Policy-based network management sets rules for groups of users to ensure consistency and prevent unauthorized access. It is effective but requires advanced coding skills for new policies.
Policy-based network management allows administrators to control a network by including in network policies, such as corporate policies, that users must follow. While this can be set for each individual user, policy-based network management more often sets certain policies for a group of users to streamline the process. The main benefit of this is that there is consistency between user behavior, ensuring that nobody is doing something against the rules of the business. If administrators are not familiar with this system, it may be difficult to use, as the programming is often advanced.
Many businesses operate on a policy basis, and policy-based network management is a similar approach. Unlike corporate policies that control how people interact or do business, these policies are more about how the user’s computer interacts with the network. These policies will prevent a user from performing activities against the policy or the user may not even have access to certain areas. Policies usually state that the user cannot access an area with sensitive files, or that the user may not be able to save or copy files.
For small networks, administrators can set user permissions for each user individually, but this tends to be rare. Most commonly, policy-based network management implements groups of users, and each group has a specific set of policies. These groups can be for workers, managers and administrators or can be any other arbitrary title. While individual policies are rare, administrators can still add specific policies for a user even after they’ve been added to a group. This can be done for a new user or, perhaps, a user who has received disciplinary action and lost some network privileges.
When policy-based network management is used, consistency is usually achieved at a much higher level than with other network management procedures. This is because very strict rules are placed on the user, disabling any inconsistent computer behavior. Aside from hacking the network or changing policies by admins, there are very outlandish ways to get around policies, making this method of management quite effective.
While policy-based network management is usually effective, the human element can cause security to slip. It is usually very easy for administrators to add users to groups or change user permissions. This becomes difficult when administrators have to write completely new policies, because the coding for this is usually advanced. This means that administrators should be fully aware of how to define policies before using this system.
Protect your devices with Threat Protection by NordVPN
