Symantec is scaling down its hardware offering by pulling the plug on a range of network security appliances.

The vendor will stop designing and making the Symantec Security, Symantec Network Security 7100 and Advanced Manager 3.0 products.

While it will continue to develop the software underpinning the devices, it is apparently hoping other companies will step forward and make the hardware.

Byte and Switch suggests (http://www.byteandswitch.com/document.asp?doc_id=98002&WT.svl=news2_1) the move represents a shift towards core competencies, and a reluctance to go head to head with the likes of Juniper and Cisco, as they build more security nous into their kit.

As Symantec has expanded through acquisition, particularly of Veritas, hardware has presumably become a smaller part of its business. And with standard servers as cheap as chips, dedicated appliances become a harder pitch.

The move mean 80 people losing their jobs at Symantec.®

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