[c-nsp] WAAS and Oracle

[Netfortius]

Due to some strong limitations of our existing infrastructure, I have decided 
to look into some solutions involving "WAN acceleration" (e.g. compression, 
caching, etc.). The primary reason for such is CIFS, email and FTP/HTTP types 
of traffic, mostly bandwidth consuming, for which such solutions are obvious, 
but my challenge is in regards to something else, in addition to those apps. 
Our Cisco SE has suggested us the WAAS devices, but he could not provide 
details on how this would work with a specific app, as I describe it below:

- multi-tier Oracle deployment, consisting in clients running either 
browser-based apps (connection over SSL - probably the easiest part, if WAAS 
could use certificates when sitting "in-between"), or a Java client (called 
jinitiator, for those in the "Oracle know") which runs an Oracle proprietary 
encryption method, over a socket-to-socket connection (over the WAN).

My question is directed mostly to those of you who have had experience with 
Oracle apps as described above, and who have had success with WAAS. If no 
Oracle experience, but WAAS knowledge, could you tell - by the description 
above - if WAAS would be a good fit, or if it may negatively impact the 
performance, due to the chatty nature of such apps, in association with the 
proprietary encryption method used by Oracle, thus lesser chance of 
acceleration?!? Does anybody know if the WAAS "understands" Oracle traffic, 
if encrypted (has Cisco licensed some Oracle APIs to be able to 
decrypt-accelerate(cache/compress)-encrypt-send)?!?

If not Cisco (OT subject, of course, from that point on) - but if someone has 
experience with performance improvements in an environment as described 
above, using other methods, could you - please - give me a sign off-list?

TIA,
Stefan