Juniper's new security and performance solutions

As the way we do work and the technology we do this with changes, networking vendor Juniper Networks has introduced what it's calling its intelligent security and performance solutions for distributed enterprises.

Two months ago, Juniper announced its new SRX series of services gateways and EX series of Ethernet switches for use in branch offices. Today, the company has announced new solutions for use in remote offices, which consist of WAN optimization, access control and intrusion prevention solutions (IPS).

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Michael Rothschild, senior solutions marketing manager for Juniper, said this announcement is an evolution of the company's adaptive threat management (ADTM) strategy.

"In many remote locations, business don't have security personal to jump on an attack that has taken place," he said. "If a security breach happens, applications usually grind to a halt. This is why we've introduced three major things as part of our intelligent security and performance solutions."

The three areas include WAN optimization with a WX client (WXC) for use with Juniper's WX acceleration platforms solutions, access control with provisioned anti-spyware and anti-malware and intrusion prevention that's based on identity and policy.

These new solutions will make it easier for partners to attach other products and services to any given sale, said Rich Campagna, senior manager of product line management at Juniper. Partners will be able to establish themselves as trusted advisors, instead of box pushers since they can now deliver a complete intelligent security and performance solution, he added.

"This is a nice value-add," Campagna said. "From a partner perspective, this is a way to tie everything together, so it'll be easier to sell. Our solutions are based on an open architecture approach, so whatever products the customers have today, we can work with them. Customers can also buy stuff incrementally as they need it, so if they have a specific issue today, we can get down to that product story."

Juniper's WXC solution allows organizations to maintain business as usual in the event of an attack by giving users acceleration to applications they need to get their jobs done.

With its access control anti-spyware and anti-malware solution, Rothschild said machines can be provisioned to help stop problems before they happen. When a user logs onto a machine via a secure sockets layer (SSL), the solution will do an endpoint check to make sure there's no risk before the user is authenticated. The access control solution also does a full protection on the machine and offers real-time protection.

Juniper's IPS works based on a user's identity and on policies and/or roles.

"We have a follow policy so no matter where the user is, policies can be defined by user group, or by the individual," Rothschild said. "If the user attempts to do something that's not allowed by the organization, we can shut down that system based on the user's role."

WXC is shipping now, while Juniper's IPS will be shipping sometime later this month, Campagna said. UAC (unified access control) is set to begin shipping next month, he added.