F5 has announced enhanced cloud-native network functions and new observability capabilities to help service providers modernize network services as they transition from virtualized infrastructure to Kubernetes-based architectures. This comes in response to increasing demands due to 5G, edge computing, IT and artificial intelligence. โService providers should not have to choose between cloud-native agility and the performance, security, and control required for critical network infrastructure,โ said Kunal Anand, Chief Product Officer at F5. โBIG-IP Cloud-Native Edition brings proven F5 BIG-IP capabilities into Kubernetes, giving network and cloud operations teams a more consistent way to deploy, secure, observe, and operate 5G, edge, and AI infrastructure at scale.โ Independent testing by The Tolly Group demonstrated efficiency gains in selected Kubernetes-based DNS and Carrier-Grade Network Address Translation (CGNAT) workloads compared with virtualized network function deployments.
Also Read: Hack The Box Introduces AI Range Enterprise Edition for AI Agent Security Testing
In DNS testing, F5 processed 1.9 times more queries per second while using 91.5% less CPU. In DNS testing, F5 managed to process 1.9 times more requests per second while utilizing 91.5% less CPU power. In CGNAT testing, it provided equal throughput while using 79.7% less CPU and 98.5% less memory. The new BIG-IP Cloud-Native Edition is designed to introduce networking, application delivery, security, and observability functions into Kubernetes deployments. It offers such features as DNS, CGNAT, subscriber policy enforcement, traffic management and BIG-IP Next for Kubernetes. The BIG-IP eBPF Observability solution provides kernel-level visibility of applications and networks for troubleshooting purposes.