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nCipher nFast

nFast SSLHardware acceleration for SSL applications

nCipher nFast is a dedicated interface card that accelerates SSL processing. It enables you to handle high volumes of secure transactions more cost-effectively.

The secure sockets layer (SSL) processing required for secure transactions makes extraordinary demands on your IT infrastructure. Ever-increasing drains on processing power lead to escalating costs for additional hardware, software licenses, and IT administration.

nCipher nFast helps you avoid those costs by accelerating and handling SSL processes. This reduces the need for additional hardware as well as the associated software licenses, enabling you to extend SSL protection to more processes at a lower cost.

nCipher nFast is available in two options:

  • nCipher nFast SSL Accelerator: Processes SSL handshake operations
  • nCipher nFast SSL Offload: Processes incoming HTTPS connections through onboard network interface card
 

Benefits

  • Delivers cost-effective acceleration
  • Improves system performance
  • Lowers software costs
  • Integrates easily
 

Get certified

nCipher's training courses provides customers, partners, and developers with an overview of the nCipher key management and acceleration server based hardware.
Learn More »

 

Lower licensing costs
Reduces the need for additional CPUs or server software licenses to handle SSL workloads.

More resources for business applications
Offloads the SSL processing workload, making more computing power available for your business applications.

Ready for web services
Handles increasing demand for SSL traffic in service-oriented architecture (SOA) environments without adding servers or computing power.

Easy integration
nCipher nFast is standards-based for quick, cost-effective deployment. It also supports standard APIs and integrates out of the box with leading enterprise applications.

 

nCipher nFast SSL Accelerator

Operating systems

  • AIX
  • HP-UX
  • Linux
  • Solaris
  • Windows

Please contact the nCipher sales team for information on compatibility with specific OS versions and patch levels.

Third-party applications

For a more information on vendors providing applications compatible with nCipher hardware, please visit the nCipher Partners section.

Developer solutions

nCipher offers a range of developer solutions to integrate nCipher nFast SSL Accelerator into custom applications.

Hardware specifications

  • PCI interface
  • Full-height PCI card, 167.6mm length
  • 33 MHz, 32 bits
  • PCI 2.3 compliant
  • PCI 2.1, 2.2, and PCI-X compatible

Operating environment

  • Maximum power consumption for PCI: 1 amp at 5 volts
  • Temperature: 10-35 degrees Celsius
  • Relative Humidity: 10%-85%, non-condensing

Information on RoHS compliance

nCipher nFast SSL Offload

Operating systems

  • Linux
  • Solaris
  • Window

Please contact the nCipher sales team for information on compatibility with specific OS versions and patch levels.

Physical specifications

  • PCI v2.2 and PCI-X 1a interface up to 133 MHz
  • Operating voltage: +5 volts
  • Typical power consumption: 17 watts
  • Dimensions: 3.0” x 8.0” (76mm x 203mm)

Gigabit ethernet

  • Full-duplex 10/100/1000 RJ-45 Ethernet network interface
  • Handles IEEE 802.3 (RFC 1042) or DIX (RFC 894) frames
  • Supports IEEE 802.3, 802.3u, 802.3x, 802.3z, and 802.3ac

Ethernet

  • Supports MTUs up to 1500 bytes
  • Pass-through of IEEE 802.1q VLAN tags

Performance

  • Up to 10,000 RSA SSL handshakes per second (RSA 1024 bit)
  • 300 megabit full-duplex throughput

SSL encryption

  • Offloads all SSL/TLS processing including handshaking, record handling, and encryption
  • Compatible with SSL V3.0, TLS V1.0 (RFC 2246)
  • Stores up to 256 certificates
  • RSA (1024 to 4096 bit), ARC4 (compatible with RC4), DES, TripleDES, and AES

IP layer processing

  • Processes IPv4 (RFC 791) datagrams
  • Pass-through of IP header fields such as source/destination addresses and Type of Service (TOS)
  • Calculates and verifies header checksums
  • Supports limited ICMP messaging (RFC 792)
  • Non-SSL traffic can be passed through unaltered to host or blocked

TCP layer processing

  • Terminates TCP streams from clients and to servers (designated SSL/TLS connections)
  • Supports standard TCP functions per RFCs 793, 813, and 1122
  • Extracts/inserts SSL/TLS records
  • Supports transparent pass-through of non-SSL/TLS traffic
  • Segmentation and reassembly (including reordering)
  • Performs TCP port translation (source and/or destination)
  • Calculates/verifies pseudo-header checksums
  • Fast Retransmit/Fast Recovery (RFC 2581)
  • Round-Trip Time Estimation (Karn’s Algorithm)
  • Slow Start (RFC 896)
  • Window Scaling (RFC 1323)

Standards certification

  • Federal Communications Commission (FCC): CFR 47, Part 15, Subpart B, Class A
  • CE Certification: EN55022 Class A; EN55024-1; EN60950
  • Information on RoHS compliance
 

Related Resources

Case Studies


  • MSN Hotmail
    nCipher worked closely with MSN to develop and implement a highly scalable solution that reduced SSL bottlenecks.

Related Products


  • SSL Acceleration
    nCipher secure sockets layer (SSL) acceleration products boost performance while lowering overall security infrastructure costs. As a result, you can extend SSL protection across your enterprise, without causing bottlenecks.

Services

Related Data Sheets


  • nCipher nFast
    A dedicated interface card, nCipher nFast handles SSL processing in order to free up server capacity, reducing the need for additional servers and software.