NetScaler Times newsletter for Week 22 - 2024
Andrew Scott
NetScaler Pre-Sales Specialist - Trying to make the complex stuff accessible to all. Talks about #NetScaler #Application Security #Loadbalancing #Cloud
Hello Everyone
It’s Andrew again over at Cloud Software Group. This NetScaler Times update aims to provide you with valuable pointers to keep you up-to-date! ????
I would greatly appreciate your continued engagement and feedback, my contact details are at the bottom of this newsletter.
Agenda for this week:
1. Build status and updates
The details for the various builds have been listed below, as this helps plan for new releases in your environment. Starting from 2023 for 14.1 there will be the following:
As shown below, 13.1 and 13.0 are now in the Maintenance phase.
Typically, the guidance for NetScaler & NetScaler Console(ADM) build releases is that the Management platform needs to be the same or newer than the NetScaler(s) that it manages. I typically, go with the latest for NetScaler Console.
The NetScaler has multiple form factors to support different environments. NetScaler is built on a single operating system with a software-based architecture, so the behaviour will be the same no matter which is used — hardware, virtual machine, bare metal, or container.
Current Build Versions:
Changes and updates
12.1 FIPS and NCcPP EOL dates
A correction in the above table. They are June 2025 and 31 Dec 2024 respectively.
NetScaler 13.1-37.183 FIPS Build
This update 13.1-37.183?replaces Build?13.1-37.176.
Build?13.1-37.176 and later builds address the security vulnerabilities described in?https://support.citrix.com/article/CTX584986.
NetScaler Console 14.1-26.35 build
Analytics
Bulk upgrade SSL virtual servers using the SSL A+ rating upgrade task
In Tasks, you can now view the SSL A+ rating upgrade task. The existing upgrade to A+ SSL rating process in App Dashboard enables you to upgrade only one application at a time. Using the SSL A+ rating upgrade task, you can do a bulk upgrade!
For more information, see Actionable tasks and recommendations.
Licensing
Live usage details in Flexed license reporting
In the Flexed License Reporting dashboard (NetScaler Licensing > Flexed Licensing > Reporting), you can now view the actual Bandwidth/Throughput usage that enables you to view the consumption details (peak usage and average usage). Earlier, the dashboard displayed only the allocation and entitlement details.
For more information, see Flexed License reporting
StyleBooks
Create NetScaler policy expressions in StyleBooks
The StyleBooks GUI now allows you to build NetScaler policy expressions by selecting items from lists, helping you to create expressions faster and more accurately. To make the policy expression editor available for a parameter, specify the is_policy_expression GUI attribute in the parameter definition of StyleBooks.
For more information, see Policy expressions in StyleBooks.
The release notes are here
2. Question of the week?
I was talking with a customer last week, they asked me a great question about GSLB.
Question: We have a two-site GSLB setup and we are going to the cloud baby! Well, they were going to have two new co-lo’s and two other cloudy zones added to their existing two-site setup. The result is going to be six DC’s. At some point in the future, the on-prem site will be retired.
They asked: Can we use GSLB to dynamically add further sites?
Response: Of course, GLSB can have up to 32 sites in a set. This will allow the GLSB setup to have new sites added and brought online as they become available. It also allows there to be some ‘take on testing and roll back’ should a problem come up. Also, in this design, the customer is using a public cloud provider, one option is to cycle those sites down to their lowest resource requirement and only send traffic there when the co-lo is getting hot. As everyone knows that cloud is great when its turned off!
You can read more here:
领英推荐
3. Support and Security bulletins
These are the latest articles on the support portal knowledgebase, sorted by modified date. Here are the 3 most recent security articles plus 4 recent support docs. The site is located here.
Security updates:
Support Docs
4. Events & Labs
Events
5 Webinars for May.
8 May: How to Streamline SSL Profile Transition with NetScalers SSL Profile Converter Tool
Transitioning from legacy to enhanced SSL profiles can be a daunting task for many users, often involving tedious manual processes and potential risks of misconfiguration. With NetScaler’s SSL Profile Converter Tool we aim to provide valuable insights on how to simplify and streamline the transition process. This can help alleviate the pain points and challenges faced by users, enabling them to efficiently and confidently migrate to enhanced SSL profiles, thereby enhancing security and performance while minimising downtime and potential errors. In this session, the NetScaler experts will cover: 1. SSL Profile entity within the context of network security. 2. Legacy vs Enhanced/Default SSL Profile and their adoption. 3. Why should one move from Legacy SSL Profile to Enhanced/Default SSL Profile. 4. Demonstrate how SSL Profile Converter works under the hood and from GUI perspective.
The event page is here.
15 May: Strengthen your security controls with NetScaler’s Next-Gen API
APIs are essential for businesses not just for their operational benefits but also for enhancing security through mechanisms like Role-Based Access Control (RBAC). RBAC ensures that only authorised users or systems have access to specific resources based on their roles and responsibilities, reducing the risk of data breaches, unauthorised access, and API abuse.
Additionally, enhancing application security by facilitating secure data exchange protocols and encryption standards enables businesses to implement robust security measures to protect sensitive data and ensure compliance with regulatory requirements.
NetScaler Next-Gen API is a powerful modern RESTful API that allows you to programmatically configure NetScaler in a simple and intuitive way. By following a desired state and application-centric approach it drives operational efficiency and innovation but also strengthens cybersecurity defences, making it an indispensable component of modern business strategies.
In this live session, the NetScaler experts will cover:?
The event page is here
20 May - Automating your network for operational excellence
Harnessing the potential of cloud technology can drive innovation and agility within organisations. Getting in the way are cumbersome workflows, manual tasks and human errors.?
Automation emerges as a solution, working to eliminate repetition, reduce errors, streamline workflows, and bolster security measures. From testing to production, enterprise IT teams are embracing automation technologies. NetScaler and Red Hat? Ansible? stand out as key enablers, offering supported solutions that pave the way for future-ready automation, empowering businesses to thrive in the digital landscape.
Join us in this webinar where we will talk to you about:
The event page is here
30 May : NetScaler Virtual Connect Monthly Webinar-
In this webinar, our NetScaler experts will cover:
EMEA/APJ event is here
The Americas event is here
Labs
Go here for the hands-on labs. Link
5. Feedback for this newsletter
Naturally, if something you feel should be added/removed or called out, drop me a note; [email protected]. All mistakes are mine.
I would happily get feedback on what you could do with seeing more of or what you find hard to set up. You can get all the previous newsletters plus other articles here:
Have a great week!