Cisco Systems released an Application Control Engine (ACE), providing up to 16 Gbps of throughput, rich multi-layer security, and unique virtual partitioning capabilities, for its Catalyst 6500 Series Switch. The module enables many new capabilities, including hundreds of virtual partitions, per-partition resource allocation, role-based access control, and an XML management API. The ACE also consolidates functionality such as server load balancing and off-load, application acceleration, and application-layer security.
Cisco also announced today a new application security software module for the Application Velocity System (AVS), its application acceleration and security appliance. The new security software module works seamlessly with Cisco ACE and adds bi-directional application inspection and protection while eliminating vastly more application vulnerabilities.
Several versions of the Cisco Application Control Engine module are available, including configurations that support up to 4, 8 and 16 Gbps throughput-levels for $39,995, $59,995, and $99,995 respectively. The scalable architecture of the Cisco ACE family allows customers to upgrade performance and scalability of the ACE through purchase of software licenses. The AVS application security software module is available in early May and is priced at $10,000. http://www.cisco.com
