Microsoft Forefront Unified Access Gateway

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Unified Access Gateway
Original author(s)Whale Communications
Developer(s)Microsoft
Final release
2010 with SP4 / 27 November 2013; 10 years ago (2013-11-27)[1]
Operating systemWindows Server 2008 R2[2]
Platformx86-64[2]
TypeReverse proxy, virtual private network
LicenseProprietary commercial software
Websitemicrosoft.com/uag (Offline)
Minimum system requirements[2]
CPU2.66 GHz; dual core; x86-64-compatible
Memory4 GB
Hard disk drive space2.5 GB
Operating systemWindows Server 2008 R2 Standard or Enterprise edition
Other requirementsThe computer on which Forefront UAG is being installed should be devoid of all other software except its operating system.

Microsoft Forefront Unified Access Gateway (UAG) is a discontinued software suite that provides secure remote access to corporate networks for remote employees and business partners. Its services include reverse proxy, virtual private network (VPN), DirectAccess and Remote Desktop Services. UAG was released in 2010, and is the successor for Microsoft Intelligent Application Gateway (IAG) which was released in 2007. UAG is part of the Microsoft Forefront offering. Microsoft discontinued the product in 2014, although the Web Application Proxy feature of Windows Server 2012 R2 and later offers some of its functionalities.

History[edit]

Unified Access Gateway was originally developed by a startup company named Whale Communications in Rosh HaAyin, Israel. Whale's initial product, e-Gap, was designed to create physical separation between networks of disparate trust levels. It consisted of an appliance housing a 512k memory chip that toggled connections between two servers via a SCSI bus. The product was originally built to offer sneaker-net services and shortly thereafter features to enable HTTP connections were added. In the 90's and early 2000's, e-Gap was enhanced to provide comprehensive reverse proxy features that included in-depth filtering of inbound traffic to ensure the security of the web servers and applications it protected. As adoption grew, the product pivoted to focus more specifically on Remote Access use-cases and additional features and licensing options were added to provide employee and contractor remote access across a range of connectivity options. In 2002, the market evolved into offering more comprehensive SSL VPN features. Whale's uniqueness was in its ability to granularly filter and alter the flow of traffic to enable a path of least access and protect from both known and unknown attacks/vulnerabilities using an application specific positive logic filtering engine.

On 18 May 2006, Microsoft announced that it would be acquiring Whale Communications.[3] Microsoft completed the acquisition on 26 July 2006.[4][5] Following this acquisition, the product was renamed Microsoft Intelligent Application Gateway Server 2007. With this version, the SCSI-based Air Gap (e-Gap) was dropped, and the product was unified as a single-server appliance. Instead of using the Air Gap as the security barrier, IAG used Microsoft's ISA Server firewall product. IAG was offered to the public as a pre-installed appliance by Celestix Networks, IVO Networks, PortSys and nAppliance. In 2009, with the release of Service Pack 2 for IAG, the product was also offered directly to the public from Microsoft in the form of a virtual appliance (a first of its kind form-factor for Microsoft) - a pre-installed VHD which could be run on Hyper-V or VMware Workstation.

In April 2008, Microsoft announced that the next generation of IAG will be named Forefront Unified Access Gateway (UAG). The product was released on 24 December 2009.[6] UAG's core new functionality centered on its DirectAccess gateway. DirectAccess, launched with Windows 7, was Microsoft's visionary always on VPN which allowed both VPN access and continuous endpoint management and control. At its launch, UAG was the only solution to publishing DirectAccess making the product an integral part of the Windows 7 strategy. Ultimately, these capabilities (and others) were built natively into Windows Server.

Service Pack 1 for this product was released on 3 December 2010.[7] Update 1 for Service Pack 1 was released on 17 October 2011[8] Service Pack 2 for this product was released on 6 August 2011.[9] Service Pack 3 was released on 19 February 2013.[10] Service Pack 4 was released on 27 November 2013.[1] On 17 December Microsoft have announced that Microsoft will not deliver any future full version releases of Forefront UAG and the product will be removed from price lists on 1 July 2014[11]

Technical overview[edit]

Microsoft UAG provides secure socket layer (SSL) virtual private network (VPN), a Web application firewall, and endpoint security management (for compliance and security) that enable access control, authorization, and content inspection for a wide variety of line-of-business applications.

