Cisco ISE

Cisco Identity Services Engine (ISE) is the industry's most comprehensive network access control (NAC) platform, providing centralised policy management that determines who can access the network, what devices they can use, and what resources they can reach. ISE enforces zero-trust principles by authenticating and authorising every user and device before granting any level of network access — then continuously monitoring for compliance throughout the session.

ISE integrates with Active Directory, LDAP, SAML, and certificate authorities to authenticate users and devices against corporate identity stores. Device profiling automatically classifies endpoints (laptops, phones, printers, IoT devices) and applies appropriate access policies. Guest networking is simplified with customisable self-registration portals, sponsor-approved access, and automatic expiration.

For compliance and auditing, ISE provides detailed visibility into every device connected to the network, including device type, operating system, patch level, and security posture. Posture assessment checks can enforce requirements for antivirus, disk encryption, and firewall status before allowing full network access. Non-compliant devices are automatically remediated or quarantined.

Xcobean deploys Cisco ISE for enterprise organisations across East Africa requiring granular network access control. Our implementation covers policy design, AD integration, device profiling, guest portal customisation, posture assessment policies, and integration with Cisco switching and wireless infrastructure via RADIUS and TrustSec.