As is normal in commercial markets, competition arose and along with it some confusion about what a data diode is, how it works and what distinguishes one from another. This document identifies and clarifies some of the typical points of confusion between an Owl data diode and other products on the market such as a unidirectional gateway.
By way of introduction, the fundamental difference between Owl products and others is the one-way design implemented from the ground up, true single box format, exclusive use of intentional one-way techniques (not disabled or broken two-way methods), hardware based solution, very high reliability, super low latency and very long expected life span (11+ years).
Owl, established in 1999, was the first to market with a data diode and has over 28 patents on the technology with a half dozen more pending. The design of the Owl data diodes was carefully considered to ensure everything was designed to defend against cyberattack and provide a robust and reliable data transfer mechanism.
The various attributes described below provide more detail on how Owl data diodes differ from competing products and why they offer a better value proposition.