Smart Connectivity in Sacred Spaces: Powering Reliable WiFi at Tihany Abbey

Zyxel_May · June 11

Tihany Abbey

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“Thanks to the Zyxel Networks solution, we can use a reliable, high-coverage WiFi network in all public spaces and work areas, 24/7. This ensures that meetings, financial processes and other business applications run smoothly. Since then we have had several change requests, to which IT has been able to respond quickly, as they can see the system operation remotely, so the assistance is efficient and flexible.ˮ

Zoltán Dobos, IT Business Manager
Tihany Abbey

Overview

Tihany Abbey, a historic monastic community dating back to 1055, blends centuries-old heritage with modern monastic life. it.hu partnered with Zyxel Networks to overcome connectivity challenges, delivering a high-performance, reliable WiFi solution that supports the abbey's community, guests and daily operations. The network was implemented in a flexible and scalable way, ensuring the abbey's historic integrity remained uncompromised. This deployment supports hospitality, teaching, and monastic activities, enabling a modern digital experience within a centuries-old setting.

Challenges

The abbey's network was slow, unreliable and lacked coverage. Thick historic walls, frequent power outages and restrictions on drilling made network installation difficult, while remote management was essential due to the abbey's location and dispersed buildings.

Solutions

it.hu and Zyxel Networks collaborated to design a complete end-to-end solution to meet the abbey's needs.

The access points, including the NWA1123-AC PRO, WAC6503D-S, WAC500H, and NWA55AXE, provided strong indoor and outdoor coverage across the church, friary, and gardens. The USG FLEX 100H next-generation firewall ensured robust cybersecurity. GS1920 series switches supplied PoE and non-PoE connectivity over both new and existing copper and optical lines.

The Nebula cloud networking management solution enabled full remote monitoring and management of switches, firewalls, access points and clients, allowing rapid response to issues or changes. The solution respected the abbey's historic architecture, avoiding wall drilling and delivered a resilient network with the flexibility for further upgrades, expansion or scaling down.

Results

The upgraded network architecture equips the abbey with reliable connectivity, supporting both daily routines and long-term digital plans. High-performance WiFi solutions provide strong wireless signals throughout the site, enabling smooth operations and uninterrupted network access. The next-generation USG FLEX 100H firewall delivers comprehensive, AI-powered cloud cybersecurity protection, ensuring peace of mind.

Remote monitoring and management via Nebula allows IT staff from it.hu and the abbey to quickly detect and resolve issues, keeping the network running efficiently for both guests and monks.

Seamless, high-coverage WiFi across buildings and outdoor areas, resilient to power outages
Remote management enables rapid issue resolution
Smooth operation of meetings, financial processes, and daily administrative tasks
Reliable connectivity for guests and monks, supporting hospitality, teaching and monastic activities
Robust network security protects against external threats
Flexible, scalable network implemented without compromising the abbey's historic integrity

Products used

More Information

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