Citrix NetScaler SD-WAN enhanced to support branch network simplification and expanded security

Citrix has announced enhancements to its NetScaler SD-WAN platform offering features to enhance reliable and secure application delivery combined with intelligent branch routing technology.

As organizations embrace digital transformation, IT departments are increasingly modernizing and streamlining their internal networks. Software-defined wide area networking (SD-WAN) is an important technology that IT is deploying to achieve this transformation ensuring local and remote office locations have the most secure, reliable access to mission critical data and applications.

SD-WAN represents a US$6 billion market opportunity for networking vendors and service providers by 2020 according to IDC, as this technology drives increased flexibility, reliability, and security that enterprise applications now require, while also lowering both capital costs and simplifying operations.

With NetScaler SD-WAN, Citrix offers enterprises a simple yet sophisticated solution to quickly and cost-effectively begin wide-scale deployments of SD-WAN, reduce network complexity and set up their branch to consume applications from the cloud in a seamless and more secure manner. NetScaler SD-WAN is a comprehensive software-defined WAN solution that is easy to deploy and use in a single affordable appliance with integrated visibility and control.

The turnkey solution incorporates application-aware virtualized WAN connectivity, dynamic routing, separate routing domains, WAN optimization, end-to-end visibility, support for the newest Citrix HDX protocols and secure internet breakout. To simplify and reduce cost of deployments, Citrix is introducing a new level of affordability for enterprise branches through new appliance options and its new cloud-based, secure Zero Touch Deployment services. Zero Touch Deployment eliminates the need for local technical staff by automating the deployment process and offers a tool to prevent rogue devices from accessing the network – a risk present in many existing solutions in the market.

The new features of NetScaler SD-WAN 9.1 address the many challenges enterprises currently face as they modernize their corporate networks with SD-WAN, including:

• Multiple Deployment Modes – NetScaler SD-WAN provides an alternative to the legacy branch router while also enabling customers to take a hybrid approach across their locations, using existing routers where appropriate and migrating to NetScaler SD-WAN, with its full built-in routing capabilities, without disrupting operations.
• Application Separation – Provides enterprises with the ability to build multiple virtual networks that separate, such as guest Wi-Fi, point-of-sale information and patient records, or across lines of business. This capability enables customers to enhance the overall security of applications while applying distinct policies to each end-to-end network.
• Attractive Branch Service Economics – Lowers the barrier for entry for customers to start with a SD-WAN solution by providing a highly affordable branch appliance, the NetScaler SD-WAN 410. This appliance is specifically engineered for customers with a highly distributed business and provides is able to scale up to 7X higher bandwidth without needing to swap in new hardware.
• Rapid, Low Cost Deployments – The new cloud-based, secure Zero Touch Deployment service frees up IT staff from the complex logistics typically associated with branch office installations by automating the deployment process. The ZTD service provides a granular level of security with features to verify that only the appliances purchased or assigned to a customer are deployed, at the designated branch, using the correct configuration. 
• Efficient and Secure Web and Cloud Connectivity – Enables secure internet breakout from the branch through simplified connectivity to cloud security services by companies like ZScaler. Internet traffic leaving the branch can be directed via a secure tunnel to the cloud security platform, which provides Secure Web Gateway (SWG), cloud firewall, sandboxing, and other branch security needs. Similarly, NetScaler SD-WAN supports secure connectivity to major cloud service providers such as Amazon Web Services and Microsoft Azure.