I recently spoke with a coffee retail store chain, and they spoke about the need to get new stores up and running in a matter of days to deliver a faster return on their real estate investments. By implementing Fixed Wireless Access (FWA), they could get started almost immediately, even before fiber cable was in place. And the FWA cellular bridge could be used longer-term with SD-branch technology for policy-driven multiple WAN connections — to deliver the best service levels for mission critical applications such as credit card processing.
Like their campus counterparts, branch offices require always-on, highly reliable connectivity to deliver personalized experiences. Whether you’re a sales associate using a mobile point of sale in a retail branch or scanning tickets at a pop-up event, the expectation is that the interaction will be flawless.
Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) to onboard new branches faster
Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) is a great option to get new branches up and running quickly using cellular connectivity. There is no need to wait for fiber installation since new branches can rely on 4G and 5G radio spectrum to provide wireless broadband connectivity.
SD-branch for interoperability and better service-level experience
Once fiber is in place, SD-branch technology can centrally automate the deployment, management, and operation of wired, wireless, WAN under a single software-defined policy and zero trust security framework.
SD-branch gateways are designed to support multiple WAN connections across broadband and MPLS. This flexibility to use multiple types of connectivity based on software-defined policies that route and prioritize traffic is critical for meeting experience level agreements (XLAs). By adding a cellular bridge to the gateway, enterprises can leverage either public (macro) or private cellular as backup, primary, or secondary connectivity — in addition to broadband and MPLS for mission-critical applications — thereby increasing reliability and performance levels. Not to be overlooked, gateways also provide important security functions for web content classification, intrusion detection and prevention, dynamic segmentation, and network detection response.
Cellular interoperability
Cellular bridges act as an on-ramp for cellular from public 5G, LTE (4G), or 3G to private 5G (including CBRS). CBRS is a type of lightly licensed spectrum that is available in the US for private cellular that relies on a Spectrum Access System to protect incumbent users. Deploying private 5G or LTE with CBRS can accelerate deployment times, while at the same time lowering operational costs.
Introducing: HPE Aruba Networking 100 Series Cellular Bridge
Enterprise customers have often relied on third-party devices that plug into the gateway to deliver interoperability with cellular networks.. IT teams managed them separately and had little visibility into their performance and availability.
In contrast, the HPE Aruba Networking 100 Series Cellular Bridge can be plugged into any HPE Aruba Networking gateway and onboarded using zero touch provisioning. Security-first, AI-powered HPE Aruba Networking Central manages the cellular bridge just the same way wired and wireless devices are managed — with a single point of contact for support for the entire network. The cellular bridge connects to the 5G network via a SIM or eSIM (eSIM will be supported in a future software release). The bridge is not a substitute for a private 5G network but is an on-ramp to 5G.
The HPE Aruba Networking 100 Series Cellular Bridge is optimized for 5G and has a small form factor with an optional cover to protect against weather, wind, and water.
New Certifications: AT&T &, T-Mobile
We’re pleased that the new 100 Series Cellular Bridge is now certified to work with AT&T and T-Mobile. This means that branches can more easily install fixed wireless access – with peace of mind. And is now certified by AT&T First Responder Network FirstNet, used by public safety agencies and first responders during emergencies, for priority emergency communications.
“As customers advance in their digital transformation journey, 5G becomes essential to fuel innovation and better business outcomes,” said Chris Melus, Vice President of Product Management, T-Mobile for Business. “Our collaboration with HPE further strengthens T-Mobile’s Connected Workplace solution and gives our customers even more choice and flexibility in 5G managed services.”
How the HPE Aruba Networking Cellular Bridge Works
Network traffic is tunneled to the cellular bridge, whose SIM or eSIM credentials enable it to connect to the public or private cellular network. If a 5G network is available, it will connect first to that network and if it is not available, it can alternatively connect to a 4G or even 3G network.
HPE’s cellular bridge works with the HPE Aruba Networking EdgeConnect Branch Gateway to provide access to public or private cellular networks for primary, secondary, or backup connectivity.
The Cellular Bridge, when combined with HPE Aruba Networking EdgeConnect SD-WAN gateways, enables distributed branch offices to build secure tunnels and prioritize and route traffic with zero touch provisioning for business-critical operations. The integrated and rich EdgeConnect software suite includes the ability to intelligently steer traffic in real-time on any uplink based on business intent. The software also enables techniques to overcome the adverse effects of dropped and out‑of‑order packets that are common with broadband internet and MPLS connections to improve application performance.
Key benefits of HPE’s cellular bridge
Branch offices that leverage the HPE Aruba Networking Cellular Bridge benefit from:
- Flexible support for any public or private 5G cellular WAN connectivity, including CBRS
- High-performance with speeds of 5G SA: 2.4 Gbps/900 Mbps and 5G NSA: 3.4 Gbps/500 Mbps (download/upload)
- Backward compatibility with 4G (LTE), 3G for investment protection
- Compact form factor with PoE or DC powered
- A unified solution managed by HPE Aruba Networking Central for wired, wireless, and SD-WAN with third-party observability
The difference between the cellular bridge and 5G networks
The cellular bridge provides a WAN connection to a cellular network, which could be a 5G network or a 4G (LTE) or 3G network if the 5G network is unavailable. The 5G network is either a public macrocellular network like you are familiar with — Telefonica, T-Mobile, and SingTel — or a private cellular network like HPE Aruba Networking Private 5G. 5G represents the latest generation of cellular technology optimized for performance, battery savings, and low latency.
Learn more about how to improve reliability and get up and running quickly with HPE's cellular bridge.
Gayle_Levin
Gayle is the product marketing lead for wireless at HPE Aruba Networking. She is focused on the latest wireless technologies—like Wi-Fi 7 and private 5G—and how enterprises are adopting and achieving value from HPE Aruba Networking solutions.
