As as one of their many challenges, IT staffs must provide secure remote access to data and applications from outside the confines of the enterprise. IPSec-style VPNs are no longer up to the task, however. IPSec is just too inflexible and limited in device support to really work in many situations. . . .
As as one of their many challenges, IT staffs must provide secure remote access to data and applications from outside the confines of the enterprise. IPSec-style VPNs are no longer up to the task, however. IPSec is just too inflexible and limited in device support to really work in many situations.

VPN appliances based on tried-and-true SSL are gaining popularity. You get all of the features of an IPSec VPN without the restrictions. All you need is a browser to connect to your resources, no matter what the client OS platform.

These appliances allow metered access to back-end servers and resources through a single open port to the Internet. All traffic, no matter what the destination, comes in via port 443, allowing network administrators to close up the firewall to all other ports yet retain full remote access connectivity.

We rounded up two SSL VPN appliances to see just how well these devices stack up. The Access 3000 Series from Neoteris and the Netilla Security Platform (NSP) Release 4.0 both provide secure access to data stored behind the firewall. You get reverse Web proxies, application proxies, and network-level access to resources. Both come in rack-friendly 1U chassis with dual 10/100Mbps network interfaces, are Web manageable, and are built around a powerful policy engine.

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