Internet access sol'n improves network control

Sangfor Technologies Co. Ltd has launched its Internet Access Management (IAM) solution, Sangfor IAM v3.4. The company said the product features user authentication, web filtering, application control, bandwidth management, caching, Internet traffic reporting and logging.

The IAM solution delivers real-time network management with enhanced monitoring, control and optimization, noted Sangfor. The company added that it provides full network visibility to enable IT administrators to improve risk management. The system identifies, categorizes and logs the Internet users' access activities, bandwidth consumption and other related contents to enhance visibility. Based on analyses of reports on behavioral patterns of users and traffic, IAM can control and manage network traffic and optimize bandwidth utilization appropriately, continued Sangfor.

Sangfor said its IAM suite of solutions provide comprehensive controls over applications such as social websites, forums, IM, Email, online video, P2P and file transfer. Using its identification capabilities and full network traffic visibility, network administrators can manage and control Internet access more effectively, improve work efficiency, reduce risks of data loss, prevent copyright infringement and mitigate other risks caused by unauthorized Internet access, noted the company. Its web filtering and application control can help prevent accesses to inappropriate content. IAM identifies and categorizes millions of websites and applications, and provides flexible control policies to block targeted websites and applications, Sangfor added.

Sangfor IAM enables network administrators to control up to 96 kinds of IM tools including encrypted or unencrypted IM software such as MSN, Skype, Gtalk, MSNShell, Yahoo!, QQ, etc. Network administrators can block IM tools or allow IM chatting while blocking file sharing via IM. Sangfor's IM logging features enable IT to audit all IM chatting content to ensure full visualization of the network.

Sangfor IAM's Intelligent P2P Identification Technology can identify more than 30 P2P application protocols including BitTorrent, eMule, Thunder, etc. with deep packet inspection (DPI) capability, described the company. Real-time logging is among the highlights of the v3.4. It allows IT managers and administrators to generate a more accurate and precise networking map to better aid in data traffic and Internet security analysis, touted the company.

In addition, an upgraded web-based interface has been designed for IAM v3.4. "Previously, it would take our new engineers about 30 minutes to configure an IAM installation. Now they can reduce configuration time by as much as 30 percent," stated Frank Yang, regional manager, international division of Sangfor.