Description

The F5 BIG-IP LTM i2800 Series is a high-performance application delivery and traffic management appliance designed to help organizations deliver applications faster, more reliably, and with greater control.

Powered by the F5 BIG-IP platform and BIG-IP Local Traffic Manager (LTM) technology, the i2800 provides intelligent management of application traffic at Layers 4–7. It can distribute connections across application servers, monitor server availability, optimize traffic handling, and provide SSL/TLS processing capabilities. F5 describes its iSeries platform as providing intelligent local and global traffic management, application availability, performance optimization, crypto offload, and granular traffic visibility.

Key Features

• Brand: F5
• Series: BIG-IP iSeries
• Model: i2800
• Product Type: Application Delivery Controller (ADC)
• Module: BIG-IP Local Traffic Manager (LTM)
• Layer 4/Layer 7 Traffic Management
• Up to 10 Gbps L4/L7 throughput
• Up to 650K L7 requests per second
• Up to 250K L4 connections per second
• Up to 1 million L4 HTTP requests per second
• Up to 14 million concurrent L4 connections
• Hardware-accelerated SSL/TLS processing
• Hardware compression up to 5 Gbps
• 64-bit TMOS software architecture
• TurboFlex performance profile support

Intelligent Application Traffic Management

BIG-IP LTM enables organizations to make intelligent decisions about how application traffic is handled.

Instead of simply forwarding packets between network devices, LTM operates at the application-delivery layer and can use configured policies and application information to control traffic.

This makes the i2800 suitable for environments where applications require:

• High availability
• Load balancing
• Traffic optimization
• Server health monitoring
• Application scalability
• Centralized traffic control

F5 specifically positions BIG-IP LTM for everything from basic load balancing to complex application traffic-management decisions.

High-Performance Load Balancing

One of the primary uses of BIG-IP LTM is distributing application traffic across multiple backend servers.

The i2800 can help prevent individual servers from becoming overloaded by distributing incoming connections according to configured traffic-management policies.

This architecture is particularly useful for:

• Web server farms
• Enterprise applications
• E-commerce platforms
• Customer portals
• Business applications
• API services
• Data-center applications

Layer 4 and Layer 7 Processing

The i2800 is designed for both Layer 4 and Layer 7 traffic processing, allowing organizations to manage traffic based on network and application-level characteristics.

F5 specifies up to 10 Gbps of L4/L7 throughput, with performance of up to 650,000 L7 requests per second and 250,000 L4 connections per second.

This makes the platform appropriate for applications where traffic-management requirements extend beyond basic network routing and switching.

High Concurrent Connection Capacity

The i2800 supports up to 14 million concurrent Layer 4 connections, providing substantial capacity for environments with large numbers of simultaneous users and application sessions.

This can be particularly valuable for:

• High-traffic websites
• Enterprise portals
• Customer-facing applications
• E-commerce services
• Large internal applications
• Multi-user business platforms

SSL/TLS Offload

The i2800 provides hardware-accelerated SSL/TLS processing to reduce the processing burden associated with encrypted application traffic.

F5 specifies:

• ECC: up to 3.5K TPS using ECDSA P-256
• RSA: up to 4.3K TPS using 2K keys
• Bulk encryption: up to 8 Gbps

SSL/TLS offloading can allow backend application servers to dedicate more resources to application processing while the BIG-IP platform handles supported cryptographic operations.

Hardware Compression

The i2800 provides hardware compression up to 5 Gbps, according to F5’s current platform specifications.

This capability can help optimize supported application traffic and reduce the amount of data transmitted across network connections.

Server Health Monitoring

BIG-IP LTM can monitor application-server availability and use health information when determining where traffic should be directed.

If a backend resource becomes unavailable, configured traffic-management policies can prevent new traffic from being directed to that resource.

This helps organizations build more resilient application delivery architectures.

High Availability

The i2800 can be deployed as part of a redundant BIG-IP architecture for applications where service continuity is important.

Organizations can use redundant application delivery infrastructure to reduce the impact of hardware or service failures and maintain access to critical applications.

TurboFlex Technology

The i2800 supports F5 TurboFlex performance profiles, which use hardware acceleration for selected functions. F5 identifies the i2800 as supporting a Tier 1 TurboFlex profile.

F5 also notes that TurboFlex profiles are associated with hardware-accelerated features and depend on the applicable module licensing and provisioning.

64-bit TMOS Architecture

The i2800 uses F5’s 64-bit TMOS software architecture, providing the underlying platform for BIG-IP services and traffic-management functionality.

The specific features available on an installed appliance depend on the BIG-IP software version, licenses, modules, and configuration.

Enterprise and Data-Center Applications

The F5 BIG-IP i2800 is suitable for a variety of professional environments.

Web Application Delivery

Distribute incoming web traffic across multiple servers to improve application availability and scalability.

Enterprise Applications

Provide centralized traffic management for internal business applications.

E-Commerce

Support high-volume online services where application availability and traffic distribution are critical.

Data Centers

Deploy as an application delivery layer between network infrastructure and backend application servers.

Customer-Facing Services

Help maintain availability for portals, websites, APIs, and other externally accessible applications.

Server Farms

Manage traffic across multiple application resources while monitoring backend availability.

Key Benefits

High Performance

Up to 10 Gbps L4/L7 throughput provides substantial capacity for enterprise application delivery.

Application-Aware Traffic Management

LTM provides control over traffic at both Layer 4 and Layer 7.

High Connection Capacity

Up to 14 million concurrent L4 connections supports demanding multi-user applications.

SSL/TLS Offload

Hardware acceleration can reduce the processing requirements associated with encrypted traffic.

Application Availability

Health monitoring and intelligent traffic distribution can help maintain access to backend applications.

Scalable Architecture

Suitable for growing enterprise application environments that require centralized traffic management.

Enterprise-Class Platform

Designed for professional data-center and enterprise application delivery deployments.

Technical Specifications

Specifications above are based on F5’s current BIG-IP platform documentation. Actual performance can vary according to traffic profile, configuration, enabled services, software version, and licensing.

Product Summary

The F5 BIG-IP LTM i2800 Series is a professional Application Delivery Controller (ADC) designed for organizations that need reliable, high-performance application traffic management.

With up to 10 Gbps L4/L7 throughput, 650K Layer 7 requests per second, 250K Layer 4 connections per second, 14 million concurrent Layer 4 connections, hardware-accelerated SSL/TLS processing, and hardware compression, the i2800 provides a strong platform for enterprise application delivery and data-center workloads.