Virtualization Daily

Proofpoint, the developer of messaging security solutions, has reported their best quarter ever. In the quarter, they released their first virtual appliance and are considering it to be a key competitive advantage.

“Not only did we record our first sales of the Proofpoint Messaging
Security Gateway Virtual Edition within days of its introduction, but
Proofpoint’s overall virtualization strategy played a key role in closing
several large enterprise deals within Q3,” said Steele. “Proofpoint is the
only enterprise messaging security vendor that offers its solutions in a
virtual appliance form factor and this is proving to be an important
differentiator in today’s market.”

That sounds like a challenge to their competitors. In reality, all hardware appliance makers should be looking closely at the virtual appliance concept. Companies that chose the X86 hardware platform for their physical appliance will also have an advantage when it comes to actually creating a virtual appliance. Companies that chose another platform are going to have to port their application in order to create a virtual appliance, those on X86 just need to move it into a virtual machine and certify it. That’s going to be quite an advantage.