Despite being a relatively new technology, SD-WAN is already revolutionizing network architecture. It’s a flexible and secure connectivity solution that’s easy to deploy and manage.
With it, you can ensure your data stays connected, even when the WAN fails. A centralized control function handles multiple transports at the link level with sub-second failover.
What is SD-WAN?
What is SD WAN and its role? In simple terms, SD-WAN uses software-defined networking (SDN) to improve WAN management. It decouples networking hardware from the control mechanism and enables businesses to connect branch locations to the corporate network over low-cost Internet connections instead of expensive MPLS circuits.
It saves enterprises WAN costs and gives them more flexibility to deploy IaaS, SaaS, and cloud applications. Additionally, SD-WAN can deliver more effective application performance by ensuring each class of application receives the right level of quality of experience and security policy enforcement.
The most basic SD-WAN solutions are a hybrid of routers and WAN optimizers, with in-built VPN capability and some policy management. They often also feature support for multiple internet connections and cellular or satellite links and the ability to host extra security or other applications – billed as virtual network functions (VNFs).
These solutions deliver good results but need more business-driven features to meet enterprise requirements quickly and dynamically. A business-driven SD-WAN will deliver a single platform that unifies WAN, firewall, segmentation, routing, and WAN optimization functions in a secure, cloud-native architecture. It will allow IT to adhere to business intent in real-time and support the secure connectivity services that enterprise branch offices and IoT devices need. It will also allow enterprises to eliminate costly MPLS circuits, enlist local internet offloading, and help get their cloud traffic closer to the data center for improved performance.
What are the Benefits of SD-WAN?
An SD-WAN is powered by software that works with your existing enterprise network and provides granular control over your networking. It automatically prioritizes mission-critical traffic, improves network performance, and reduces costs through bandwidth optimization. It also helps support business growth by allowing remote employees and branch locations to access the needed data and applications.
The SD-WAN framework enables you to manage your network across multiple connections—including existing MPLS circuits and the Internet via broadband or 4G/LTE—through a single portal. This approach streamlines IT operations and minimizes hardware expenses by reducing the required routers at each location. The solution enables businesses to replace expensive, plain old telephone service (POTS) lines or multi-label protocol switching (MPLS) architectures with cost-effective connectivity options and improve the performance of their networks by lowering latency and improving reliability.
With a basic SD-WAN, if a network link fails, the device may redirect traffic to a different path—but this can lead to inconsistent application performance and QoE. In contrast, a business-driven SD-WAN provides sub-second failover and prevents the disruption of critical applications.
An effective SD-WAN will perform deep packet inspection, preventing network retransmits and other common causes of performance degradation. It will also protect against security threats by monitoring and defending against malware, phishing sites, and other types of cyberattacks. Finally, it will have advanced WAN optimization features, such as packet loss avoidance and jitter mitigation, which can help improve application performance.
What are the Challenges of SD-WAN?
SD-WAN provides visibility into network operations, enabling IT teams to understand application and user performance, which is vital in supporting business productivity. But with more power comes more responsibility, and IT needs to understand the ramifications of any configuration changes before they deploy them to the network.
For example, if an IT team deploys a new policy that affects all applications, they should document how that affects each application’s workflow. It ensures that any unforeseen impacts are considered. It is also essential to understand the solution’s limitations and how it can best meet an organization’s specific needs.
Many essential SD-WAN solutions can only direct traffic on an application basis down a single path. If that path fails or becomes underperforming, it can cause lag and slowdown. A more advanced solution can use multiple forms of WAN transport to eliminate these issues and provide consistent QoE.
A more advanced solution can prioritize business-critical apps and route them over the most efficient pathway. It can significantly improve application performance and support digital transformation, reducing infrastructure costs and enabling greater bandwidth efficiency. A more advanced solution can also provide global capabilities to reduce Internet latency between countries. It can significantly boost application performance, especially in high-latency regions such as Asia or Europe. It is an essential consideration for any global enterprise.
What is the Future of SD-WAN?
In a world of rapid digital transformation and global connectivity, enterprises must keep all their branches and remote workers connected and secure. SD-WAN provides cost-efficient and agile solutions by shifting networking control from onsite hardware to software. It allows for the connection of network devices to data centers or cloud environments without relying on expensive MPLS and improves connectivity through link bonding that aggregates multiple Internet connections.
The future of SD-WAN looks bright, with more and more businesses adopting the technology to optimize their networks. Includes organizations with branch offices and remote workers or that need to support a wide range of internet-based applications, such as IoT devices, cloud-based CRM, and industrial and utility systems. SD-WAN also supports a zero-touch deployment, configuring and provisioning new sites and devices in minutes.
Integrating AI and machine learning will automate network optimization and improve security for SD-WAN. It will allow for the automatic reconfiguration and optimization of networks, reducing operational costs and downtime. It will also enable the detection of potential breaches and suspicious activities, helping to protect sensitive data from attacks and cyber criminals. Ultimately, these technologies will ensure that business processes are carried out securely and efficiently and that the network is always available.