Included are customized granular access policy and security capabilities for Microsoft Exchange Server (2003, 2007 and 2010), Microsoft SharePoint Portal Server (2003, 2007 and 2010), Microsoft Terminal Services and Citrix Presentation Server. The product is highly customizable, and almost any application can be published With UAG.[12]

Out of the box UAG Server is able to work with many authentication vendors such as Mi-Token, RSA Security, OneSpan, GrIDsure, Swivel, ActivCard and Aladdin. It also works with numerous authentication systems and protocols such as Active Directory, RADIUS, LDAP, NTLM, Lotus Domino, PKI and TACACS+. Possible customizations include single-sign-on (SSO), as well as look-and-feel dynamic customization. With the current release of UAG with Update 2, the product also offers support for many third-party systems such as Linux, Macintosh and iPhone. The product also supports Mozilla Firefox.

UAG performs particularly well in providing a portal for web applications, such as web-based email and intranets, but it also provides full SSL VPN network access using either ActiveX (when using Internet Explorer) or Java components (when using Firefox, Opera, non Windows client such as Red Hat or Mac OS). These components can also perform end-point compliance checks before allowing access, to test for attributes on the PC such as domain name, antivirus definitions date or running processes.

The inclusion of DirectAccess with UAG has been a big influence on its success, as DirectAccess provides a very seamless VPN-like integration and is in high-demand by many organizations. DirectAccess is part of Windows, but UAG provides a very user-friendly configuration interface for it, making it easier to configure for administrators. UAG also adds two additional components - DNS64 and NAT64, which make deploying DirectAccess in an existing network easier, without the need to deploy IPv6.[13]

The product is sold in appliance form, from various vendors. It is also offered as an installable DVD. The product can be installed on Windows Server 2008 R2.[14]

Version History[edit]

