Juniper Networks has extended the functionality of its Junos network operating system with the inclusion of a range of embedded security applications.

Junos is used across all Juniper platforms to provision and operate the firm's switches and routers.

The addition is part of Junos 9.5, due to be released on 15 May. It provides Juniper routers with integrated content security, including unified threat management, intrusion prevention, anti-virus, anti-spam and web filtering.

Juniper has outsourced some of the features to other vendors, namely Kaspersky for the anti-virus, Symantec for the anti-spam and Websense for the URL filtering, but the rest has been developed in-house.

"Rather than reinventing the wheel, Juniper is taking the best core engines available and embedding them within Junos, making it cheaper and easier to implement good security no matter what the size of the network," said Alex Gray, senior vice president and general manager of the branch business unit at Juniper.

Gray claimed that this not only makes it cheaper by removing the need for extra appliances to be bought and integrated into the network, but simplifies management as the controls are all tightly integrated into Junos, which is used in the entire range of its products.

Furthermore, all the licensing, patching and updating is handled through Juniper, negating the need for multiple contracts with various security vendors.

The move builds on Juniper's previous addition of firewall and virtual private network functionality to its routers last year.