V4 August 15,2006 Conversation Framework Application and Network Architects.

V4 August 15,2006

Conversation Framework

Application and Network Architects

2v. August 15, 2006

1. Opening the Conversation

• Open with the purpose of the meeting tailored to the needs of the application/network architect

• Overview the topics– The way things work today

– Inefficiencies today

– The future challenges

– The F5 approach

– Next steps

3v. August 15, 2006

2a. The Way it Works Today

MAIN IDEA: Application delivery architecture is designed to optimize the connection between business information and users in order to create the best user experience – Fast, Available, Secure.

Points to Make Questions to Ask

As we talk to application and network architects we hear some common objectives• They want to design a reliable and scalable

architecture to ensure fast, available and secure app delivery to end users

• They want to better anticipate and resolve app delivery problems before they occur

• They want to improve operational efficiency across applications

[Draw stick figures and write the words “fast, available, secure. Then write “Business information”]

How does that match with your objectives?

4v. August 15, 2006

2b. The Way it Works Today

MAIN IDEA: Let’s use the metaphor of a pipe, which transports information from raw data through applications to users. [Draw pipe with Servers, Apps, Portals, ISP’s, Client across the top]

Points to Make Questions to Ask

An application delivery continuum exists from business information to apps through servers, portals, ISP’s & various clients to the user.

Each element is critical to app performance.

[Write elements across top of pipe]

Note: As you go through the presentation, make check marks next to the areas that the customer has indicated are causing particular pain.

Other key elements?

5v. August 15, 2006

2c. The Way it Works Today

MAIN IDEA: Pressure is being applied to this pipe by a number of elements

Points to Make Questions to Ask

Key Elements affecting application delivery today are:*** Web-ification of apps *** (This is the Key Driver)

Rising user expectation and device complexity

Consolidation

Rising security demands

Distributed constituencies

[Add arrows and text pressuring pipe]

Other factors affecting the continuum in your company?

Which of these are most impacting your business?

6v. August 15, 2006

3. Inefficiencies in the way it works today

MAIN IDEA: Each component of the network forms a potential bottleneck adversely affecting app performance [Draw lines representing bottlenecks]

Points to Make Questions to Ask

The entire network is not well tuned for the demands of the new web apps

[SELECT 3-4 customer relevant “Limitations” or Impacts” from 3 Why’s content to illustrate and or create dialogue]

(Engage them on issues re: new package apps and their performance & security issues and ways the network is not well tuned for them)

App performance can be at risk causingUnder utilization of expensive appsUser abandonment Server and network cost overrunsInability to establish & enforce rulesUnanticipated downtime

(Get them to talk about the delivery problems they are experiencing and the impact on user experience & utilization)

7v. August 15, 2006

4. Future challenges

MAIN IDEA: As we look to the future the problem of application delivery will get worse

Points to Make Questions to Ask

Multiple approaches to app delivery brings complexity adding expense and slowing time to market for new apps

[Draw COMPLEXITY]

What issues of complexity are limiting agility?

Standards of security will only increase

[Circle SECURITY and add up arrow]

Where are new security standards affecting your app design?

SOA will bring a new traffic issues

[Draw SOA]

How will this impact your business

Access challenges will multiply with the proliferation of devices, geographic & constituent expansion

[Draw a new person and put a PDA in the new person’s hand]

What kind of access issues will you address in the near future?

8v. August 15, 2006

5a. How F5 Can Address The Problems

MAIN IDEA: F5 enables the network to address each of these potential bottlenecks with a new level of intelligence

For Servers: The addition of BIG-IP can address traffic flow to achieve 99.999% server uptime and free up the servers to serve.[If they currently use BIG IP for their app servers, start with their current experience and describe F5 capability]

Points to Make Questions to Ask

Address intelligence needed to manage server traffic• Virtualize Server Resources• Check Server Health• Minimize server cost by utilizing maximizing utilization of smaller number of servers• Automate database and application maintenance by leveraging iControl

[Erase constriction points near “SERVERS” and draw a solid line near the wall of the pipe at the top and bottom]

Dialogue about the issues with their servers that have come up earlier in the conversation. What other solution approaches have they tried?

Are you maxing out server and/or power capacity?

