hub such as an interactive whiteboard with projector or a new style flat panel LED interactive display could be beyond your budget. An interactive projector is a cost effective option that can fill any gaps you have with multimedia provisioning in the classroom. Reduced hardware and installation costs provide great savings which add up quickly and could save you hundreds or thousands of pounds. If you do plan to project straight onto a wall or uneven surface you may not get the best image from your chosen unit. We wouldn't recommend doing this unless the surface is perfect so treat yourselves to a matt white backing board and make sure you factor it into your costs. Another factor to consider is installation, these projection units are not quite the same as a standard projector and installations can be a bit more fiddly to ensure a perfect set up. It is recommended that you have them installed by certified technicians. Cablers have partnered with Epson, BenQ and Smart to offer a range of interactive projectors, perfect for every situation. Here are some video links for interactive projectors: Smart LightRaise

You get full Notebook functionality. If your not just buying on price I would be inclined to go for the Smartboards and projectors. What projector have you been quoted in your bundle with the 685's? I can get you a price if you want another comparison. The high schools we work with like the interactive projectors the primary's tend to prefer a board. Not really sure why that is for sure but in the secondary's they tend to use a lot more PowerPoint in lessons and primary's use Notebook far more. Sent from my iPad using EduGeek

I will give Steljes a call tomorrow and see what they say. It's not something we encourage our customers to do. It might be if we provided projector cleaning as a service and stood to make money from it. If you have a company come round and give them a once over each year in situ I can see the benefit in that but I wouldn't recommend they are taken down and reinstalled each year. I've no idea what constitutes a deep clean if I am honest with you. While under warranty it's best to do minimal maintenance . You don't want anyone other than the manufacture opening them up while they are covered. http://downloads01.smarttech.com/media/sitecore/en_gb/support/product/interactiveprojectors/lightraise60wi/guides/60wiusersguidev15may13.pdf Check out the cleaning info in this PDF. I will come back to you with further clarification once I've had a chat with Steljes. Sent from my iPad using EduGeek

Hi Fiza, I am surprised that such a new model as a Smart lightraise needs it already as it should be under warranty if you have problems. Unless it's an ultra short throw or interactive projector I would not even consider having one fixed up but with more expensive models it may be more economical to have them fixed and serviced rather than buy new again. If you can take them down and put them up yourself it will save you a few quid that you would normally need to factor into the equation. The Smart Lightraise can be a bit of a fiddle on install. I will keep my eye on this thread as I would like to know if anyone can recommend a decent service company in the South East. We have been lacking one in this area since Aztech went out of business. I would also like to know what sort of a warranty comes with a unit once it has had a full service and its guts replaced? I've just had a Unify short throw serviced with a bulb change and it came in under €260 including vat but not by much. Warranty not great and the school have incurred de/re installation costs and postage. It was still cheaper than a new short throw though. They don't get the peace of mind of a long warranty with fast replacement. I know the teacher was pulling her hair out without a projector and not every school have a spare in the cupboard for emergencies. We still have schools that refuse to accept that projectors have a limited lifespan and insist on eeking out some more use. It's admirable but quite often does not make good economic sense. It would be nice if I could point them somewhere as well as quoting for replacement kit. Sent from my iPad using EduGeek

Good luck with your new association. The web site looks great. We work with many network managers and Ive always been surprised how little contact their is between them, even the ones that work in different schools in the same town. I have passed on details to our followers on social media and i shall pass details on to the schools we work with. We will also get it posted on the Google group that was set up for network managers in our area.

Political correctness gone mad! In my opinion a teacher should be addressed more formally than with their christian name. They deserve the respect a title denotes. If a school faculty cant manage to teach the students to use a correct title when addressing members of staff what chance does that school have in teaching its subjects.

She should be proud. He achieved so much in his short life and has raised money and awareness that will help save lives. Very sad news.

If you want longevity then your best option is a touchscreen these days. Although not touch models we have screens in schools and retail outlets that are more than ten years old and haven't missed a beat. Whatever you choose you can still be unlucky, its the nature of complicated tech. Making sure your working with a company who helps you resolve the issues quickly with minimal disruption to teaching is key. Projectors are not perfect but you can extend the life of them considerably with regular preventive maintenance and by making sure they are not left on when not in use. Ive lost count of the times i have attended sites to replace broken units only to discover that you could grow potatoes in the dust and filth that's accumulated in filters. In defense of Smart and Steljes we have always found them to be better than many manufactures when it comes to replacing broken units or instigating repairs when required.

Most of the schools we work with use SIMs but a few have moved to RM Integris. Its cloud based and suits their needs. I personally have not seen it in action but this link is a start if your looking around. RM Education - What we do: RM Integris

Although i think they are a great little unit and we have fortunately not had any issues with failures unlike RTFM, i personally still prefer a board with projector over an interactive projector and a large format touch screen over both. I realise that it all comes down to budgets. An interactive projector is a cost effective option that can fill any gaps you have with multimedia provisioning in the classroom. Reduced hardware and installation costs provide great savings which add up quickly.

