In 2021, F5 acquired Volterra, a cloud-native startup that focused on solving a hard, emerging problem: how to consistently deliver and secure applications across multiple clouds and the edge using a SaaS-managed control plane and a globally distributed data plane. Volterra would become the foundation for F5 Distributed Cloud Services, our SaaS-based solution for application delivery and security which launched about a year following the acquisition.
Since then, Distributed Cloud Services have evolved significantly. We’ve added new security services, expanded integrations across the broader F5 Application Delivery and Security Platform (ADSP), and invested heavily in reliability, scale, and operational maturity. Along the way, we’ve learned a lot—most importantly, that as Distributed Cloud Services grow, clarity and simplicity matter just as much as capability.
Consumption that scales with customer needs
As Distributed Cloud Services have matured, they have become a core pillar of F5 ADSP, and we knew our packaging needed to evolve with it.
Our goals were straightforward:
- Simplify adoption by making it easier for customers to consume a broad set of capabilities without navigating an overwhelming SKU catalog.
- Align value to consumption with consistent, solution-wide metering that reflects how customers use the service.
- Reduce friction by streamlining service-specific constructs into a smaller number of intuitive package metrics.
Most importantly, we wanted packaging that meets customers where they are today—while giving them a clear, predictable path to grow.
Introducing Distributed Cloud Services Essentials and Enterprise
To remove that friction—and better align with how platforms are evaluated and adopted—we reimagined how Distributed Cloud Services are packaged and consumed. That’s why we’re introducing two new packages designed specifically to simplify how customers consume our services: Essentials and Enterprise.
“By offering Distributed Cloud Services in these new packages, we’re making these services easier to adopt, understand, and grow with your business.”
Essentials is built for customers who want to get started quickly with core application delivery and security services. It includes foundational capabilities such as a web application firewall (WAF), API protection, DDoS mitigation, and content delivery.
Essentials provides a streamlined entry point for protecting public-facing applications, reducing risk, and improving performance—without unnecessary complexity.
Enterprise builds on that foundation for customers with more advanced security needs. It’s designed for organizations with more stringent security requirements, hybrid multicloud architectures, internal application protection needs and a desire for deeper visibility, control, and advanced security capabilities.
Enterprise expands the scope of protection and delivery across both Internet-facing and internal applications, enabling customers to standardize on a single solution as their requirements grow.
Built for flexibility and expansion
These new packages aren’t just about simplifying SKUs—they’re about aligning Distributed Cloud Services with how modern platforms are evaluated, adopted, and expanded over time.
By bundling complementary capabilities and applying consistent, consumption-based metering, Distributed Cloud Services Essentials and Enterprise reduce the operational overhead of getting started. Rather than purchasing individual services upfront, customers now start with a broad set of capabilities and consume them as needed through a small number of consistent metrics. Customers can focus on securing and delivering applications first—then expand usage naturally as requirements grow.
This evolution in packaging is a deliberate step in aligning Distributed Cloud Services with the broader F5 ADSP strategy, while removing friction that slowed early adoption.
As applications continue to span hybrid multicloud and edge environments, we believe platforms—not point products—are the most effective way to deliver application security and delivery at scale. By offering Distributed Cloud Services in these new packages, we’re making these services easier to adopt, understand, and grow with your business.
You can learn more about the services included in each package here.
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