News

posted on 28 February 2008 13:44

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Cisco and Microsoft have inked a deal that says Cisco's remote office/branch office Wide Area Application Services (WAAS) product will run Windows Server 2008. This is an update on existing WAAS product print and domain name-serving type capabilities.

WAAS is a wide area file services (WAFS) product that accelerates application data delivery from a central data centre to remote office/branch office (ROBO) locations enabling them to virtually dispense with local servers and IT admin staff and access consolidated IT resources across a widea area network link as if they were, in fact, local.

Cisco and Riverbed are the leading networking suppliers in this market.

Cisco will offer Windows Server 2008 preinstalled on its new virtualized Cisco WAAS appliances that are scheduled to be available later this year. It will embed a virtualisation component within its Wide Area Application Services (WAAS) appliance family that will help customers to host Windows Server 2008 services within their existing network infrastructure for branch offices.

The idea is that customers can help ensure branch end-user performance for accessing centralised data centres and applications, while efficiently deploying locally critical Windows Server 2008 services, all through a common remote IT platform. The Windows Server 2008 services that will be offered as part of Cisco WAAS platforms initially include Domain Name System (DNS), Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP), Active Directory, and Print Services.

Cisco and Microsoft will offer joint support to customers for this product.

Microsoft's Bob Muglia, SVP Server and Tools Business division, said: "The technologies ... will help boost performance and availability by making critical Windows Server 2008 services available to remote offices through integration with Cisco's WAAS solution."