Citrix Netscaler – All the editions explained
People are still in doubt when it comes to the different Citrix Netscaler platforms. They usually ask what the difference is between them. After that, they also have to choose which edition is best for them and their needs. In this article, I will explain the different platforms and also the difference between the editions, and what you should be aware of.
Netscaler VPX
VPX is a virtual appliance. You can run it on HyperV, VMware ESXi, and XenServer. With the ADC VPX, it is very easy to get started. You download the right image and import it into your hypervisor. You boot it up, give it an IP address and you can access the web interface. The Netscaler VPX is a good solution for small companies that needs to give remote users access to their applications. It can also help you if you need to load balance applications. Many wonder if this edition is powerful enough. It all has to do with your hypervisor. If it is overcommitted, your ADC will not perform very well. But if you give it the necessary resources, you can very far with this edition. If you need SSL offload on a significant scale, I will recommend you to take a look at a hardware edition.
Netscaler MPX
This is the hardware appliance. The difference between Netscaler VPX and MPX is that the MPX comes with a dedicated SSL offload chip build-in. If you are planning to use your Citrix Netscaler for SSL traffic and you wish to terminate your SSL sessions on it, it would be a good idea to consider the MPX edition. Another thing is that the Netscaler will have all the hardware for itself. This allows you to use Citrix Netscaler more intensively and leverage some of all the features it has.
Netscaler SDX
This platform is a hardware appliance that enables you to run virtual instances of Citrix Netscaler. At the time of writing, you can run up to 115 instances on one appliance. It is a very powerful appliance with a XenServer running inside. Since Citrix owns the whole stack, they have enabled the instances to penetrate the hypervisor layer and leverage the SSL chip that is also built in the SDX platform. The SDX appliance is used by hosting companies or large corporations that have the need for multiple Citrix Netscalers for different solutions in their organization.
Netscaler CPX
Citrix Netscaler CPX is a lightweight ADC made for containerized microservices architecture. Designed for developers, so they can create applications that make use of Citrix Netscaler technology. Citrix ADC comes with a full feature set, just as any other Netscaler edition.
Netscaler BLX
The Netscaler BLX edition is a bare-metal version of the Netscaler software that can be installed on Linux. This makes easy to deploy Netscaler on any hardware platform and also on any hypervisor. The Netscaler BLX can also be deployed on any Linux box running on any cloud vendor.