RuggedCom has announced the availability of the Rugged Operating System version 3.0 for the RuggedSwitch family of Ethernet switches. This new release of ROS provides additional features in the areas of cyber security and network performance and optimization necessary for mission-critical applications.
Cyber security has become an urgent issue in many industries where advanced automation and communications networks play a crucial role in mission-critical applications and where high reliability is of paramount importance.
The electric utility, transportation, military, and industrial markets have special needs not found in a typical “commercial” or “office” environment. RuggedCom has been monitoring the developments of the various industry specific security standards including NERC CIP, ISA S99, AGA 12, IEC 62443, ISO 17799:2005 and PCSRF SPP-ICS, to ensure all RuggedCom products contain features necessary to comply with the identified requirements.
“RuggedCom is committed to providing a complete cyber security solution for our customers,” explains RuggedCom President and CEO Marzio Pozzuoli. “By combining the security features of our RuggedSwitch products with that of the RuggedRouter SCADA cyber security appliance, our customers are able to establish an electronic security perimeter around their critical infrastructure and thus prevent the disruption of mission critical applications by accidental or malicious acts.”
Version 3.0 of ROS contains many new cyber security features including 802.1x port based network access control, SSH/SSL encryption, RADIUS password management, and SNMPv3 authentication and access security, to complement its existing set of security features, such as multilevel passwords, MAC-based port security, and VLANs. In addition to the Cyber Security features, new advanced Ethernet Switch features specific for the substation and industrial environments have also been added. By focusing the development efforts, RuggedCom is able to optimize network performance and simplify switch management based on the unique requirements of its customers. New features added include 802.3ad link aggregation for improved network bandwidth, Modbus TCP management for retrieval of switch data using the ubiquitous Modbus protocol, DHCP Option 82 (a Rockwell Automation ODVA requirement) for IP address assignment based on the location of the end device, and GVRP for simplified VLAN setup.