What taxes your servers the most? (SSL, Caching, Clustering Logic)

How do you perform application and/or database updates? Is it largely manual?

9v. August 15, 2006

5b. How F5 Can Address The Problems

MAIN IDEA: F5 enables the network to address each of these potential bottlenecks with a new level of intelligence.

Applications: F5 can bring consistent, reliable delivery of applications by offloading security, availability and acceleration functions.

Points to Make Questions to Ask

Address intelligence in the app• Application High Availability (HA)• Scalability and Virtualization of Resources• Offload processor intensive functions

– LTM Performance Packs– SSL Acceleration– Caching

• Application awareness and control on both inbound and outbound traffic.

– TMOS full proxy architecture– iRules

[Erase constriction points near “APPS” and draw a solid line near the wall of the pipe at the top and bottom]

Dialogue about the issues with their applications that have come up earlier in the conversation. What other solution approaches have they tried?

How do manage SSL currently?

Are you doing compression? If so, please describe how that works.

Are you having any issues scaling your applications? If so, which ones? Do you anticipate growth for these applications?

Do you have any problems with end client and application compatibility?

Distributed Users

10v. August 15, 2006

5c. How F5 Can Address The Problems

MAIN IDEA: F5 enables the network to address each of these potential bottlenecks with a new level of intelligence.

Portals: F5 can speed web app delivery 3X-7X.

Points to Make Questions to Ask

Address intelligence in the portal• Better bandwidth utilization

– Web Accelerator (Speed web application delivery 3-7x)

• Improve server performance and offload• Web Application Security• Network tuning for different implementations of TCP or UDP• Servers can get bogged down due to slow clients. BIG-IP brokers the connection to allow the server to unload its connection.

– TCP Express leveraging Server Buffering

• Intelligent Compression – Compressing everything can introduce latency, compress only when necessary.• Caching

[Erase constriction points near “PORTALS” and draw a solid line near the wall of the pipe at the top and bottom]

Dialogue about the issues with their portals that have come up earlier in the conversation. What other solution approaches have they tried?

Is portal performance unacceptable? Are you expanding these applications? How are these applications accessed?

Do you find incompatibilities between your clients and apps or between applications.

11v. August 15, 2006

5d. How F5 Can Address The Problems

MAIN IDEA: F5 enables the network to address each of these potential bottlenecks with a new level of intelligence.

For D.C.’s: F5 can optimize and dramatically improve traffic flow between data centers and users while addressing the challenge of DC synchronization/replication.

Points to Make Questions to Ask

Address intelligence between DC’s to enable seamless operation• Accelerate all applications• Data reduction, bandwidth savings (WANJet)• Global load balancing (GTM)• Disaster recovery, intelligent DNS (GTM)• Business policies drive DC utilization (GTM)• Address impending service oriented architectures (SOA)

– Virtualize distributed application components, group and serve them up as one application (HA and Performance)

[Erase constriction points near “DCs” and draw a solid line near the inside wall of the pipe at the top and bottom]

Dialogue about the issues with DC-to-DC traffic that have come up earlier in the conversation. What other solution approaches have they tried?

Do you have branch offices?

Do you have multiple data centers? How are you managing it? Automated?

12v. August 15, 2006

5e. How F5 Can Address The Problems

MAIN IDEA: F5 enables the network to address each of these potential bottlenecks with a new level of intelligence.

For ISP’s: We can ensure optimal traffic flow and cost efficiency through best performing ISP

Points to Make Questions to Ask

Address intelligence in utilizing ISP’s — making multiple ISPs look like one• ISP Link Virtualization (Link Controller)

– Link optimization– Integrated Rate Shaping– Link cost load balancing

• No Custom Router Tables Required (No BGP) • Puts control over your ISPs in your hands.

[Erase constriction points near “ISPs” and draw a solid line near the wall of the pipe at the top and bottom]

Dialogue about the issues with their ISP’s that have come up earlier in the conversation. What other solution approaches have they tried?

Do you have multiple ISPs? If not, you should.

If so, do you have trouble managing those links?Is it costly? Are you managing both in and outbound traffic?

Do you have challenges troubleshooting? Do you find that your ISPs don’t cooperate?

13v. August 15, 2006

5f. How F5 Can Address The Problems

MAIN IDEA: F5 enables the network to address each of these potential bottlenecks with a new level of intelligence.

