* Cisco releases Adaptive Security Appliance
Cisco has wheeled out a multi-function security appliance that builds on its firewall/VPN technology.
The Adaptive Security Appliance (ASA) 5500 combines firewall, IPSec and SSL VPN, intrusion prevention, virus filtering and network quarantine in a single device.
This follows a long-developing trend among vendors to produce boxes that perform more and more security screening at critical network points where IT architects historically installed firewalls only. Because traffic is funneled through these points, it is a good spot to check for malicious traffic.
Typically, these points accept traffic from the Internet or other untrusted networks that warrant inspection. More and more, these devices are being placed in front of data centers because that is where a company’s most valuable network assets are likely to reside and warrant special protection.
The device has its own management system that integrates control over all services on the box. So policies set by administrators are applied to the appropriate security applications.
The ASA devices run on an operating system that borrows from both Cisco’s IOS and Linux. Cisco says it will integrate ASA technology onto Catalyst switches but has not said exactly how that would take shape or when.
The company says it will also add more security applications to the ASA platform, making it clear that it believes the days of buying many different applications from many different vendors are nearing an end.
As businesses are more concerned about threats coming from inside and outside their networks, they are looking for a more comprehensive way to deal with them. Vendors are responding with single devices that do many jobs, and these will likely become the platforms of choice for many businesses.
Cisco ASA gear comes in three models that vary in throughput. Cisco ASA 5510 costs $3,500, ASA 5520 costs $8,000 and ASA 5540 costs $17,000.
