MAG Series devices

[SonicBoom_]

not sure if i'm reading everything correctly but it looks like Junipers new MAG series devices are the layer 3 junos pulse we have been waiting for, im still trying to find a device list to confirm... so not happy if this is true

[Automate_]

Can you elaborate a little more on what you mean by "layer 3 junos pulse"?

The MAG series is designed to be a very flexible and cost-effective platform for delivering a variety of services, including Pulse. However, the underlying software is very much based on the existing SA series.

-Keith

[zanyterp_]

The MAG series is the next hardware models of the SA devices; they provide the same access as an SA.

Is there something specific you are concerned about with what you are reading vs what you are wanting vs what you have?

[SonicBoom_]

just going by this,

The Juniper Networks

purpose designed gateways that meet the secure remote access and LAN access needs

of enterprises from small to large. Deployed in combination and working in concert with

the award-winning Juniper Networks Junos Pulse client, deployable on mobile devices,

laptops, and desktops, the modular MAG Series delivers a single point of convergence for

the SSL VPN and NAC needs of any enterprise.

just sounds like Juniper is making a Pulse client workaround to address the layer 3 connectivity issue android users are having

[zanyterp_]

Thank you for the clarification.

The MAG hardware is unrelated to the Android L3 access issues; those are due to Google not allowing L3 VPNs, such as Junos Pulse. If there are other L3 access issues, I am not aware of them. (The only one I know of is that the OS does not allow this type of access.)

The note is referring to that the Junos Pulse client can be used across mutliple platforms and the MAG hardware can be used as the server to handle those connections for both internal and external access mechanisms.

[SonicBoom_]

Thank you for the clarification, seems like we Android users will still be at the mercy of google...

[zanyterp_]

You are welcome, SonicBoom; I am glad that the answer clarified what is intended...though I am sorry that Android users are still limited by what Google allows/denies.

[keithr_]

The product pages really suffer from poor marketing / communication. I wish Juniper would dedicate some more resources to better communicating what a product actually *DOES* in their product pages.

The fact that it's unclear what the MAG devices really do is a perfect example of this.

My take on the MAG devices, and someone please correct me if I'm wrong (or better yet, write a better product page, hehehe) is that they are the next evolutionary step of both the SA and IC/UAC appliances combined into one appliance. I would be very curious to know if they will have feature parity across those platforms, though. For example, will the SSL-VPN capabilities be the same as the SA appliances, or will certain things be lacking or better on the MAG?

[muttbarker_]

Hey Keith - I have no clue in regards to feature parity - been asking that question for a while now of every SE I know and still can't get an answer. I am not sure if Juniper field sales / tech has even been told.

However, it is not a "combo" box in that when you boot it for the first time you choose the desired function - SA, UAC or guest access solution at that is what it becomes. You can't flip or use it for both. At least in the initial releases.

[zanyterp_]

Yes, you are correct: the MAG is a revolution for the SA and IC family of hardware in that the same physical unit can be made to work as one or the other; but as muttbarker said, it is at initial boot. I have not yet had the opportunity to see one to confirm what happens if you do a factory reset after you have decided on a "personality" for the device to be (SA or IC); but once you have chosen that is the type it will be.

As for feature parity, is there anything specific you are looking for? Depending on the SA unit, there are some things MAG will have that the SA unit does not; for more specifics, however, please speak with your SE as you start looking at the purchase to decide which is better for you for software-related items.