AV network - Offline/LAN only/not cloud based management

Feature Requests
1

Hello Alta team and everyone else here,

I’m working as a network consultant for audiovisual setup (live music, events, concert hall…). I love to try new brands, specially when I read a topic named " Alta Labs Network Switches Work with Dante ".

A lot of AV tech are asking me “I need a small switch that can fit in my bag, less than 200€, something for non-IT people” (yes I know, miracle doesn’t exist) and actually I don’t have a perfect answer… I would love to say “easy, use this”. So when someone told me about Alta Labs, I was thinking "Is my quest over ? did I found the perfect small switch for AV people ? "

Short answer : no
Why ? Because we are not working in a standard “WAN/internet access” config. Most of the time our AV switches are never connected to internet because we are only working over LAN networks. Imagine switches which are setup and dismantle everyday, sometimes in the middle of nowhere… If I need to change a vlan config in the middle of the Sahara desert (yes, it really happened), I can’t answer to the producer “sorry, you have to delay the show, I don’t have internet so I can’t configure the switch in front of me”.
And no, forget about a VM (connected to internet…) or anything “complicated” for non IT people…

So I would like to answer to the topic " Alta Labs Network Switches Work with Dante "… No it’s not, not if I need to change something 5 min before the show…
I totally understand the logic behind the cloud and what you did is very cool… but not for AV.

So this is my request… PLEASE, can we have a “local management” mode ? Simple GUI access via IP adress or software… So I can say one day “I think I got the perfect switch to put in your bag” :slight_smile:

Thanks

Best

2

Did you checkout the two local controller options, the on-premises hardware Control device or the downloadable Docker install?

1 Like
3

Thanks for your answer, yes I did and for me that’s not the solutions.
Paying 150€ and having more hardware to manage a 150€ switch is not understandable in AV.
Installing and use Docker … No way for AV tech.
Imagine you have to open switches access to “end user/common people” so they can create a vlan, assigning port to vlans… Yes it looks like a terrible idea but it is what it is, and i’m looking for small and easy switches for end users…
Look at Unifi, you can host the unifi server on your windows PC…

4

That’s true. You’re looking for some more or less lightweight Controller with UI that should be contained in any of the Alta network devices you’re already using or on a local Window PC. That obviously sounds like a more appealing solution in your use case. :slightly_smiling_face:

1 Like