Network Access Control (NAC):
Smarter access starts at the point of connection. We design and deploy NAC solutions that align with your identity, posture, and security operations.
Why NAC Needs a New Approach
Most NAC projects fail, not because they're unnecessary, but because they're rigid, complex, and operationally brittle. Agent sprawl, opaque policy engines, and poor user experience erode trust and drive workarounds.
IVI takes a different approach. We design NAC as part of your Zero Trust strategy, with identity at the core and building on best-of-breed solutions like Cisco ISE and Arista AGNI.
We also support platforms like Aruba ClearPass, and FortiNAC where appropriate, helping you get the most from what you already evolving toward something more sustainable.
Key Business Objectives:
- Enforce context-aware access policies across wired, wireless, and VPN
- Identity and control unmanaged and shadow devices in real time
- Reduce administrative overhead with automation and flexible enforcement
- Align access controls with identity, device posture, and network role
- Provide actionable visibility for security operations and compliance
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What IVI Delivers
Access Control Assessment
We evaluate your current access architecture, user/device mix, identity sources (AD, Azure AD, SSO) and network topology to build a real-world enforcement baseline.
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Platform Strategy & Rationalization
For greenfield deployments or modernization efforts, we recommend and design around Arista AGNI due to its simplicity, scalability, and deep switch-native visibility or Cisco ISE for non-Arista networks. Where existing platforms like Cisco ISE, Aruba ClearPass, or FortiNAC are in use, we help optimize and integrate them as part of a broader access strategy.
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Policy Design by Role and Risk
We create access policy frameworks based on user identity, device type, compliance posture, and authentication method tied to your actual business and operational roles, not just VLANs and subnets.
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Automation & Orchestration
We use Agni's and ISE's APIs to orchestrate onboarding, isolate non-compliant devices, and enable dynamic segmentation. We also integrate posture with ticketing, MDM, and EDR platforms to automate response actions.
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Phased Rollout & Change Control
We never enforce first. We start with passive monitoring, validate results, and roll out enforcement in manageable stages with MAC caching, fallback policies, and rollback paths built in.
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Operational Integration
We link NAC to your SIEM and incident workflows, ensuring your SOC can investigate access anomalies, correlate posture to behavior, and contain threats in real time.
Platform Alignment
Arista Agni: Native with Arista switching, agentless profiling, policy orchestration, and full API support for automation and integration with SIEM, MDM, and NDR.
Cisco ISE: An enterpirse-grade platform where needed. We design policy sets, pxGrid integration, and extend enforcement into firewalls, VPN, and identity-aware enforcement.
Aruba ClearPass & FortiNAC: Where existing deployments exist, we tune policy logic, improve posture correlation, and integrate with AD/Azure AD and logging platforms to extend value without adding complexity.
Typical Project Flow
Identity and access infrastructure review
Policy and segmentation design
Platform selection or refinement
Passive monitoring and simulation
Phased enforcement with rollback options
Integrations with NDR, SIEM, and operations tooling
Expected Outcomes
- Sustainable NAC enforcement across hybrid environments
- Context-rich access control tied to real identity and posture
- Operational visibility into unmanaged or rogue devices
- Reduced friction for compliant users and devices
- Stronger integration with Zero Trust and detection tooling
Frequently Asked Questions
Why is NAC still relevant in a Zero Trust world?
NAC is more relevant than ever when aligned to identity and context. It forms the foundation for device trust and access enforcement in Zero Trust architectures. The problem isn't NAC itself, it's how poorly it's been deployed. IVI helps modernize NAC to support BYOD, hybrid access, and real-time posture checks without disrupting operations.
What NAC platform does IVI recommend?
For greenfield or modernization projects, we recommend Arista Agni for its agentless device profiling, native switch integration, and API-based enforcement. We also support optimizing existing deployments of Cisco ISE, Aruba ClearPass, and FortiNAC, especially where clients need to extract more value from sunk investments.
Can you implement NAC without installing agents on endpoints?
Yes. Agentless NAC is a key design principle for us. With Agni, and even with modern configurations of ISE or ClearPass, we can enforce policies and identify devices using network telemetry, identity sources, and posture integrations with no agents required.
What does a successful NAC deployment include?
We define success as low-friction, identity-aware enforcement across wired, wireless, and remote access. That includes:
-Role- and risk-based access policies
-MAC caching or guest onboarding flows
-Posture-aware controls (MDM, EDR integration)
-RBAC and audit support
-SIEM/SOAR visibility and triggers
Will this replace our VPN or ZTNA solution?
No. NAC complements not replaces ZTNA. NAC is about network-layer access inside your campus or data center. ZTNA secures application-level access from anywhere. We help align the two, so identity and posture enforcement are consistent across both.
What if we already have Cisco ISE or ClearPass but it's underutilized?
You're not alone. Many NAC platforms are only partially deployed due to operational risk. IVI helps tune, extend, or rearchitect existing NAC deployments to reduce fragility, enable automation, and align enforcement to business logic, not just VLANs and MACs.
Can NAC integrated with our identity provider and security stack?
Yes. We integrate NAC with Azure AD, Okta, Duo, MDM platforms, EDR tools, and your SIEM or SOAR platforms. That way, access policies reflect real-time trust levels, and you can automated response actions.
