Profiles

Outlook Web Access (OWA) has become a very important part of Microsoft Exchange deployments. Many companies have implemented OWA to allow their users the ability to access their mail remotely. However to deliver an acceptable level of security many require SSL to be enabled. Deploying nCipher’s hardware SSL accelerators allows organizations to avoid the processor bottlenecks normally associated with SSL. Adding tamper-resistant hardware also protects SSL keys, securing against ‘eavesdropping’ and ‘spoofing’ attacks.

Outlook Web Access (OWA) is the Web-based version of Microsoft’s Outlook mail client. OWA builds complex Web pages on the fly. For example, displaying an inbox requires the transfer of nearly 80 objects. All these small-object transfers and the requisite rewriting of URLs require substantial processing power. Enabling SSL operations to meet the growing needs for privacy online – results in considerable processor loads on and can burden the CPU of the Microsoft Exchange Server. The addition of a nCipher nFast SSL Accelerator, to offload the cryptographic processing, enhances the Microsoft Exchange Server’s ability to manage high-volume real-time log-ins, thereby providing an improved user experience.

In addition to its acceleration capabilities, nCipher’s nForce hardware protects private SSL keys in highly secure hardware that meets the widely recognized FIPS 140 security benchmark. The nForce module provides an advanced level of protection for the private key – critical to maintaining the confidentiality of each SSL session and the integrity of the Web site’s identity. nForce delivers proven interoperability with the Microsoft IIS via the Microsoft CryptoAPI (CAPI) interface.