WatchGuard Releases New Update to XTM Operating System
New Release of WatchGuard Fireware XTM 11.6 Provides Advanced Management Features that Security Professionals Need in Order to Get Maximum Value from Next-Generation Firewalls
SEATTLE, July 9, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- WatchGuard® Technologies, a global leader in manageable business security solutions, today unveiled its latest release of the operating system that forms the backbone of the award-winning family of WatchGuard XTM security solutions - WatchGuard Fireware XTM 11.6. In particular, this new release includes substantive performance and management enhancements that help administrators define, review and enforce network policies.
"Today, having strong security is not enough. Industry and regulatory compliance require next-generation firewalls to also include rich reporting and policy management capabilities," said Roger Klorese, Director of Product Management at WatchGuard Technologies. "With this new release of Fireware XTM, WatchGuard continues to push the envelope by giving administrators powerful tools to see what is going on in their network, as well as rich policy controls that give them new abilities to quickly and easily create and enforce security policies."
WatchGuard Fireware XTM - Making Policy Easy with Superior Manageability
Fireware XTM 11.6, which is available for all WatchGuard XTM models, delivers the following key enhancements:
-- Simple definition of user rules in Citrix and Terminal Services.
Fireware XTM 11.6 has been updated to provide single sign-on so that
users coming through Citrix XenApp or Microsoft Terminal Services
environments don't require any additional authentication steps.
-- Authentication improvements. WatchGuard user authentication page has
also been updated to support smart phones (Android, iPhone, Windows
Mobile), enabling mobile users to be identified for use in policy
management and reporting.
-- Updated in the cloud services. Reputation Enabled Defense, the powerful
cloud-based URL reputation service that protects web users from
malicious web pages, has been updated to include new phishing and
malware information feeds from PhishTank and MalwareDomainList.
-- Scalability and performance. Firewall throughput has been increased on
all XTM 5 and 8 Series models, by as much as 50 percent in some cases.
-- Compliance reporting in Report Manager. Report Manager has been updated
to include a dashboard and a single set of reports for both PCI and
HIPAA. It now provides easy one-click access to information needed for
compliance requirements.
-- Increased VLANs. The number of VLANs on XTM 3, 5, and 8 Series platforms
has been increased.
-- VPN diagnosis improvements. Fireware XTM 11.6 provides new diagnostic
capabilities that help users to troubleshoot VPN interoperability and
connectivity issues.
-- Preview of policy enhancements. Fireware XTM 11.6 introduces new tools
to help simplify the understanding and maintenance of policies as
defined on the firewall.
-- On-line Policy Checker. Helps to quickly simulate and understand how
traffic is handled through the firewall. Users can enter IP address
and port combinations to determine which firewall rule is triggered
and whether traffic will be allowed.
-- Graphical representation and print option for configuration.
Easy-to-read and simple-to-print policy view of the Fireware XTM
configuration is useful for sharing with management.
-- LDAP: Test and diagnose Active Directory and LDAP connections and
verify group membership information.
Additional enhancements also include:
-- User authentication auto redirect page can be configured to point to a
specified hostname, enabling customers to use commercial CA signed
certificates for users.
-- WebBlocker URL database updates are scheduled to occur automatically
every 24 hours, avoiding the need to set up a scheduled task.
-- IPSec Pass-through works with Static NAT, enabling branch office tunnels
to be built from remote sites to routers behind the WatchGuard firewall.
Pricing and Availability
WatchGuard Fireware XTM 11.6 is available now for free for customers with current LiveSecurity service. For more information, please go to http://www.watchguard.com.
About WatchGuard Technologies, Inc.
Since 1996, WatchGuard® Technologies, Inc. has been the advanced technology leader of business security solutions, providing mission-critical protection to hundreds of thousands of businesses worldwide. The WatchGuard family of wired and wireless unified threat management appliances, messaging, content security and SSL VPN remote access solutions provide extensible network, application and data protection, as well as unparalleled network visibility, management and control. WatchGuard products are backed by WatchGuard LiveSecurity® Service, an innovative support, maintenance, and education program. WatchGuard is headquartered in Seattle and has offices serving North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, and Latin America. To learn more, visit http://www.watchguard.com/.
WatchGuard is a registered trademark of WatchGuard Technologies, Inc. All other marks are property of their respective owners.