Accellion: No File Is Too Big For New File-Transfer Appliance

Accellion Inc. rolled out a new file-transfer appliance today that's designed to give businesses a more efficient and secure way of using the File Transfer Protocol to move large files over their networks.

Using the Courier Enterprise File Transfer Appliance, businesses can send files of any size to recipients at any location in the organization, Accellion says. For example, an employee can offload an attachment directly from a Microsoft Exchange server by clicking on a link that is generated once an E-mail with the attachment has been sent. "This allows companies to save on capital expenditure and increase performance because there's only one copy [of a large file] traveling through the network," says Brian Babineau, an analyst at research firm Enterprise Strategy Group.

Companies often have to dedicate special FTP servers to moving files. But the appliance is capable of handing all file transfers and eliminates the need for FTP servers, Accellion says. It helps companies avoid clogging up their E-mail systems with replicated files, Babineau says.

Files are transferred through secure links and recipients are authenticated, which allows only the correct recipients to access the files. "Accellion's ability to decouple the message from the attachment and leverage that technology in the security market is fairly unique," says Babineau. This is essential for complying with regulatory mandates like Sarbanes-Oxley and the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, he says.

Accellion's Courier Enterprise File Transfer Appliance is designed for multisite and high-volume users and includes integration with Outlook and Lotus clients. Also available is the Courier Standard File Transfer Appliance, designed for single-site and medium-to-high volume users.