NETWORKING

Need an application controller and lower latency - critical in optimizing architectural performance and enhanced user experience?

Solution: - NetScaler 

NetScaler (Previously known as Citrix ADC) is the most comprehensive infrastructure load balancing and delivery of monolithic microservices based applications for on-premises, hybrid cloud or multi-cloud environments.

NetScaler has been tried and tested over the years and is designed to offer clients an application delivery solution that accelerates the journey to multi-cloud by providing operational and features consistency, flexible licensing, and actionable insights through a single pane of glass.

NetScaler - a brief overview

The core function of the NetScaler is to direct requests to and offloaded connection management from back-end resources (data center) to provide scalability and availability for applications.

• The NetScaler is built on a single unified code allowing for operational consistency.
• The solutions include Pooled Capacity Licensing and constant security posture across all deployments.
• NetScaler is managed centrally via a single pane of glass.

The benefits of the NetScaler are numerous - below highlights the core components.

Pooled Capacity Licensing

Unique to Citrix the Pooled Licensing allows for sharing and portability or instances licenses across any NetScaler and form factors. In a nutshell the Pooled capacity licensing model allows for allocation as demand increases and deallocated and redistributed to other ADC instances later.

Pooled capacity licensing can be easily and centrally managed via Citrix ADM and NetScaler is also available in zero-capacity hardware platforms for an easier, cost-effective transition to the cloud.

Consistent Security Posture

The NetScaler includes an extra layer of security stack, from layer 2 to layer7. Acting as a proxy, the NetScaler can control access applications. Added to the proxying of application access the other security features include:

• IP Address reputation filtering, which is automatic, as Citrix is constantly monitoring undesirable IP addresses and adding to the reputation filtering services.
• NetScaler mitigate DDoS attacks. This is achieved by simple SYN cookies to protect against Layer 4 flooding and incorporates Surge Protection, Priority Queuing, Sure Connect features and HTTP DoS protection primarily for web site interaction.

Remote Access

NetScaler acts as proxy between the user and the server farm, therefore, access control is implemented at the NetScaler level instead of having to manage controls for each application. NetScaler is equipped with a full suite of authentication, authorization and auditing (AAA) functionality.

NetScaler can also act as an ADFS proxy to provide a single sign on experience for users and, using SAML, extend this SSO to SaaS applications. For added security, NetScaler offers n-Factor authentication. With n-factor’s flexible and extensible framework, it is possible to define variable authentication policies that can vary dependent on users’ environments and prior inputs, providing true contextual access to applications.

Finally, NetScaler provides full SSL VPN functionality for network access as well as clientless VPN, meaning users can use their web browser to access applications without installing any local plug-ins.

Optimize Application Delivery

The NetScaler solution can optimize the environment thus enhancing user experience.

Caching

Caching of user responses are stored on the NetScaler memory; subsequence requests are action by the NetScaler and not the original sever. This will shorten log in times, reduce sever workloads, reducing sever cost and bandwidth usage.

Front End Optimization

Using domain scaling the NetScaler removes connection limitations, thus improving page rendering by allowing more browser resources can be downloaded simultaneously. In addition, HTTP compression combined with CSS files improves page download and render times significantly.

Bult in TCP profiles (including BIC, CUBIC, Westwood, and Nile), when activated the NetScaler will adjust TCP parameters which includes windows scaling, selective acknowledgement, maximum segment size, buffer size, and more ensuring optimizing TCP communications.

Application availability and enabling

The most important function of any environment is to allow users access to the correct information from any device and from any location. The NetScaler is designed to ensure availability of resources and at scale to meet user demand.

Load balancing

Load balancing enables an application to scale horizontally by adding more resources (servers) and distributing the load among them.

NetScaler does the above by

• Employing intelligent load balancing capabilities from layer2 to alyer7. This enables the solution to inspect incoming traffic via the IP address or TCP port and the direct the traffic to the server stack that will best serve the request.
• NetScaler content switching which manages traffic via layer 7 parameters. Basically, using HTTPS headings, the NetScaler will route users to a localized content base on geographic location of the user. Content request can be routed to best suit the device in use and cookies deployed for repeat content users.
• Round Robin techniques are used to sender request to severs in turn; however, the NetScaler includes techniques such as least connections, lowest response time, and least packets account for back-end server conditions in the load balancing decision.
• Granular application and user experience control is achieved by the NetScaler understanding and parse popular protocols such as HTTP/S, Radius/ Diameter, SIP, FIX, SIP, SQL, and more.
• In the case of an entire data center brown out the NetScaler uses Global Server Load Balancing (GSLB) to reroute the request to the best site that can respond.

NetScaler Demo click on the button below.