Maybe not the right desktop but it speaks volumes about change.

I was quite impressed when i saw this. I even posted it myself over the weekend. I was going to leave you a link for it in the comments of your ordnance survey blog but i see you have it.

Lots of people keep asking me what the transparent proxy forwarder in onBoarder is and how does it work. I thought I would write a post to try to explain what it is and how it can benefit a school or business with an upstream proxy. Having been involved in deploying BYOD systems for some time now, the biggest frustration for us has been upstream proxy. The main problems we have encountered have been managing user device configuration and faults in guest and BYOD web redirection portals. There is a huge problem integrating a BYOD solution with an upstream proxy which leads the question of all “how do we transparent HTTPS traffic?” There are four options to resolve the upstream proxy issue. Option 1 – offering the users the upstream proxy details and asking them to configure their own devices. Most of the schools have been unwilling and rightly so to hand out proxy details to students or guests. This compromises the network to some extent and allows users to manually change the proxy filter ports to less restricted ports. Guests coming into school want to hop on and surf and proxy configuration can be complex on some devices and not supported on others. Option 2 - System based configuration Now here is a can of worms. Do I have a WPAD using DNS or DHCP or both and which devices work with WPAD and which dont. a WPAD solution can be flakey and only works for some devices although I believe it now works for IOS 7. A WPAD either need to reside on a different network or all devices on the wires and wireless will pick up the WPAD settings. This solution can be then combined with either IOS profiles or manual WPAD entry on Ipads and iPhones. But where does that leave our best network friend the android well back at manual proxy device configuration again. Some wireless vendors offer an onboarding process which will help configure the settings on some devices. This includes an onboarding portal residing on an open network where the user registers and downloads a profile. This works for both Android and iPhone but windows users still need the good old WPAD file. Option 3 – New Broadband This is probably the best solution when it comes to BYOD. New broadband with either inhouse filtering with something like Lightspeed or with external filtering managed by the broadband provider. This solution can be expensive and take a large chunk of the years budget, which when combined with the cost of delivering BYOD can cause the project to become to expensive especially if it involves a new managed wireless system, switching and cabling. Some schools do not want to have the responsibility of owning the filtering and can be resistive towards changing their broadband provider which we have seen at quite a few sites. Option 4 – onBoarder Our quest for transparent proxy and a lot of late nights led us to implement a new module on our onBoarder system, the transparent proxy forwarder called such as we are techies and have no personality to name it. The transparent proxy forwarder (TP) is just that, it takes all packets destined for the internet and sends them to the upstream proxy on the required port. The user or device has no knowledge of an upstream proxy and no configuration on the device is required, no WPAD, no profile, no web redirect portals, no over complex solution with profile for this and WPAD for that and lets not forget android has to drink four cups of coffee then install three apps, with onBoarder just connect and surf. The Guest TP solution OnBoarder GTP100 has one dedicated network for the Guest devices. Users connect to the sites Guest wireless which is configured on a dedicated VLAN. The device receives DHCP and DNS settings from onBoarder with a gateway of onBoarder’s LAN gateway port. All traffic is sent to the upstream proxy via the WAN port on onBoarder. onBoarder can be supplied with a Guest login portal if the existing wireless does not have Guest facilities or stand alone access points will be used. The BYOD solution onBoarder NSTP1000 has two networks for the BYOD/Guest devices, one for student forwarding and one for Guest/staff forwarding. when connecting to BYOD a single SSID can be used with dynamic VLAN’s. onBoarder’s radius server authenticates the user with username and password against the sites Active Directory and then applies the relevant VLAN to the authenticated user. The device receives DHCP and DNS settings from onBoarder with a gateway of onBoarder’s LAN gateway port. All traffic is sent to the staff or student upstream proxy port via the WAN port on the onBoarder. onBoarder can be supplied with a Guest login portal if the existing wireless does not have Guest facilities or stand alone access points will be used. onBoarder NSTP1000 dashboard can provide information on internet bandwidth, access point utilisation user logon details including IP address. Both system can be configured to work with an in house filtering system and has been extensively tested with the Lightspeed filtering solution. I hope this may be of use to anyone wanting to deploy a BYOD solution, and whether you have upstream proxy or would like a BYOD in a box solution our team have the experience to help deliver a working platform. For more information about onBoarder and how it can help with the integration of your BYOD solution call 08453879384 and talk to one of our team.

Best thing you can do is ring TSC. 01923 691865 [email protected] They have fixed a few for schools we work with although they do not offer a DE-installation / RE-installation service so you will have to do that yourself or factor it into your costings. They can give you pricing for servicing and repairs. Alternatively send me a message and we can sort you out a quote for a replacement unit with an education warranty.