Managing application delivery and security infrastructure can be tricky. That’s exactly what it’s been like for many network teams dealing with migrations, deployment constraints, and inflexible traffic routing.
We’ve listened to what’s keeping you up at night: the headaches of migrations, the limitations of deployment options, and the need for smarter traffic steering. This release tackles these pain points head-on with three features that don’t just check boxes—they actually solve real problems you’re facing in production environments. Our new ADC 4.3 release is here to change that conversation.
iRules Compatibility for Seamless Legacy ADC Migration
If you’ve worked with enterprise load balancers, you’re likely familiar with iRules—those powerful TCL-based scripts that define custom traffic handling logic. Originally popularized by F5 ADC platforms, these scripts have become an incredibly flexible way to manipulate everything from HTTP headers to connection behaviors with custom code. They’re now a cornerstone of many organizations’ application delivery strategies. Many companies have hundreds, sometimes thousands, of custom iRules that took years to develop and refine. They represent significant institutional knowledge and business logic. Manually converting them? That’s a nightmare scenario. It’s error-prone, time-consuming, and frankly, a project delivery killer. One wrong conversion can break critical application logic, and nobody wants to be the person who took down production during a migration.
Our ADC device now natively supports legacy TCL-based iRules by intelligently converting them into Lua-based aRules. You can import your original TCL scripts directly into the system—whether they’re from F5, homegrown implementations, or other platforms—and it handles the heavy lifting of conversion. Once converted, you can export or save these aRules for deployment. Bottom line: faster migrations, fewer risks, happier stakeholders, and the ability to preserve your investment in existing business logic.
SSLO L2 Transparent Deployment Mode
Layer 2 (L2) transparent deployment is exactly what it sounds like—your security device sits transparently on the network at the data link layer, inspecting traffic without requiring IP address changes or routing modifications. Network changes make people nervous—and for good reason. When you’re introducing SSL orchestration and security inspection into a production environment, the last thing you want is a complex deployment that requires routing changes, IP reconfiguration, or significant network topology modifications. L2 transparent mode is the path of least resistance.
ADC SSLO now fully supports service chain configuration in Layer 2 transparent deployment mode. This works for TCP, UDP, Any, and HTTPS virtual services. You can insert SSLO into your network topology without the deployment gymnastics, and traffic flows through your security service chains transparently. This enhancement improves solution adaptability across diverse customer environments and removes a significant barrier to adoption. More deployment options means more customers can say “yes” to SSLO without the usual procurement and implementation friction.
Service Chain Selection Based on Content Switching Rules
Content switching is the art of routing traffic intelligently based on what’s actually in the packets—not just where they’re coming from or going to. At Layer 4, this means looking at transport-layer characteristics like source/destination IPs and ports. It’s about making smart routing decisions based on traffic attributes rather than applying one-size-fits-all policies. Different traffic types need different security treatment, even when accessing the same services. Without granular service chain selection, you’re stuck with blanket policies that either under-protect some traffic or create unnecessary bottlenecks for others.
ADC 4.3 introduces Layer 4 content switching rules for service chain selection. You can now define matching conditions based on transport-layer attributes and route traffic to appropriate service chains accordingly. The system evaluates L4 characteristics and makes intelligent steering decisions in real-time. It’s more efficient—you’re not wasting inspection resources on low-risk traffic. It’s more secure—high-risk traffic gets the scrutiny it deserves. And it’s more flexible—you can tailor security enforcement to specific scenarios, user populations, or compliance requirements.
The capabilities remove barriers to migrating away from other ADC platforms. The L2 transparent mode expands where and how you can deploy SSLO. And content-based service chain selection gives you the precision control that modern security demands. Together, these features make ADC 4.3 a significant step forward in making application delivery and security orchestration less painful and more powerful. For more details, reach out to Hillstone Networks representative.
