Blue Coat joins the VMware technology alliance

Blue Coat Systems announced that it has joined the VMware Technology Alliance Partner (TAP) program. The VMware TAP program is designed to enable technology vendors to integrate their products with VMware virtualization software and deliver timely, joint solutions to mutual customers.

Blue Coat PacketShaper appliances deliver application accountability for the VMware View solution with granular visibility, enhanced intelligence and integrated policy-based control that optimizes delivery over the Wide Area Network and improves user experience. The ability to ensure that the network traffic generated by a VMware View deployment adheres to corporate IT policies enables enterprises to capitalize on the cost advantages of deploying virtual desktops across distributed organizations without incremental investments in bandwidth.

“Blue Coat PacketShaper appliances help network architects and managers design a network environment that can efficiently and effectively support the VMware View solution, enabling enterprises to successfully deploy virtual desktop technology across a distributed network,” said Bernie Mills, senior director, alliances programs at VMware. “We are pleased that the combination of the Blue Coat solution with VMware View is helping deliver added value to customers through lower capital and operating expenses.”

Virtual desktops are characterized by interactive, real-time traffic that can be difficult to accelerate with traditional WAN optimization techniques like caching and protocol optimization. Performance bottlenecks often result when real-time screen changes, such as typing or the movement of a mouse, are interrupted by other applications running on the network. These real-time interactions, which require changes to be communicated and instantaneously reflected, share the WAN with other business and recreational applications. When there is congestion or latency on the network, the resulting end user experience can be poor.

Blue Coat PacketShaper appliances address this by identifying specific operations within the VMware View solution, including configuration and login as well as normal desktop usage. With this granular visibility, IT managers can apply targeted policy-based controls, including bandwidth management and application prioritization, to ensure the quality and consistency of virtual desktop instances.

“Virtual desktop technology holds significant promise as a game changer for enterprise IT,” said Nidal Taha, Regional Director for ME and Turkey, Blue Coat Systems. “PacketShaper appliances provide the visibility, intelligence and control that IT managers require to fully realize that promise.”

Blue Coat PacketShaper appliances deliver application accountability through the discovery, management and control of more than 600 applications while monitoring more than 100 metrics for each. This granular visibility and intelligence enables network managers to limit the impact of recreational applications and optimize the performance of business critical applications by applying policy-based controls, such as bandwidth guarantees and limits, prioritization and other quality of service mechanisms.

With more than 1,000 members worldwide, the VMware TAP program works with best-of-breed technology partners to provide them a comprehensive set of VMware technical and marketing services, support, tools and expertise to deliver enhanced value to joint customers.