NETWORK WORLD NEWSLETTER: DENISE DUBIE ON NETWORK OPTIMIZATION
11/11/04
Today's focus:  App acceleration tools evolve

Dear [EMAIL PROTECTED],

In this issue:

* Application acceleration devices becoming key network 
��component
* Links related to Network Optimization
* Featured reader resource
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Today's focus:  App acceleration tools evolve

By Denise Dubie

Application acceleration products, if vendors tackle the 
challenge, could become the cornerstone to delivering 
application services and could consolidate to expand beyond 
their disparate acceleration tasks. In other words, the products 
in this still-immature market could evolve to become a critical 
network component.

So says a recent report by APM Advisors that details how 
products that speed application traffic could hold a more 
prominent position in future data centers. The research firm 
examined a pool of vendors that it deems among the prime 
providers of application front ends (AFE). AFEs, APM Advisors 
says, "provide adaptive management of the user-to-application 
transaction by offloading many of the redundant protocol 
services from the application infrastructure and assuring that 
user connections are efficiently managed."

Vendors identified in this group include Array Networks, 
Crescendo Networks, F5 Networks, NetScaler, Redline Networks and 
Zeus Technology. The firm also says companies such as Cisco, 
Foundry Networks and Radware could be considered AFE providers 
because of their association with server load balancing - and 
considering the infrastructure component, the equipment vendors 
might not "sit this one out," says APM Advisors. Among the 
functions an AFE provides are server load balancing, SSL 
acceleration, traffic management, compression and caching, among 
others.

F5 has made its stand in the market this summer with the release 
of Version 9 of its Layer 4-7 switch/traffic accelerator. The 
appliance addresses many of the features of an AFE - all but one 
actually. F5's new products don't yet offer caching, which the 
vendor promises is on its product roadmap. APM Advisors says, 
"as a foundation, the introduction of F5's Version 9 (Buffalo 
Jump) the space has been validated."

"In larger organizations, there will be an increasing trend to 
consolidate functions and reduce the number of vendor 
relationships for 'front-end' services," the paper states.

RELATED EDITORIAL LINKS

Research firm delves into traffic management
Network World Network Optimization Newsletter, 03/25/04
http://www.nwfusion.com/newsletters/accel/2004/0322netop2.html

Application front ends critical to performance
Network World Network Optimization Newsletter, 02/12/04
http://www.nwfusion.com/newsletters/accel/2004/0209netop2.html
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To contact: Denise Dubie

Senior Writer Denise Dubie covers network and systems management 
for Network World. Reach her at <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]>.
_______________________________________________________________
This newsletter is sponsored by Cisco Systems 
Special Report:  Bridging the Gap; Enterprise ROI 

IT professionals today don't indulge in the latest-greatest 
technology for their own sake; instead they concentrate efforts 
on projects that are most likely to help achieve business goals. 
Read about the challenges and opportunities when IT starts 
'bridging the gap' and directly contributes to enterprise ROI. 
http://www.fattail.com/redir/redirect.asp?CID=87964
_______________________________________________________________
ARCHIVE LINKS

Archive of the Network Optimization newsletter (formerly Web 
Acceleration):
http://www.nwfusion.com/newsletters/accel/index.html
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