Microsoft Internet Security and Acceleration Server 2004 is the advanced application-layer firewall, VPN, and Web cache solution that enables customers to easily maximize existing IT investments by improving network security and performance.

A member of the Microsoft Windows Server System™, ISA Server 2004 is a secure, easy-to-use, cost-effective solution that helps IT professionals combat new and emerging security threats. www.microsoft.com/isaserver
Microsoft Internet Security and Acceleration (ISA) Server 2004 provides advanced protection, ease of use, and fast and secure access for all types of networks.

What’s New in ISA Server 2004
ISA Server 2004 contains a full-featured, application-layer-aware firewall that helps protect organizations of all sizes from attack by both external and internal threats. ISA Server 2004 performs deep inspection of multiple Internet protocols, such as HTTP, which enables it to detect many threats that traditional firewalls cannot detect.

ISA Server 2004 provides unique levels of protection for Microsoft Outlook® Web Access, including:

A Web publishing rule that enforces secure forms-based authentication.

Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) decryp­tion , enabling SSL traffic to be inspected for malicious code.

Multifactor authentication ,providing authentication whether the remote mail scenarios use Remote Authentication Dial-In User Service (RADIUS) or RSA SecurID.

Attachment blocking and session timeout so that users’ e-mail sessions cannot be left open indefinitely for others to use.

The integrated firewall and virtual private network (VPN) architecture of ISA Server 2004 support stateful filtering and inspection of all VPN traffic. It also provides VPN client inspec­tion for Windows Server 2003-based quarantine solutions, helping to protect networks from attacks that enter through a VPN connection.

In addition, a completely new user interface, wizards, templates, and a host of management tools simplify setup, deployment, and management, helping administrators avoid common security configuration errors.

Advanced Protection
The application-layer security built into ISA Server 2004 is particularly well suited for protecting networks that are running Microsoft applica­tions, such as Microsoft Internet Information Services, Microsoft Office SharePoint® Portal Server, Routing and Remote Access Service, Active Directory® directory service, and others. Key capabilities include:

Multi-layer inspection provides comprehensive and flexible policies to control application-specific traffic with application, command, and data-aware filters. By intelli­gently filtering VPN, HTTP, FTP, SMTP, POP3, DNS, H.323 confer­encing, streaming media, and RPC traffic, ISA Server 2004 can accept, reject, redirect, and modify traffic based on its contents.

Advanced application layer filtering helps protect user information by performing deep HTTP stateful inspection, with the extent of the inspection configured on a per-rule basis. This approach enables administrators to config­ure custom constraints for both inbound and outbound access.

Unified firewall and VPN policy management, deep content inspection, and VPN quarantine integration make it easier to secure inbound traffic and protect your network from inside attacks through VPN client access control.

Integrated multi-networking capabilities, network templates, and stateful routing and inspectioncapabilities enable you to deploy ISA Server 2004 into existing IT environments as an edge, departmental, or branch office firewall without changing your network architecture.

Easy to Use
An all-new user interface and sim­plified management tools provide unified VPN and firewall manage­ment through a robust visual policy editor. ISA Server 2004 also comes with intuitive network templates, automated wizards, and enhanced troubleshooting tools. Together, these ease-of-use features can lower the cost of ownership and help you avoid security configuration errors. With ISA Server 2004, you can:

Shorten ramp-up time for new security administrators with easy-to-use management tools that will help prevent security breaches due to firewall misconfiguration.

Minimze network access down­time by enabling administrators to securely and remotely manage firewall and Web cache services.

Save on bandwidth costs by reducing outbound Internet traffic and serving the content of your Web servers and e-commerce applications closer to your customers.

More easily secure corporate applications, users, and data because ISA Server 2004 integrates with Active Directory, third-party VPN solutions, and other infrastructure components.

Easily obtain support and information from the thriving community of partners, users, and Web resources that support ISA Server 2004.

Fast and Secure Access
ISA Server 2004 enables you to connect users to relevant informa­tion on your network in a high-speed and cost-effective manner. With ISA Server 2004, you can:

Provide fast, secure, anywhere/ anytime access to corporate applications and data, such as e-mail, calendar, and contact information stored on Microsoft Exchange Server.

Establish a safe, reliable, and high performance infrastructure for both inbound and outbound Internet data access.

Offer users the convenience of a single sign-on,with multiple Internet-standard authentication mechanisms to verify user identity.

Further enhance security with an integrated, single-server solu­tion that puts only the necessary services—such as firewall security, VPN, and Web cache— at the edge of the network.

Scale out your security infra­structure as your networking needs grow by taking advantage of the flexible, multi-network architecture of ISA Server 2004.

Ideal for Businesses of All Sizes
Through its integrated firewall, VPN, and caching solution, ISA Server 2004 offers small- and medium-sized businesses a great way to leverage their investment in Microsoft tech­nology. Typically, these businesses have few IT resources. ISA Server enables them to meet their network security and business needs in a cost-effective manner.

For large enterprises, ISA Server 2004 helps protect and extend their investment in Microsoft technology. ISA Server 2004 is also well suited for branch offices, enabling compa­ nies to save money by using a single configuration and management point for security and connectivity.

Enabling employees outside the network to access their corporate e-mail and data, as well as controlled areas of the corporate network
Enabling partners to access only selected information within the corporate network
Enabling branch offices to communicate with the main office or each other in a secure and cost-effective manner
Controlling and monitoring employee Internet browsing
Boosting network performance through caching
Protecting employee desktops from malicious Internet traffic