WAN Optimization 2.0 Solution Allows Enterprises to Focus on Business, Not Bits, as Branch Offices Become Strategic Assets

June 6, 2012 - CAMBERLEY, UK - Exinda, a global provider of next-generation WAN optimization and application performance assurance solutions incorporating the Exinda 360 Dynamic Policy Engine, today announced the UK launch of Exinda Edge, a new standard of application performance assurance solutions architected specifically for the increasing demands of branch office networks.

Nearly 90% of the global workforce operates from branch offices, yet they have been woefully underserved, struggling with limited on-site IT resources, scarce bandwidth resources, and a reliance on private and public cloud applications. As companies endeavour to get closer to their customers, these branch offices - whether commercial branch offices or satellite structures found in education, government and other industries - are becoming increasingly strategic, and their network performance critical.

"Branch networks are rapidly becoming more complex,” said Joe Skorupa, VP distinguished analyst at Gartner Inc. “The proliferation of recreational applications, consumer devices, and Internet-based services puts increased pressure on the network. As a result, WAN optimization suppliers must place a greater emphasis on application assurance, not just acceleration, and must apply user, application, and usage profiles of the business to drive a more intelligent approach to optimization."

“For years, branch offices have been given lip service by IT departments and treated as an expensive necessity,” said Nolan Rosen, CMO of Exinda Networks. “Enterprises require a WAN optimization approach that understands the strategic importance of their branch offices. Exinda Edge uses an innovative performance assurance approach which focuses on assuring strategic branch applications and delivering a quality user experience where it’s needed most: on the customer front lines.”

Exinda Edge is an all-in-one optimization suite designed specifically to deliver a complete solution for branch networks. Actionable performance insights, policy-based service level assurance, and profile-driven application optimization are delivered in an easy-to-use package across a variety of powerful hardware and virtual appliances. More than 11,000 global branch offices now collaborate on the Exinda Branch Network.

Exinda Edge utilises Exinda’s patented 360 Dynamic Policy Engine, which adds user, application, and contextual profiling and containment in addition to traditional WAN optimization services. The 360 Engine makes Exinda the only WAN optimization solution on the market offering complete Audit to Assurance capability.

Exinda Edge features agile application packs that are targeted collections of Layer 7 application signatures optimised for the applications that have the greatest impact on the business. For branch office networks, this might mean Salesforce.com, Skype or WebEx. In an educational environment, it might mean e-learning applications like Blackboard and Moodle receive priority while social applications like Facebook receive measured resource allocation. Exinda is the first and only company on the market to take this strategic application approach to WAN Optimization. Exinda Edge has packs covering over 2,500 strategic applications available today to help enterprises across a variety of industries meet their unique network needs.

Exinda Edge boasts several other key differentiators for branch office networks:

Precision Profiling: The only WAN optimization solution on the market with Active Directory integration. Performance reporting and optimization policies are driven based on deep user, usage pattern, context and location profiles, in contrast to conventional approaches which focus on IP addresses and traffic protocols. This means optimization is more closely tied to the business.

3-Point Optimization: The industry’s most accurate optimization engine is designed to intelligently apply a mix of acceleration, containment and caching technologies to deliver the optimal WAN experience based on business priorities, policies and fluctuating network conditions.

Branch Value Packaging: All-in-one optimization solution designed specifically to deliver a complete solution for branch networks within a branch-level budget. Pragmatic performance insights, policy-based service level assurance, and profile-driven application optimization delivered in an easy-to-use package across a variety of powerful hardware and virtual appliances.