Sun Microsystems, Inc.
has developed new technology, code named Sun.net Strategy, aimed at information
technology (IT) managers and Internet service providers (ISPs), which
provides quick, secure access to internal corporate intranet sites and
network services from any Internet-connected device.
Separately Sun also announced it acquired i-Planet, a private, software developer
of Java-based, enterprise networking solutions for remote access.
The company said Sun.net Strategy, slated for availability during the first
quarter of 1999, will employ secure remote access software from i-Planet’s, RemotePassage software, which
enables encrypted tunneling through the Internet.
Proprietary client
software is not necessary to make a secure connection, Sun said, because a
Java applet is downloaded on-demand at time of access, allowing any
available Internet-connected device to connect securely with the corporate
intranet.
Security is deployed through secure socket layer (SSL), RC5 technology
and Diffie/Helman encryption. When used with any existing security
infrastructure, this encryption provides an extra layer of security.
In addition to allowing employee access, the new software will enable
companies to give secure, direct access to customers, partners and
suppliers through the
corporate intranet, without any additional hardware and networking
costs.
The Sun.Net Strategy is also geared to accelerating performance for low
speed users by automatically
compressing files before downloading over the Internet or by sending files
directly from the server.
The software can access files or applications running on Solaris,
Windows NT, Novell, IBM AS400/3270 systems and any UNIX-based file system.
Since RemotePassage
is located in the network transport layer, Sun.Net is able to provide
detailed, centralized logs describing every activity of every Internet
user, necessary for performing audits, internal chargebacks, or customer
billing.
“This new technology will provide a secure, cost effective connection from
the public Internet to a
user’s personalized Web-top, without the costs normally associated with
building a virtual private
network-it’s true, ubiquitous access to corporate IT resources and your
virtual enterprise,” said Dr.
Stuart Wells, senior director of Sun’s Network Software products.
“Sun.Net is running internally at Sun as a pilot project and has
significantly lowered remote access costs while providing support for a
distributed workforce of 8,000 employees.”