Dell Launches New Security Appliances for SMBs

Dell, already a go-to IT vendor for a great many small and midsize businesses, on July 28 introduced some new network and endpoint security appliances for SMBs co-developed with OEM partner Juniper Networks.

The Dell-branded Unified Threat Management product line for network security centers on the new Dell J-SRX Gateway, a do-it-all appliance that plugs into an IT system to handle multiple layers of security, including antivirus and anti-spam protection and intrusion detection.

The J-SRX, which comes in several versions to fit systems of different sizes, features a full suite of advanced network security services baked in.

The appliances provide firewall, VPN, intrusion prevention, anti-spam and antivirus protection, and Web filtering and are designed to replace legacy firewall or VPN devices, Dell Vice President Paulette Altmaier said.

For endpoint security, Dell is positioning its Kace K1000 Management Appliance as a lead-off product. The appliance handles a range of data life-cycle management duties, including system inventory, help desk and application deployment. Key security features include vulnerability assessment and remediation via patch management and configuration enforcement, Altmaier said.

The Kace box is also supposed to enable IT managers to more easily plan, execute and report on security compliance efforts on Windows and Mac operating systems. The K1000 includes the recently announced Dell Kace Secure Browser, which uses application virtualization to reduce Internet-based security risks.

Dell acquired Kace in February to add not only endpoint security but also application virtualization to its growing software portfolio.

According to Altmaier, Dell has established a partnership with SecureWorks, a global provider of information security services, to provide additional security services that will be available by the end of 2010.

Thus, Dell, Juniper Networks and SecureWorks have formed an alliance to provide Dell with security products and services in the future, she said.

"Previously, and currently, Dell's approach has been to offer all the major vendors [for security software], and we still do, but with our solution initiative as a company—and the security solution is very much an example of that—we are taking a strong Dell point of view," Altmaier told eWEEK.

"[The goal is] to provide a best-in-class offer, with ... Dell intellectual property as well as best-in-class partners. So we have a clear point of view with our overall solution strategy and with our security as well. This is because we've done the work to understand what midsize customers need, and we've targeted our solutions at the needs of midsize customers."