Review: MXI Access Enterprise Management Software / flash drive

We first saw the MXI Stealth Key during our biometrics review (January 2011) and were impressed with that version of this flash drive. So impressed, in fact, that we continue to use it in the
SC Lab. So when we had the opportunity to look at the non-biometric version, we were quite excited. This product offers up a solid combination of functionality and control. The flash drive can be used on its own or in conjunction with the ACCESS Enterprise Management server for added functionality and control.

Deployment of the tool can take a couple of paths, but for this review we looked at it with the ACCESS Management Server. The first thing that needs to be installed is the server itself. The server can be installed on any Windows machine and, once up and running, the Stealth Keys can be self-initialized by the users quickly and easily. After all the pieces are installed, all management is done via the ACCESS Enterprise management console.

When used in conjunction with ACCESS Enterprise, these USB drives can offer a lot of data security. The drive itself is encrypted at the hardware level and can be used on any operating system without the need for special drivers.

Documentation included an administrator guide for ACCESS Enterprise, which we found to be well detailed and easy to follow.

MXI includes the first year of support with the purchase. Additional support can be purchased as part of an ongoing maintenance agreement. There is also a small support area available on the website, but resources there are quite limited

With a price ranging from US$12-$26 per device license for ACCESS Management, plus around US$200 per device for the 16GB USB drive, this tool can become quite expensive for some deployments, but we do find it to be a good value for the money. The Stealth Key can provide solid data protection, while maintaining functionality to the user through its easy-to-use design.