Automated Cybersecurity for Global Press at the Tokyo Motor Show

Connecting the Press Center

A major event for automobile companies, the Tokyo Motor Show attracts press from Japan and around the globe. The world’s news media gather in a dedicated Press Center where they require connectivity for a range of devices—smartphones, tablets, laptops and more.

In 2019 the show’s Press Center was set up in the Conference Tower with 420 workstations, a 24-seat lounge and all the equipment the press would require. Trade show and conference attendees today expect instant, seamless Wi-Fi connectivity, and the media at the show were no different—they required world-class Wi-Fi with fast, secure, always-on connectivity.

The Tokyo Motor Show had successfully used Allied Telesis solutions in the past, and the company proved an easy choice for the 2019 Press Center network too. The new solution would automate, optimize and secure the network using Allied Telesis Autonomous Management Framework™ (AMF), Autonomous Wave Control (AWC), and AMF-Security (AMF-Sec), to ensure a seamless user experience in the Press Center. Plus, IT support staff would enjoy easy network administration thanks to the Vista Manager™ EX network management tool.

Automated Management: AMF, AWC, AMF-Sec, and Vista Manager EX

System integrator ComnetSystem Corporation began by installing Allied Telesis AMF Cloud, a network automation manager, on their cloud platform. AMF simplified and automated network management, allowing centralized administration of all the Allied Telesis switches. AMF also provided automated backup, expansion and upgrades; and zero-touch recovery—for truly plug-and-play networking, allowing a set-and-forget Press Center solution.

Allied Telesis TQ5403 wireless Access Points (APs) provided nonstop Wi-Fi connectivity. “The TQ5403 features dual 5GHz radios. We used both, which enabled channel dispersion. We didn’t receive a single complaint about slow communications, or bad connections,” says Mr. Shirayanagi. The AWC wireless manager regularly analyzed traffic patterns and automatically optimized the wireless channel and radio settings on all APs, ensuring maximum performance and minimal interference. This self-tuning Wi-Fi solution effortlessly provided non-stop access for the many wireless devices used by the visiting news media.

The entire wired and wireless Press Center network was secured using Allied Telesis AMF-Sec. Working with security appliances, the AMF-Sec controller instantly responds to alerts and blocks the movement of malware threats within a network by quarantining any suspect devices. For the show, AMF-Sec was paired with a Firebox series security appliance from WatchGuard Technologies. As Mr. Osamu Inomata, General Manager of the System Engineering Division at WatchGuard Technologies Japan K.K., says, “When Firebox detects a threat, such as malware, ransomware, intrusions, spam or targeted attacks, AMF-Sec automatically blocks communication and isolates the suspect device, to prevent the threat from spreading.”

Allied Telesis Vista Manager EX provided IT staff with a single-pane-of-glass view of the entire network, and provided administrator alerts for any security issues discovered by AMF-Sec. This reduced complexity and cost, with a single management platform that provided actionable reporting of any problems to the ComnetSystem Corporation IT support staff, and ensured a high-performing Press Center network. And because Vista Manager EX could be installed in the cloud alongside the AMF Cloud automation manager, a separate server was unnecessary, making a compact rack setup possible. As Mr. Shota Shirayanagi, Assistant Manager of the ICT Solution Business Division at ComnetSystem Corporation, says, “At the last Tokyo Motor Show we had to install numerous servers on the rack. This time, we saved a lot of space thanks to the use of the cloud. At an event like this, customers want to avoid installing many pieces of equipment, so a compact configuration is a real benefit.”