The growing momentum toward 10G network links brings with it major challenges—in particular, monitoring critical traffic in a high-speed, high-volume landscape. In most organizations, recording and inspecting all network traffic for threats and data leaks is vital to compliance and security. But such intensive pressures threaten to overwhelm and limit the effectiveness of the very devices that carry out the monitoring: traffic recorders and intrusion prevention and detection systems (IPSs and IDSs). Unable to keep up with increasing loads, these overburdened tools can put service-level agreements at risk and expose the network to threats. To deal with this problem, a company may have to invest in costly new tools that are engineered for the 10G environment. 

In response to customer needs for an cost-effective solution to this challenge, Net Optics developed xBalancer™—the first appliance in the industry built specifically to prevent tool overburdening by distributing the traffic load to multiple monitoring tools. xBalancer’s 24 SFP+ ports and integrated data rate conversion makes it ideal for balancing traffic from 10G links to multiple 1G tools. It can also aggregate traffic from multiple 1G and 10G links and distribute it to 1G or 10G tools.

Load Balancing Solves the Burden and Spares the Budget 

The logic of replicating 1G tools already at work in the IT environment is obvious. This ingenious, low-cost, and efficient approach optimizes existing resources by allowing multiple 1G tools to share the load caused by processing high traffic volumes.

xBalancer’s load-balancing capability splits traffic into multiple streams so that data can be processed by two or more tools working in parallel. It takes traffic from any network port or aggregated set of network ports and distributes it to two, three, four, or up to eight monitor ports for balancing according to IP address, port, protocol, VLAN, and MAC address, or other parameters. 

By enabling already-integrated 1G tools to fill an expanded role, xBalancer helps organizations handle increasing traffic volumes without investing in new 10G capital equipment. Not only does this minimize CAPEX, it also eliminates the operational expense of implementing the new tools and training users. Best of all, xBalancer dramatically raises the efficiency, security and availability of the network itself by reducing or bypassing IPS failures.


Purpose-Built to Share Devices Across Multiple Links and Solve Oversubscription 
The innovative xBalancer is engineered to distribute traffic to all manner of monitoring tools and relieve oversubscribed resources, including:
•    IPSs
•    Firewalls
•    traffic recorders
•    Web accelerators
•    application performance management devices
•    —and other inline appliances

The device allocates a traffic load dynamically ; with its 24 SFP+ 10g ports and integrated data rate conversion in a 1u form-factor, xBalancer enables two or more appliances to be deployed in parallel with traffic balanced between them—from 10G links to multiple 1G tools—as well as aggregating traffic from multiple 1G and 10G links and distributing it to 1G or 10G tools.

Unrivaled Performance, Flexibility and Versatility
xBalancer supports varied traffic monitoring configurations, such as any-to-any and many-to many port mapping and allows any port to be used for monitor or network. It enables both out-of-band (sniffing) monitoring for traffic recorders and IDSs, and in-band (inline) monitoring as for IPSs, firewalls, and application performance management devices. xBalancer can load-balance traffic to 1g and 10g tools, and it supports four inline appliances balanced across eight independent links. Other possible configurations include two independent modules, with each module balancing four appliances across two links; and four modules, with each balancing two tools across one link. 


Heartbeat Packets Reinforce Network Health
xBalancer’s advanced availability features encompass link-state awareness and Heartbeat packet assessment  for mission-critical monitoring . Heartbeat packets allow analysis of attached appliances and reallocation of traffic: If one tool fails, traffic is automatically distributed to remaining tools until the failed tool is repaired and back online. This minimizes loss of monitoring capability in most failure scenarios.


TapFlow™ Multi-Layer Filtering Engine
xBalancer offers TapFlow™ filtering technology—a unique capability that raises the efficiency of your monitoring tools and empowers them to handle more traffic, more links, and more protocols. TapFlow filtering sends to each tool only the traffic that addresses its particular purpose. With its ability to filter traffic at full 10 Gbps line speeds, TapFlow technology enables traffic to be selected according to IP source address, IP destination address, MAC source address, MAC destination address, source port, destination port, protocol, network port or port group, VLANprotocol, IP address, TCP/UDP port, VLAN, and others. 

Delivering Reliability and Economy
Net Optics supports xBalancer users with a one-tear manufacturer’s warranty and a service plan with up to seven years coverage, with an available advanced replacement option.

Doing Our Part
Net Optics is dedicated to ensuring user safety, and developing products that are environmentally friendly. xBalancer adheres to UL and CE safety certifications; FCC, VCCI, and C-Tick EMC certifications; and RoHS and WEEE environmental certifications.