Radiant Systems case study

Background

Radiant Systems is a business leader in the point of sale technology industry, providing innovative, easy to use technology to retail and hospitality businesses of all sizes. With hardware and software products deployed in 100,000 sites across more than 100 countries, Radiant allows their customers to grow their top line by focusing on point of sale, self-service kiosk, ecommerce, and back office technologies that redefine the customer experience and enhance revenue drivers including speed of service, customer loyalty, higher sales per visit, and order accuracy and loss prevention.

Nearly 1100 people are employed by Radiant Systems with several branch offices worldwide. The data center in Dallas employs eight full-time employees responsible for ensuring that the 76 physical servers and 600 virtual servers operate efficiently and securely at all times. Given the nature of the service provided by Radiant Systems, there is no room for failed connections or gaps in security.

The Challenge

Radiant Systems has been growing steadily over recent years and needed a security solution that would grow with them while providing their customers with the most uptime, fast data throughput, consistency, and unmatched security. When Steven Holmes, Senior Manager for Data Center Operations, started with the company they were using Cisco Pix appliances in their data center. Being familiar with the product, he knew that they wouldn't be able to handle the rapidly growing data center he envisioned. Holmes explains, "My vision for the company is to bring other wings of the company into this one, because we know data centers. We know how to run them and we know how to secure them."

With an eye on growth, Radiant needed to address the network issue at the heart of their business - securing customer data. Radiant's clients deal in sensitive information that needs to be transmitted reliably and effectively while adhering to industry compliance regulations, such as PCI. Holmes says, "We've got a lot of different traffic, POS, DBS, and FTP - a lot of sensitive data coming from a lot of different places." With several PCI environments to consider as well as VPN connections handling 6 billion dollars in transactions for some of the world's biggest restaurant chains and other businesses, Radiant needed a solution that would provide stellar performance with seamless security.

The WatchGuard® Solution

Radiant Technologies has consistently upgraded their network security solution over the years to keep up with their demanding environment. Initially, the Pix appliances were replaced by WatchGuard Firebox® X Peak™ 1250e devices, followed by Peak 5500e boxes, which satisfied their needs until recently. With the release of the XTM 1050, Holmes knew he'd found the solution that would see the company through the growth he had in mind. He explains, "When we dropped in the Beta version of the XTM 1050 we all said, 'Now this is a firewall,' they were just awesome. The 1050s are really beefy, really good boxes." With two XTM 1050 appliances in place and two more on the way, Radiant is ready to take on any and all performance and security issues with confidence.

Benefits

Having been loyal WatchGuard customers, the benefits of WatchGuard appliances were well known to those who run the Radiant data center in Dallas. The implementation of the XTM 1050 device continues to make their lives easier where network security and compliance issues are concerned. High performance, enterprise-class security, and easy, intuitive management add up to provide a network security solution with a bevy of benefits.

PCI Compliance without the Headache

From what has been learned over the last few years concerning the security of consumer credit card data, Point of Sale providers must now adhere to stringent PCI regulations enforced by annual audits. According to Holmes, WatchGuard appliances make the audit process virtually pain free, he explains, "We have quite a few PCI environments and with the WatchGuard appliances, adherence really isn't a problem; once the auditors see what the firewall is doing and how versatile they are and how tightly you can control them, there's no issue." Thanks to multiple port options, setting up the virtual environment for compliance is a breeze. Holmes says, "Everything in the virtual environment runs through the firewall and with the 1050 you've got 14 different port options. You can pick and choose. Really the 1050 makes PCI a snap. You don't need to add an additional application firewall or anything else; you have one firewall that can handle everything."

Performance Reaches New Heights with the XTM 1050

The XTM 1050 provides enterprise-class performance and security for the most demanding environments - a perfect fit for Radiant Systems says Holmes, "We were really hammering the Peak 5500e units we had in place; we were making them breathe pretty hard. When we started testing the Beta version of the XTM 1050 we were thoroughly blown away by the performance. After a couple of days, we threw them into production and they didn't even break a sweat. The performance I can get out of these boxes is amazing. They're monsters. Our connections doubled overnight and our capacity has more than tripled." Impressed by the stellar performance of the initial test run, Holmes decided to add two more XTM 1050 appliances with the idea that they would allow for the growth he was hoping for. Excited by the prospect, Holmes says, "As soon as I can get them, I'll drop them in. They're really easy to set up and swap out. And when you're going from one set to another, WatchGuard actually converts all the firewall rules for the new set. Really, there's only a couple of seconds of down time. All we do is move cables as fast as we can."

True Packet Inspection Equals Extreme Security

Making the decision to replace Radiant's old security solution with WatchGuard products was a given. Holmes says of WatchGuard, "I knew and trusted WatchGuard and they're secure; they do true disassemble and reassemble packet inspection." Holmes asserts, "With other firewalls you can figure out how to get around security functions. So, real packet disassembly is a huge selling point."

Customer Satisfaction Guaranteed

Customers come first in the world of Radiant Systems, and at times a customer's network may require a customization from WatchGuard in order to achieve peak performance. Holmes has never had a problem with support when he raises an issue. He says, "If I open a ticket I know I'll get the service that I need. It's nice to have the customer-centric attitude that WatchGuard offers. WatchGuard is very interested in finding out what their customers are doing, and keeping them on long term."

Connecting with Customers

With the power of the XTM 1050 in place, Radiant is able to meet the VPN demands of their customers handily. "We use the VPN function for site to site communication between us and our customers. Some of the biggest restaurant chains out there, we use site to site communication. And they're doing six billion dollars worth of business a year," says Holmes. With the XTM 1050, setting up a new VPN connection is essentially hassle free. Of the way he handles new VPN connections, Holmes says, "Other than setting up new rules, I don't have to tweak the box at all. Once you set it, you're done."

The Big Payoff

Enterprise-class security often comes with a hefty price tag and long-term ROI. For Radiant Systems, the XTM 1050 not only offered the best price for performance, but also an incredible and quick ROI. Holmes says of the investment, "Why would I pay $400,000 for a huge device when I can get the same performance at a quarter of the cost? Most firewalls usually take a couple of years to pay for themselves. With WatchGuard, if you're a heavy VPN user and really lock down security, it takes about six months."

To sum up Radiant Systems relationship with WatchGuard, Holmes has this to say, "I know them and I trust them, and I know that our data is going to be secure."

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