Compression

The compression feature enables a NetScaler vServer to compress HTTP data that is going to or from the client. Another benefit of this feature is that the HTTP compression algorithm encrypts the data going from the client to the server and therefore adds another layer of security.

Note

Using compression does not encrypt the data as efficiently as using a digitally signed certificate, so do not contemplate replacing certificates with compression.

The compression feature requires that the client who is requesting the content have a browser that supports compression. The newest and most common browsers, such as Firefox 4 and above, Google Chrome 20 and above, and Internet Explorer 7 and above, support HTTP compression. So, when a client connects to a vServer, it will announce what capabilities it has to the server. This allows NetScaler to choose the best type of algorithm.

Note

HTTP compression is based on the GZIP and DEFLATE algorithms. These are defined in RFC 1950/1951/1952 formats...