Microsoft Corp. said on Monday it would begin selling network security software pre-installed on computers, taking aim at a market dominated by appliance security vendors. Microsoft said it is lining up hardware partners such as Hewlett-Packard Co. and Network Engines Inc. for its Internet Security and Acceleration (ISA) Server software, due to launch later this year.
Companies such as CheckPoint Software Technologies Ltd. and SonicWall Inc. have been longtime players in the market for security appliances, which are networked computers, often with self-updating and configuring software, plugged directly into networks to protect them from attacks and allow secure access over the Internet. Jonathan Perera, senior director at Microsoft"s security technology unit, said the software was designed to run right "out of the box" without complicated installations. "It"s really the first turnkey solution that we"re going to deliver to our customers as a security appliance," Perera said.