Citrix updates NetScaler to tackle consumerisation headaches

Citrix is looking to deliver a platform which can help enterprises manage cloud computing platforms and applications on multiple devices.

Chief executive Mark Templeton said at the Citrix Synergy 2011 conference that the company's NetScaler and BranchRepeater platforms now provide support for a new platform known as AppFlow.

The platform allows network applications to better collect and analyse activity and transactions, providing enhanced visibility into data use and patterns, he said.

AppFlow, NetScaler and BranchRepeater will look to fulfil what Templeton sees as a fundamental shift in the way enterprises approach IT and data access.

Templeton pointed to the rise in consumerisation of IT hardware with tablets and handsets, along with the growth in web-based services, as parts of a much larger shift in the approach to enterprise computing.

"We think consumerisation will force more change over the next 10 years than any other trend," he said.

"Every single day we as consumers get a unique and exciting experience on the web that differs from the experience we get when we are using enterprise IT systems."

Templeton highlighted a series of 'bring your own' attitudes that have infiltrated areas such as hardware, services and even personal networks.

As such, he believes that vendors will need to offer network management and optimisation devices that move beyond simply managing application delivery, and into areas such as data and service management.

To help facilitate the transition, Citrix is updating its NetScaler platform to better manage data from services.

"NetScaler is this amazing product that has been focused on app delivery, but in this new world we have to start moving past application delivery," Templeton said.