Networking HPE Mist Access Assurance
Secure network access control for wired and wireless networks with identity-based Zero Trust policies, posture checks, and integration with endpoint and identity systems.
Juniper named a Leader in the Gartner® Magic Quadrant™
Juniper was also recognized with the highest score for Enterprise Data Center Network and the second highest score for AI Ethernet Fabric in the 2025 Gartner Critical Capabilities for Data Center Switching.
Client-first experience
Manage end-to-end client connectivity experience, automate onboarding, and quickly remediate end user connectivity issue.
Granular identify fingerprinting
Deliver more precise user and device fingerprinting using certificate, identity, and device posture context.
Zero-trust security policy enforcement
Based on user and device identity, specific roles can be assigned to users and grouped using VLAN or Group-Based Policy (GBP) technology.
High availability and geo affinity
Cloud-native NAC is delivered across global points of presence to ensure simplified security deployment and consistent client experiences to every site.
Related products and solutions
HPE Mist Networking Wired Assurance
Wired Assurance brings self-driving networking and agentic AI to enterprise switching. With support for EX Series Switches and Aruba CX Access Switches, it simplifies network management at scale—delivering automation, operational efficiency, and consistently assured experiences.
HPE Mist Access Assurance FAQs
Who should deploy HPE Mist Access Assurance?
HPE Mist Access Assurance cloud service is essential for organizations of all types and sizes that want to protect their network and data from unauthorized access. Any business or institution with a network of multiple users and devices, such as employees, guests, contractors, and IoT devices, can benefit by using access assurance to help improve its security posture.
What are the primary functions of HPE Mist Access Assurance?
The cloud-native access assurance service controls who can access your network using a Zero Trust approach, enforces security policies, and helps guard against malware and other security threats. You can also use it to ensure compliance with regulatory requirements and improve overall network visibility and control.
What unique advantages does HPE Mist Access Assurance provide?
Access Assurance offers numerous features that help enterprises strengthen network and data security:
- Secure network access control for guest, IoT, BYOD, and corporate devices based on user and device identities: Access Assurance capabilities are delivered using 802.1X authentication or, for non-802.1X devices, the MAC Authentication Bypass (MAB) protocol.
- A microservices-based cloud architecture for maximum agility, scalability, and performance: Regional service instances minimize latency for enhanced user experiences.
- 100% programmability: Access Assurance supports open APIs for full automation and seamless integration with external SIEM and ITSM systems for both configuration and policy assignment.
- Visibility into end-to-end user connectivity and experience levels across the network stack.
- Optimized Day 0/1/2 operations through a unified IT management experience across the full network stack, including wired and wireless LAN access.
What network devices and connections does HPE Mist Access Assurance support?
Access Assurance works with a diverse range of both wired and wireless LAN-connected devices and enables administrators to bring them into compliance. Among them are:
- Traditionally managed devices, such as corporate-owned laptops, tablets, and smartphones.
- Unattended IoT and other M2M devices.
- Manageable but traditionally unmanaged devices, such as user-owned computers and phones (BYOD).
- Shadow IT devices.
- Guest devices.
How does HPE Mist Access Assurance differ from traditional network access control (NAC)?
Network access control (NAC) is a decades-old security technology for network device onboarding and policy management. However, traditional NAC suffers from architectural challenges. For example, the explosion of different unattended device types, complexities of disaggregated networks, and on-premises NAC implementations expose ever-increasing risks and vulnerabilities.
The cloud-native HPE Mist Access Assurance solution solves these problems by verifying the following information before allowing a device to connect:
- Who is trying to connect (determined using identity fingerprinting and user context).
- Where the connection is originating, such as a specific site or VLAN.
- What permissions and other access policies are associated with the user and the device attempting to connect.
- How the user/device is attempting to establish access and what type of network connection they are using.
What is 802.1X authentication?
802.1X is an Ethernet LAN authentication protocol used to provide secure access to a computer network. It's a standard defined by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) for port-based network access control. As such, its main purpose is to verify that a device attempting to connect to the network is actually what it claims to be. 802.1X is commonly used in enterprise networks to protect against unauthorized access, enforce security policies, and make sure that data transmitted over the network is secure.
What is MAC Authentication Bypass (MAB)?
MAB is a network access control protocol that bases a grant or deny decision exclusively on the endpoint's media access control (MAC) address. It's often used within the context of a larger, standard 802.1X authentication framework for the subset of devices that don't support 802.1X client, or supplicant, software, such as M2M/IoT and BYOD devices.
What is OpenRoaming on HPE Mist?
OpenRoaming on HPE Mist enables users to connect automatically and securely to participating Wi-Fi networks using trusted identity credentials, creating a more seamless experience across locations. Built on standards-based technologies such as Passpoint and secure roaming frameworks, extend secure guest and public Wi-Fi access without repeated logins.
What is the Sandbox / "Dry Run" feature on HPE Mist?
The "Dry Run" capabilities within HPE Mist Access Assurance allow policies to be validated against actual conditions and to assess true impact before deployment, reducing risk, enabling zero trust, and ensuring operational continuity.
Where can I find more information on the latest cloud product updates?
HPE Mist Access Assurance resides on the HPE Mist microservices-based cloud, delivering new features, security patches, and updates on a continuous basis without interruptions or service downtime.
HPE Mist Cloud Updates
Is there an external directory services support
Yes, Access Assurance provides authentication services by integrating external directory services, such as Google Workspace, Microsoft Azure Active Directory, Okta Workforce Identity, and others. It also integrates external Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) and MDM/UEM platforms.
Is the HPE Mist platform programmable?
Yes, the HPE Mist platform is fully programmable using 100% open APIs for easy integration with external security information and event management (SIEM), firewalls, extended detection and response (XDR) systems, IT service management (ITSM), and other platforms for both configuration and policy assignment.
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News and resources
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Analyst paperIDC: Cloud-based and AI-Driven Access Controls
IDC research shows that organizations are increasingly prioritizing zero trust architectures to combat the threats of the AI era. Agile, cloud-native, and AI-enhanced NAC systems that provide dynamic and continuous enforcement of user, device, and application access and segmentation are an essential element in effective zero trust architectures.
View the service brief