Network Engines Scores Winner at Everton Football Club

Everton FC, one of the oldest and most famous football clubs in the world, was using a Windows® Server System running Windows NT 4.0 for its 180 users at its main Goodison Park stadium, football academy, training ground and Club store in Liverpool city centre. As more demands were placed on the original, outdated – and now unsupported network – Stephen Fell, the Everton FC Head of IT, decided to upgrade to the more flexible and feature-rich capabilities of Windows Server 2003 and Active Directory® services. He also determined that a platform running Microsoft Internet Security and Acceleration (ISA) Server would be the ideal proxy server to secure the network’s core web-facing applications including Exchange 2003.

On the recommendation of Ramesys, a local Network Engines partner, Everton FC deployed a Network Engines NS6400 Security Appliance, a hardened device powered by ISA Server to meet all of Fell’s requirements.

“Upgrading to a new OS is a difficult task but deploying a Network Engines appliance has taken away the pain in many ways,” said Fell. “Significantly, we deployed the NS6400 in a single day with little disruption to our 180-user network. But the real benefit is having all the features and functionality in a single box – ISA Server, hardened Windows Server 2003, seamless integration with Active Directory – while the automated patch and update service truly makes my life easier. The appliance is easy to manage and maintain and thus reduces the total cost of ownership.”

To support the demands of mobile employees working between sites at Everton FC, the NS6400 was configured to enable secure remote access to corporate data via Outlook® Web Access. “The multi-function capabilities of the Network Engines appliance – at such a competitive price – has to be the way forward for companies seeking to protect their networks while enabling mobile connectivity. Installed behind my perimeter firewall, all traffic goes through the appliance to protect our key Microsoft assets and enable our workforce to communicate more efficiently and securely,” concluded Fell.

“Network Engines appliances are a compelling solution to help enterprises develop and extend their IT infrastructure and communication capabilities without compromising safety and security,” said Gareth Green, General Manager, EMEA, Network Engines. “Everton FC has already experienced the cost and resource benefits of our appliances and can now take advantage of further features at no additional cost such as secure remote access to key applications.”

NS Series Security Appliances are a family of multi-function security platforms providing advanced application-layer firewall, VPN, and web cache functionality to maximize protection for core Microsoft infrastructure applications including Exchange Server, SharePoint® Portal Server, and Internet Information Services (IIS). Integrated with Websense® Web Security Suite(TM), the appliances are exceptional web proxies, accelerating access to frequently requested web content while blocking spyware, viruses, worms, and Trojan horses from infected websites.

About Everton FC

Everton Football Club is one of world football’s oldest and most celebrated names with an estimated fan-base of more than 500,000.

It is also one of Europe’s most successful with nine League Championships, five FA Cup wins and also a triumph in the European Cup-winners’ Cup.

Network Engines – THE Appliance Company

Network Engines appliances are designed to ease the deployment, enhance manageability, and increase security of mission-critical software applications. Our heritage of providing technology products and services tailored to the entire lifecycle of our customers’ appliances has made us the appliance partner of choice for software market leaders.

Founded in 1997, Network Engines is headquartered in Canton, Massachusetts and trades on the NASDAQ exchange under the symbol NENG. For more information about the company’s products and services, visit www.networkengines.com.