For the Client: F5 Brings significant performance improvement at the client level through intelligent optimization of all interactions between the client, the network and the application.

Points to Make Questions to Ask

• Virus & Firewall Checking and End-Point Validation (FirePass)• Speed WAN traffic through Transparent Data Reduction (TDR) and synchronous traffic optimization (WANJet)• Increase performance through browser optimization (WebAccelerator)• Minimize latency induced by “chatty” applications• Servers can get bogged down due to slow clients. BIG-IP brokers the connection to allow the server to unload its connection.

– TCP Express leveraging Server Buffering

[Erase constriction points near the “CLIENT”.

Do you have remote employees? Contractors? Partners?

Where are they coming from? (Invite the customer to draw/map this out) Are they public or private users? Can you classify (e.g. from 1-5) which users and applications are the most critical?

Do they access your applications wirelessly?

Are there any applications that are performing poorly over the WAN?

14v. August 15, 2006

5g. How F5 Can Address The Problems

MAIN IDEA:F5 enables the network to address each of these potential bottlenecks with a new level of intelligence.

For Security: F5 brings a new level of security functionality to the network enabling unified policy enforcement in application delivery

Points to Make Questions to Ask

Address intelligence in providing security in the network• Enable SSL everywhere (not just on external facing sites). Performance no long inhibits full SSL on internal networks.• Flexible architecture to unify application security services• End point security, enforcement & auto-remediation• Integration with all major directory service solutions

[Draw a screen between the users and the pipe]

Dialogue about the application level security issues that have come up earlier in the conversation. What other solution approaches have they tried?

What is your disaster recovery (“Bird Flu”) plan?

How will your users access applications if they cannot physically come to work?

15v. August 15, 2006

5h. How F5 Can Address The Problems

MAIN IDEA: F5 enables the network to address each of these potential bottlenecks with a new level of intelligence.

All Together: Each product you add creates a new level of overall intelligence to the network enabling fast, available and secure flow of information to your constituent users

Points to Make Alternatives for Customer

Not only does each F5 product solve the individual traffic bottlenecks, they collaborate with one another and can be leveraged together.

Each F5 product adds collectively to the intelligence between the network and the application, further enhancing fast, available and secure application delivery.

In doing this F5 can help you• Design a reliable and scalable architecture to ensure fast, available and

secure app delivery to end users• Better anticipate and resolve app delivery problems before they occur • Improve operational efficiency across applications

[Draw solid lines inside the pipe and add a big arrow with F5 at the origin pushing through the pipe]

The alternative is many different products from many different vendors or a lot of code. Either option is very expensive to deploy and own, not to mention the delays that can get introduced.

16v. August 15, 2006

5i. Summary of How F5 Can Address the Problem

MAIN IDEA: The F5 solution set brings a new level of application intelligence to the network

Points to Make

F5 addresses most network bottlenecks with products on an integrated application delivery framework

F5 enables new levels of security policy enforcement necessary for distributed workforces

F5 brings the network both simplicity and functionality to ensure effective delivery across all apps

F5 brings highly cost efficient programmability to the network

F5 brings high availability enabling the network to respond immediately to component failures

17v. August 15, 2006

6. Advantages of the F5 platform

MAIN IDEA: F5 provides the best user experience possible from all access modes with an end to end approach

Points to Make about the Value of the F5 Solution

1. Better Predictability• Reduces the high cost of application development for security, performance & availability • Lowers network operational costs• Reduces risk (downtime, cost overruns, user abandonment)

2. More Flexibility• Provides a repeatable framework for future apps

3. Best ROI• Provides best possible user experience ensuring application ROI is realized

• Enables architects to solve problems faster for less money. With F5, a simple iRule can solve problems that would otherwise require millions of dollars of software, significant manual intervention or even an entire application overhaul.

18v. August 15, 2006

7. Next Steps-where can we add value?

MAIN IDEA:

Points to Make Questions to Ask

Summarize: F5 enables networks to optimize enterprise application performance-making them fast-available-secure

Test: Does this make sense?

Which elements are causing them the most difficulty?

Determine who on the network side should we talk to and which applications should we assess for performance improvement, or who should we address the security issues to?