Symantec revamps multi-purpose boxes

Company's gateway security family features higher throughput, SSL VPN termination.

Symantec this week plans to unveil three all-in-one gateways that combine VPN/firewall, anti-spam, anti-virus, Web filtering and other security functions.

The Symantec Gateway Security (SGS) 5600 Series boasts throughput of up to 600M bit/sec on the low end and 3G bit/sec on the high end. With improved hardware, the SGS 5600 doubles the speeds obtained in the 5400, line introduced two years ago, but without a price increase (see graphic).

The products will compete with offerings such as Cisco's ASA 5500 Series and Fortinet's FortiGate.

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Symantec this week plans to unveil three all-in-one gateways that combine VPN/firewall, anti-spam, anti-virus, Web filtering and other security functions.

The Symantec Gateway Security (SGS) 5600 Series boasts throughput of up to 600M bit/sec on the low end and 3G bit/sec on the high end. With improved hardware, the SGS 5600 doubles the speeds obtained in the 5400, line introduced two years ago, but without a price increase (see graphic).

The products will compete with offerings such as Cisco's ASA 5500 Series and Fortinet's FortiGate.

The hardware for the SGS 5600 Series contains a dual-disk and swappable power supply with failover and load-balancing support, says Michele Araujo, senior product manager.

In addition to higher speeds, the new SGS models add features such as SSL VPN termination (IPSec-based VPN support was already included in the 5400 gateways).

Also new is a way to check that a desktop wanting access through the gateway is running a properly configured firewall or has updated anti-virus signatures. The catch, though, is that an end user would have to be running Symantec's anti-virus products and desktop firewall, such as Symantec Client Security, for this policy-based access control to be effective.

Another upgrade is that the URL filter can now be set up to block Web sites based on a specific word or phrase, rather than just a URL.

All-in-one Internet gateways have their pluses and minuses. On the plus side, they mean fewer boxes to worry about. On the minus side, they can be challenged to keep up with end-user demand, resulting in less than desirable performance.

A Forrester Research survey of 653 IT managers earlier this year found that less than one in five voiced preference for multi-function appliances, mainly because of worries about a lack of horsepower.

"It will take time for people to catch on to the benefits," says Forrester analyst Paul Stamp.

Read more about security in Network World's Security section.