Contact Information: Media Contacts: Jennifer Jasper Infoblox 408.625.4309 Email Contact
Infoblox Introduces World's Highest Performance DNS/DHCP Appliance and Software Enhancements for Increased IPAM, Resiliency and Security
| Source: Infoblox Inc.
SANTA CLARA, CA -- (MARKET WIRE) -- February 26, 2007 -- Infoblox Inc. today announced availability
of a new flagship appliance, the Infoblox-2000 -- the industry's highest
performance platform designed specifically for providing core network
services, including domain name resolution (DNS), IP address assignment
(DHCP), IP address management (IPAM), authentication (RADIUS), file
transfer (TFTP / HTTP), network time (NTP) and others.
Additionally, Infoblox introduced today significant enhancements to its
unique NIOS™ software that increases the resiliency, security,
administrative controls and IPAM capabilities for its growing core network
services appliance family.
The resiliency and manageability of core network services directly impacts
the ability to operate all applications, such as email, web services,
Microsoft Active Directory, Voice over IP (VoIP) and wireless, and there is
growing evidence that conventional solutions for core network services --
typically general purpose servers and software -- are showing signs of
stress.
A recent Enterprise Strategy Group (ESG) report: "The Network Services
Disconnect" (February 2007), which includes a survey of more than 200
enterprise IT organizations, indicates that roughly half of all
organizations surveyed experienced at least one DNS, DHCP or RADIUS outage
in the past year.
ESG survey respondents indicated that the most common consequences of a
DNS, DHCP or RADIUS outage are "dissatisfied customers" and "application
downtime," while more than one-fourth of respondents said that a DNS outage
results in a "direct loss of revenue." The report recommends that core
network services be classified as mission critical and architected
accordingly.
Further, a Feb. 6, 2007 distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attack on the
global DNS root name servers crippled several global and local Asian nodes
for hours, underscoring the repercussions of DNS attacks and indicating a
need for increased attention on DNS systems. (For more information on this
attack, visit http://www.isc.org/ops/f-root/.)
New Infoblox-2000 Appliance Delivers "Utility-grade" Performance
The Infoblox-2000 extends the company's product line to provide the highest
performing integrated DNS and DHCP appliance available today. It delivers
up to 75,000 DNS queries and 750 DHCP leases per second, and includes
high-availability features such as redundant, hot-swappable RAID disks,
fans and power units for ensuring nonstop operation.
The Infoblox-2000 can be deployed as a high-performance, standalone
DNS/DHCP server in large enterprises and service provider environments that
must support the growing demands resulting from proliferation of
IP-enabled devices and applications, such as VoIP and mobility.
Additionally, the Infoblox-2000 can be deployed as a master for an Infoblox
grid, which links together multiple Infoblox appliances into a unified
system, enabling distribution and local survivability of services while
allowing central management. And, with the new Infoblox-2000 platform and
software enhancements, hundreds of appliances can be supported in a single
Infoblox grid.
New Software Enhancements Deliver Resiliency, Security and Manageability
The newest version of Infoblox's NIOS operating system includes enhanced
networking, security and IPAM features for increased scalability,
resiliency and manageability.
New security features of NIOS version 4.1 include support for secure
dynamic DNS (DDNS) updates using Microsoft-compatible GSS-TSIG security.
GSS-TSIG is a standard Microsoft means to ensure that only trusted Windows
clients can send updates to the DNS server. Infoblox support of GSS-TSIG
allows enterprises to offload DNS from Microsoft servers without
compromising the security of client dynamic DNS updates.
New networking features in NIOS version 4.1 include support for Anycast
addresses, which improve the performance and resiliency of DNS services by
distributing DNS requests across a number of appliances in a grid and
ensuring that requests are only sent to appliances that are able to
respond. This is a proven method for minimizing service downtime and
simplifying configuration of robust DNS infrastructures.
Anycast helped minimize the effects of the recent ISC DNS root name server
denial-of-service attack referenced above. In a bulletin issued Feb. 13,
2007, ISC claims that its' effective use of Anycast "helped counter this
attack by fragmenting it into smaller pieces that were easier to deal
with..." Enterprises can mitigate the effects of similar threats and
effectively distribute DNS requests for increased resiliency by taking
advantage of the built-in Anycast functionality now available in Infoblox
solutions.
New IPAM features include DNS hostname and network templates, global search
functionality and enhanced granular administration control. Hostname
templates standardize hostname configuration and reduce outages due to user
errors. Network templates standardize IP address assignment practices for
large-scale DHCP deployments. These templates allow for the definition of
all parameters normally configured with a network. For example, ranges
within the network can be defined for dynamic addresses, fixed addresses
and specific ranges for routers, printers, servers, etc. to reduce
inconsistencies and help simplify delegation of related tasks.
Global search allows administrators to quickly and easily locate specific
data objects (e.g. DHCP leases, DNS records), for easy configuration,
editing and change management. And, Granular Access Control allows
restricted administrative views and rights. Administration can be
restricted to specific appliances, networks, ranges, and even specific
resource-record types. For example, a member of the messaging team can be
restricted to modify records relating only to mail servers on specific
networks. This helps distribute the DNS and DHCP administrative workload,
while preventing inadvertent or unauthorized changes.
Richard Kagan, vice president of marketing at Infoblox, commented: "Core
network services are the essential 'glue' that binds networks, users and
applications. The Infoblox platform, extended with the new Infoblox-2000
appliance and software features, enables organizations to deliver core
network services with a new level of system resiliency and integrity for
continued application availability and business continuity."
Pricing and Availability
The new appliance platform and the NIOS version 4.1 operating system are
available March 1, 2007. Pricing for the solution on the Infoblox-550
appliance with the DNSone package (including DNS, DHCP, IPAM, RADIUS, TFTP
and NTP capabilities) starts at $4,995 in the U.S. Pricing for the
Infoblox-2000 with the DNSone package starts at $47,995.
About Infoblox
Infoblox appliances deliver utility-grade core network services, including
domain name resolution (DNS), IP address assignment and management
(IPAM/DHCP), authentication (RADIUS) and related services. Infoblox
solutions, which provide the essential "glue" between networks and
applications, are used by hundreds of organizations worldwide, including
many of the Fortune 500. The company is headquartered in Santa Clara,
Calif., and operates in more than 30 countries. For more information, call
+1.408.625.4200, email info@infoblox.com, or visit www.infoblox.com.