Version Release date Version number Reference
General availability 25 January 2010 4.0.1101.0 —
Sec Update MS10-089 9 Nov 2010 4.0.1101.052 [15]
Update 1 12 April 2010 4.0.1152.100 [16]
U1 Rollup 1 18 May 2010 4.0.1152.110 [17]
U1+Sec Update MS10-089 9 Nov 2010 4.0.1152.150 [18]
Update 2 21 September 2010 4.0.1269.200 [19]
U2+Sec Update MS10-089 9 Nov 2010 4.0.1269.250 [20]
Service Pack 1 RC 21 October 2010 4.0.1575.10000 ?
Service Pack 1 14 January 2011 4.0.1752.10000 [21]
Service Pack 1 Rollup 1 3 February 2011 4.0.1752.10020 [22]
Service Pack 1 Rollup 2 (a.k.a. Q1 2011 Rollup) 6 April 2011 4.0.1752.10025 ?
Security Update MS11-079 12 October 2011 4.0.1752.10073 [23]
SP1 + Sec Update MS12-026 10 April 2012 4.0.1753.10076 [24]
Service Pack 1 Update 1 13 October 2011 4.0.1773.10100 [25]
Service Pack 1 Update 1 Rollup 1 11 January 2012 4.0.1773.10110 [26]
SP1 U1 + Sec Update MS12-026 10 April 2012 4.0.1773.10190 [27]
Service Pack 1 Update 1 Rollup 2 12 June 2012 4.0.1773.10220 ?
Service Pack 2 6 August 2012 4.0.2095.10000 [28]
Service Pack 3 20 February 2013 4.0.3123.10000 [29]
Service Pack 3 Rollup 1 15 April 2013 4.0.3206.10100 [30]
Service Pack 4 27 November 2013 4.0.4083.10000 [31]
Service Pack 4 Rollup 1 28 October 2014 4.0.4160.10100 [32]
Service Pack 4 Rollup 2 19 June 2015 4.0.4205.10200 [33]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b "Forefront Unified Access Gateway (UAG) Service Pack 4 (SP4)". Download Center. Microsoft. 27 November 2013. Version: v4.0.4083.10000[~] Date Published: 11/27/2013
  2. ^ a b c "System Requirements For Forefront UAG Servers". Microsoft Forefront website. Microsoft corporation. Retrieved 24 July 2010.
  3. ^ "Microsoft to Acquire Whale Communications, a Leading Provider of SSL VPN and Application Security Technologies". Microsoft News Center. Redmond, WA: Microsoft Corporation. 18 May 2006. Retrieved 24 July 2010.
  4. ^ "Microsoft Completes Acquisition of Secure Remote Access Technology Leader Whale Communications". Microsoft News Center. Redmond, WA: Microsoft Corporation. 26 July 2006. Retrieved 24 July 2010.
  5. ^ "Microsoft Corp acquires Whale Communications Ltd". Thomson Financial. 26 July 2006. Archived from the original on 3 August 2009. Retrieved 31 October 2008.
  6. ^ "Forefront Unified Access Gateway (UAG) 2010 is released!". microsoft.com. Microsoft. 24 December 2009. Archived from the original on 23 January 2010.
  7. ^ "Download details: Forefront Unified Access Gateway (UAG) Service Pack 1". Download Center. Microsoft. 3 December 2010. Retrieved 3 December 2010. Version: 4.0.1752.10000 [~] Date Published: 12/3/2010
  8. ^ "Forefront Unified Access Gateway (UAG) Service Pack 1 (SP1) Update 1". Download Center. Microsoft. 17 October 2011. Retrieved 17 October 2011. Version: 4.0.1773.10100[~] Date Published: 10/17/2011
  9. ^ "Download details: Forefront Unified Access Gateway (UAG) Service Pack 2". Download Center. Microsoft. 6 August 2011. Retrieved 27 December 2012. Version: 4.0.2095.10000 [~] Date Published: 8/6/2011
  10. ^ "Forefront Unified Access Gateway (UAG) Service Pack 3 (SP3)". Download Center. Microsoft. 19 February 2013. Retrieved 30 March 2013. Version: v4.0.3123.10000[~] Date Published: 2/19/2013
  11. ^ "Important Changes to the Forefront Product Line - Microsoft Server and Cloud Platform Blog - Site Home - TechNet Blogs". Archived from the original on 21 December 2014. Retrieved 19 December 2013.
  12. ^ "Microsoft delivers feature-rich SSL-VPN". Compouterworld. Newtonville, Massachusetts: International Data Group. 8 March 2010. Retrieved 3 December 2010.
  13. ^ "Microsoft Forefront UAG 2010 Makes DirectAccess Feasible". eWeek. New York, NY: Ziff Davies. 10 February 2010. Retrieved 3 December 2010.[permanent dead link]
  14. ^ "Hardware Partners". Forefront UAG. Microsoft. Archived from the original on 14 August 2011.
  15. ^ "MS10-089: Description of the security update for Forefront Unified Access Gateway 2010: 9 November 2010". Support. Microsoft.
  16. ^ "Description of Update 1 for Unified Access Gateway 2010". Support. Microsoft.
  17. ^ "Description of the Rollup 1 hotfix package for Unified Access Gateway 2010 Update 1". Support. Microsoft.
  18. ^ "MS10-089: Description of the security update for Forefront Unified Access Gateway 2010 Update 1: 9 November 2010". Support. Microsoft.
  19. ^ "Description of Update 2 for Unified Access Gateway 2010". Support. Microsoft.
  20. ^ "MS10-089: Description of the security update for Forefront Unified Access Gateway 2010 Update 2: 9 November 2010". Support. Microsoft.
  21. ^ "Description of Forefront Unified Access Gateway 2010 Service Pack 1 (SP1)". Support. Microsoft.
  22. ^ "Description of the Service Pack 1 Rollup 1 hotfix package for Unified Access Gateway 2010". Support. Microsoft.
  23. ^ "MS11-079: Description of the security update for Unified Access Gateway 2010 Service Pack 1: 11 October 2011". Support. Microsoft.
  24. ^ "MS12-026: Description of the security update for Microsoft Forefront Unified Access Gateway 2010 Service Pack 1: 10 April 2012". Support. Microsoft.
  25. ^ "Description of the Service Pack 1 Update 1 for Forefront Unified Access Gateway (UAG)". Support. Microsoft.
  26. ^ "Rollup 1 for Forefront Unified Access Gateway (UAG) 2010 Service Pack 1 Update 1". Support. Microsoft.
  27. ^ "MS12-026: Description of the security update for Microsoft Forefront Unified Access Gateway 2010 Service Pack 1 Update 1: 10 April 2012". Support. Microsoft.
  28. ^ "Description of Service Pack 2 for Forefront Unified Access Gateway 2010". Support. Microsoft.
  29. ^ "Description of Forefront Unified Access Gateway 2010 Service Pack 3". Support. Microsoft.
  30. ^ "Description of Rollup 1 for Forefront Unified Access Gateway 2010 Service Pack 3". Support. Microsoft.
  31. ^ "Description of Forefront Unified Access Gateway 2010 Service Pack 4". Support. Microsoft.
  32. ^ "Rollup 1 for Forefront Unified Access Gateway 2010 Service Pack 4". Support. Microsoft.
  33. ^ "Rollup 2 for Forefront Unified Access Gateway 2010 Service Pack 4". Support. Microsoft.

Further reading[edit]

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