F5 The Need For Speed

Introduction

Applications don’t always perform as expected, especially when they’re running
across large or complex networks. Bandwidth is often underutilised, and sluggish
response times frustrate users. Poor performance leads to lost productivity,
inefficient manual workarounds, abandoned applications, and reduced
business agility.

F5 Networks®, the leader in Application Delivery Networking, enables IT agility
that drives business forward. This paper focuses on accelerating your software
portfolio over the WAN and LAN. While nearly all F5 products increase application
performance, this is an overview of specific F5 acceleration features across F5
product lines.

F5 Product Portfolio

BIG-IP Local Traffic Manager

F5® BIG-IP® Local Traffic Manager™ (LTM) is an advanced Application Delivery
Controller (ADC) that secures, optimises, and delivers applications, and increases
organisational effectiveness. BIG-IP LTM directs transactions to and from servers,
routers, and other devices; compresses and caches data; performs SSL offload;
and manipulates packet headers and data as required.

BIG-IP Global Traffic Manager Module

Site outages, attacks and application/infrastructure failure are a
major cause for end-user dissatisfaction that can lead to a loss of
revenue and clientele. The BIG-IP Global Traffic Manager (GTM)
Module provides high availability, maximum performance and
global management for applications running across multiple and
globally dispersed data centers.

BIG-IP WebAccelerator

BIG-IP® WebAccelerator™ is an advanced web application delivery solution that
provides a series of intelligent technologies that help overcome performance issues
such as browser and web application platform inefficiencies and WAN latency.
BIG-IP WebAccelerator offloads servers and decreases bandwidth usage, thus
decreasing page download times and increasing user productivity. BIG-IP
WebAccelerator is deployable in either asymmetric or symmetric configurations,
and it is available as a product module on BIG-IP LTM or as a stand-alone device
in a variety of configurations.

BIG-IP WAN Optimisation Module

BIG-IP® WAN Optimisation Module™ (WOM) is an add-on software module for
BIG-IP LTM that overcomes the effects of latency, packet loss, and low bandwidth
across the WAN to deliver fast and reliable performance for all users. By installing a
BIG-IP WOM appliance at each end of a WAN link, file transfers and data replication
can take place at nearly the speed of a wired LAN. BIG-IP WOM is appropriate for
storage replication between data centers and disaster recovery sites.

BIG-IP Edge Gateway

BIG-IP Edge Gateway™ is a remote access solution that secures and accelerates
applications for validated users around the globe. With BIG-IP Edge Gateway, users
get access to an organisation’s internal resources at accelerated speeds, while IT
maintains control over access rights and privileges. With the optional BIG-IP Edge
Client™, users can automatically log in to the VPN upon startup if their VPN and
device logins are the same.

BIG-IP® Add-On Modules

Feature Modules are individual feature packs that can be added to a BIG-IP traffic
management platform.

BIG-IP Application Security Module (ASM)

The BIG-IP Application Security Module runs on the BIG-IP
application traffic management platform, providing robust
application security with BIG-IP traffic management capabilities in
a single system – without the need to buy or install more hardware.
The ASM provides application layer protection from both targeted
and generalised application attacks. BIG-IP ensures that those
applications are always available and performing optimally.
Together, you get a complete, robust solution that reduces box
clutter, lowers maintenance and management costs, and provides
proactive application protection while ensuring exceptional
application performance.

Intelligent Compression Module

Users today are continually impacted by poor web application performance caused by WAN
latency and connection bottlenecks. By dramatically reducing the volume of traffic that is
sent to the user, the Intelligent Compression Module allows you to receive a marked gain in
application performance while greatly enhancing the end user experience.

L7 Rate Shaping Module

Contention for shared bandwidth often degrades application performance, and
organisations have little control in guaranteeing that high priority traffic is passed ahead
of non-priority traffic. BIG-IP L7 Rate Shaping Module adds fine-grained bandwidth control
to better manage application bandwidth usage and traffic spikes.

IPv6 Gateway Module

With demand for IPv6 increasing, many sites are facing new
requirements to handle IPv6 traffic. Organisations need a clear and
seamless strategy for staging network migration as IPv6 traffic grows.
The IPv6 Gateway Module allows organisations to handle their IPv6
requirements without wholesale network and application upgrades.

Advanced Routing Modules

BGP, RIP, and OSPF Modules enable BIG-IP to share routing
information with other devices for better interoperability within
the corporate network.

Border Gateway Protocol (BGP)
Makes it possible for ISPs to connect to each other and for end-users
to connect to more than one ISP, improving availability.

Routing Information Protocol (RIPv1 & RIPv2)
Allows network routers to adapt dynamically to changing network
connections, improving performance.

Open Shortest Path First (OSPF)
Distributes routing information between routers and chooses the leastcost
path as the best path, saving money and improving performance.

Advanced Client Authentication Module

Managing authentication individually across applications is costly.
Top level authentication enforcement consumes server cycles that
could be used elsewhere. The Advanced Client Authentication
Module provides top level client authentication of HTTP and other
traffic types to LDAP, Radius and TACAS directories.