Network security evolves as rapidly as new threats spread. Security applications protect services and users in a variety of network deployments with different architectures. However, they all share a basic requirement: complete visibility and control over the traffic crossing the network. Applications such as intrusion detection and prevention, SSL inspection, Unified Threat Management or next-generation firewalls need to capture 100% of the traffic across all packet sizes without risking any portion of data therefore strongly relying on Deep Packet Inspection (DPI) techniques to accurately classify network traffic. Traditional DPI stopped at the application identification but latest application-aware solutions can classify both enterprise and consumer applications and protocols, and extract valuable insights up to Layer 7.
Network security equipment vendors need solutions able to perform packet processing at wire speeds on 40GbE and 10GbE ports as well as on legacy gigabit Ethernet ports. In addition, their network application platforms need to be scalable and flexible in order to adjust to evolving requirements such as increases in network bandwidth, application performance, and the virtualization of security functions. To achieve this, network security vendors are investing more and more in application software development and require flexible, scalable and high performance platforms to deliver their solutions. From their perspective, any appliance upon which their network applications are delivered must meet and exceed strict performance criteria, reduce overall development costs, and accelerate time-to-market.
Gene Visio ’s communications platforms provide that scalability and reliability with the broadest range of communication platforms based on Intel® architecture scaling from megabits to terabits per second of throughput. Our desktop and 1U rackmount server platforms meet the needs of UTM solution providers supplying small to medium businesses as well as large enterprises. For large enterprise solutions requiring the fastest of security appliances, Gene Visio ’s high end platforms scale from 2U rackmount appliances all the way up to multi-bladed server solutions offering scalable performance for data center and telecom network security, where customers need terabits per second of processing performance.
We help accelerate time-to-market by working closely with major processor and network interface vendors on early silicon to ensure we have the latest technology available for the earliest possible customer sampling. By working in close unison with silicon vendors we are able to provide platforms, blades and accelerators which give our customers first mover advantage and allow them to deploy solutions in volume as soon as production level silicon is available.
NPU-like packet processing performance is attained by leveraging the performance-optimized libraries in the DPDK to speed up packet processing and increase throughput. The platform integrates Intel® QuickAssist Technology, a set of software modules for bulk encryption, data compression, and other workloads critical to networking. As acceleration hardware embedded within the chipset or add-in modules are available, compute-intensive algorithms can be off-loaded from the CPU cores, freeing up processor cycles for application and control processing. What’s more, you can tap into Intel® architecture with the guarantee of proven software compatibility spanning multiple processor generations allowing you to commit to any platform today with the assurance your software investment is securely future-proofed. Scalability makes it simpler to design a range of products using a common software base starting with desktop appliances for SMB security and ranging to UTMs and policy enforcement engines leveraging DPDK and Intel® QuickAssist Technology in next-generation network platforms.