AON functions as a policy-enforcement point on the network. Its physical location is unimportant in terms of how it works because it isn't tied to any Cisco-specific technology. AON is a set of applications that run on Linux and act much in the same manner as a reverse-proxy load balancer or cache. The AON device accepts traffic bound for specific applications and applies policies to that traffic before routing it to its destination (see "Traffic Engineering" at right). AON could accept XML traffic and encrypt or decrypt the data, for example, before routing it to its destination, or perform any necessary Layer 7 protocol fix-ups, such as those often required between versions or implementations of FIX (Financial Information Exchange).
Only traffic directed at AON-managed services is delivered to AON devices. All other traffic flows normally and is unaffected by the presence of an AON blade, just as is true with Cisco's CSS (Content Services Switch) and CSM (Content Switching Module). Switch ports are assigned to the blade through the supervisor module; the blade has no ports of its own.
The advantage of an AON system and its multiple form factors is that it distributes XML processing and middleware messages throughout the network. AON deployments can be considered similar to JMS (Java Message Specification) endpoints, or brokers, which are distributed throughout an enterprise to achieve scalability. This setup is often implemented in enterprises and is well-understood.
The Stuff Of Admin Nightmares
Out of the box, AON supports two kinds of traffic: XML and middleware messages. It launched with support for IBM WebSphere MQSeries and TIBCO Software's Enterprise Message Service as well as XML, but through its software development kit, developers can add support for just about any transport or application protocol. Extensibility can be a great thing, but network administrators are likely to quash developer-written code on their routers. And therein lies the greatest strength and weakness of AON technology.
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