Citrix Systems today announced NetScaler SDX, a groundbreaking new virtualized networking platform designed from the ground up to serve as the “front door” for virtual datacenters and clouds. With the new NetScaler SDX platform, customers can now run numerous virtualized NetScaler instances on a single purpose-built physical appliance with full multi-service, multi-tenant support. This innovative new architecture helps customers move from traditional application delivery to far richer “service delivery” required by the adoption of cloud computing, and growing user demand for new services delivered to a wide range of consumer devices.   

Enterprises around the world are rapidly adopting cloud-based services to satisfy business demands for greater IT agility, and user demand for greater service and device choice. To address this transformation, IT is shifting from the narrow delivery of traditional enterprise applications to a broader delivery model that encompasses a myriad of new services such as virtual desktops, data, collaboration, voice and video - originating from both private and public clouds, and delivered over a wide array of networks. In this emerging new model, IT no longer “buys and builds” all their apps and infrastructure, but rather “aggregates and orchestrates” a growing variety of local and cloud-based services.

The new NetScaler SDX platform creates a “service delivery fabric” that ensures all these apps and services are delivered with the best performance, security and reliability, regardless of whether they are running in the local datacenter, or in an external cloud. As a result, IT teams can now offer networking services that make off-premise clouds behave as a natural extension of the enterprise network, while providing broader and deeper control over how enterprise, consumer and cloud-based services impact the network.

NetScaler SDX is the latest addition to a growing family of NetScaler platforms designed to fit the needs of customers of all sizes and business requirements. Customers looking for a powerful solution for traditional application networking, for example, can choose the popular NetScaler MPX hardware appliance product line, which powers most of the world’s largest enterprises and websites - as well as thousands of small to midsized companies. Customers who want all the power of a NetScaler in a flexible software form factor can choose the NetScaler VPX virtual appliance. And now, for the first time ever, enterprises and cloud providers who want to deliver a far wider range of apps and services in a single, multi-tenant platform, can choose the new NetScaler SDX. NetScaler instances running on the new NetScaler SDX can also be knit together with NetScaler MPX and VPX systems running in other datacenters, transparently connecting the disparate networks of enterprise datacenters, with public and private clouds.

Facts and Highlights

• NetScaler SDX is a groundbreaking new platform that uses advanced hardware and software virtualization to run multiple “virtual NetScaler instances” on a single hardware appliance – each optimized for different apps, services, sites and customers.
• Each virtual instance is a complete NetScaler environment, incorporating all the functions needed to deliver apps and services with the best performance, security and reliability, including load balancing, caching, compression, SSL VPN, SSL offload, federated identity and app firewall.
• NetScaler SDX provides full network, CPU, memory and SSL acceleration isolation for each virtual NetScaler instance, as well as per-instance (rather than per-appliance) high availability, version control and lifecycle management.
• NetScaler SDX incorporates SR-IOV (single root I/O virtualization) capabilities from Intel to provide fast, multi-tenant, multi-service appliance capable of running at native wire speeds.
• The next-generation NetScaler SDX architecture provides the foundation for further consolidation of adjacent service delivery capabilities such as WAN optimization, network security and virtual desktop delivery.
• A single control plane within the NetScaler SDX platform provides unified provisioning, monitoring and management of all virtual NetScaler instances, while also enabling administrative privileges to be delegated per instance.
• The NetScaler SDX 17500, 19500 and 21500 models share a common hardware platform with the existing NetScaler MPX 17500, 19500 and 21500 models, enabling MPX appliances to be easily upgraded in the field to all the new NetScaler SDX functionality.

Iddo Kadim, Director of Virtualization Technologies, Intel

"Access performance and tenant isolation are key concerns in Cloud Computing. In using the unique capabilities inherent to the Intel(r) Xeon 5600 series processor family and the Intel(r) 82599 10 Gigabit Ethernet Controller, Intel and Citrix have collaborated to overcome these concerns in NetScaler SDX. Taking advantage of Intel Virtualization Technologies in conjunction with open standards such as the PCI SIG's(r) SR-IOV enables SDX to deliver new levels of performance with up-to 50Gbps throughput while providing isolation necessary for multi-tenant environments."

Pacer Hibler, Network Engineer, New Hanover Regional Medical Center

"Datacenter and network virtualization and consolidation are key initiatives for New Hanover Medical Center. Strong multi-tenancy capabilities are essential for allowing us to consolidate in order to drive down costs, but without compromising the service levels we provide to the organization."

Klaus Oestermann, Vice President and General Manager, Networking and Cloud Product Group

“NetScaler SDX transforms how enterprises and service providers deploy the application availability, acceleration and security functionality needed to deliver both enterprise applications and cloud-based services to a widely diverse set of user and devices. With NetScaler SDX, IT organizations can consolidate as they virtualize networks and data centers without compromising on the SLAs committed to their customers.”

Availability

NetScaler SDX platforms include the SDX-17500, SDX-19500 and SDX-21500, offering performance up to 50Gbps, and will be available in April 2011.