WAFS (wide area file services) software vendor Availl today clinched an OEM deal with security specialist Network Engines, showing yet again how WAFS technology is being deployed in conjunction with a range of products and services. (See Availl, Net Engines Sign Deal.)

Terms of the deal formalize a setup wherein Network Engines is licensing Availl's WAFS and CDP software and building it into its two-rack-unit-high NS Series device, a sort of branch office "God box" containing firewall, VPN, and Web-caching features. The newly equipped NS Series, in turn, is being sold to systems integrator Getronics, based in Amsterdam, which is selling the device as part of a globally available managed service offering for branch offices. (See Getronics Intros Service.)

Network Engines says other integrators will likely be added to the list of those offering the combined solution at an unspecified future date.

The Getronics Managed Branch service is specifically aimed at the financial sector, where firms are wrestling with the demands of regulations such as Sarbanes Oxley. (See Users Splash Cash on SOX, AMR Sees $6B in SOX Spending, and CA's Clarke: SOX Driving IM.) Files that are being worked on locally can also be replicated and archived at a central location, while providing extra security through firewalling and VPNs.

To read more, visit Byte and Switch.

— James Rogers, Senior Editor, Byte and Switch