Virtual Branch Network builds on access points that connect to central controller
Aruba Networks announced today new Web-based services and a software update for its line of branch office Wi-Fi access points.Aruba’s Virtual Branch Network (VBN) was introduced in May 2009, consisting in part of the Remote Access Point products, which are plugged in at a remote location and then connect automatically back to an Aruba controller in regional or headquarters site. The idea is to lower the cost and complexity of Wi-Fi connectivity for branches, teleworkers and others, providing an alternative to comparatively costly solutions such as Cisco’s popular Integrated Services Router. VBN 2.0 adds new “cloud-based” services to enhance this connectivity and a secure direct connection between corporate notebook PCs and central Aruba controllers. The Application Acceleration Service uses compression and other techniques to boost performance for browsing, email and other applications. No additional hardware or software is needed at the remote site. Aruba says that application performance can increase by up to 20 times. A related, and optional, service caches files at remote storage locations to further speed up application response times. Aruba calls this the Content Delivery Network (CDN), created through several providers with whom Aruba has partnered. The branch office-based Remote Access Points set up an encrypted link encompassing the enduser, the corporate data network, and the nearest CDN site. The cached data can fairly static data, such as quarterly financial or sales data, as well as applications that are updated often. According to Aruba, this service eliminates the need for storage arrays located at branch offices, and is quickly and easily scaled. Endusers see performance gains because they’re working with data much closer to them than having to do round-trip connections to one central data site, according to Aruba executives. Data is encrypted once and decrypted only when it’s handed off to the requesting client.The third new offering is Content Security Service. User requests through the branch office Remote Access Point are redirected to a CSS center for filtering and monitoring, where malware can be detected and defanged, phishing attempts exposed and blocked, and banned instant messaging or other corporate security policies can be enforced. The CSS software is updated automatically, as new security scanning signatures are updated, without any code needed on the client devices or on the branch Wi-Fi access points.Aruba is offering enterprise customers three different levels of security, ranging from a standard version focused mainly on anti-malware, to a premium option packed with goodies like bandwidth controls, continual data scanning to block transfer of specific corporate information, etc. The Application Acceleration Service is $255 list price per Aruba Remote Access Point. List price for Content Security Service is $45 yearly per user, in volume. Finally, Aruba is introducing what it calls a Virtual Internet Access client, which essentially takes the Remote Access Point software and loads it as an application into a Wi-Fi-equipped notebook PC. When the PC makes use of its Wi-Fi card at, say, a coffee house or airport hotspot, the software acts just like the RAP: it sets up an IPSec tunnel back to an Aruba controller behind the corporate firewall; or a SSL session to the data center; and it does so over Wi-Fi, 3G, or even satellite connections, whichever is available to and supported by the notebook.The VIA code is included at no extra charge with the Aruba controller software. Clients are set up from the controller. No separate VPN termination infrastructure is needed in the data center, according to Aruba. VBN 2.0 has been certified by Citrix to work with its XenApp desktop virtualization software.
