Introduction
If you're not familiar with SD-WAN, it's a simple acronym for software-defined wide area network. Software-defined networking (SDN) is a way to take advantage of the growing number of devices in your data center and focus on how they communicate with each other rather than how they connect to your physical networks. By doing so, you can create more efficient networks that can handle traffic spikes and allow for faster performance between different types of applications without sacrificing security.
Software-defined networking
Software-defined networking (SDN) is a new approach to managing networks that separates the control and data planes from the physical network. This separation enables you to use software to manage your network, rather than hardware. In other words, instead of using routers and switches with their built-in capabilities, you can build your own custom-made SDN solution based on open source software including OpenDaylight Controller (ODC), Snabb Switching Controller (SCC), Open vSwitch and others.
The benefits of SDN include:
- Reduced cost/complexity - You don't need expensive hardware as long as you have enough bandwidth in place; this means less maintenance costs over time!
- Increased flexibility - You'll be able to add new features faster than ever before due to built-in flexibility provided by ODC's modular design; it also allows businesses who want more control over their networks without investing too much money upfront into purchasing expensive equipment upfront like other vendors do today.
Network overlays
Overlays are software-based networks that operate on top of an existing network. They can be used to add new features to an existing network, improve network performance and reduce costs.
Overlays are usually built using virtual layer 3 (VLAN) technologies that create a logical separation between different parts of a company’s IT infrastructure. VLANs allow for each device or user access rights based on their location within the company's data center or cloud environment. This helps ensure all devices have consistent views into the same information regardless where they reside physically around the world!
Centralized management
Centralized management makes it easier to troubleshoot, as well. It's easier to see the big picture and make changes quickly in a centralized WAN environment than in an SD-WAN one. You'll also be able to make changes from anywhere, which can be especially important if you're an IT operations manager or administrator who has limited access to equipment or clients outside your building. Getting help from Cisco Meraki is necessarily suggested.
Dynamic provisioning
Dynamic provisioning is a key part of SD-WAN. It allows for the creation and management of network resources in real time. With dynamic provisioning, you can create all the necessary settings for your network with minimal manual effort on your part. You can also use this feature to manage bandwidth, security settings and traffic control in a centralized fashion that allows you to monitor performance across multiple locations at once
Available to SMBs
SD-WAN is a good fit for small and medium businesses that are looking to better optimize their networks. It can help you get the most out of your network, while also making it more efficient.
SD-WAN offers many benefits that make it an excellent solution for SMBs:
- You can use a single connection for both voice and data services. This means you don't have to buy separate equipment or change how you connect devices in order to use different kinds of data channels (e.g., LTE vs satellite) on the same network connection—you just need one connection!
- The software-defined architecture allows you to connect multiple sites together seamlessly without any hardware changes required on either end; this means there's no need for expensive upgrades down the road because everything works seamlessly together as soon as it's installed!
SD-WAN is a simple and scalable new technology that can make your business's network run more quickly and efficiently.
SD-WAN is a simple and scalable new technology that can make your business's network run more quickly and efficiently. It’s also a software-based solution that replaces the hardware used in traditional WANs.
SD-WAN is an evolution of WAN technologies, which have existed since the 1980s and are now being replaced by SD-WAN because of their limitations:
- They require expensive dedicated connections between each branch office, which can be difficult to manage if you have many offices across multiple regions or countries;
- They require expensive routers at each location, limiting your ability to scale up as your business grows—and increasing storage costs;
- They don't offer any redundancy features that would allow for failover should one site go down—a problem with today's internet connections (see below).
Conclusion
SD-WAN is a technology that will help you to manage your network more efficiently. It provides an alternative to traditional WAN technologies like MPLS which can be expensive and complicated to set up and maintain. The key benefits are that SD-WAN enables your business to scale without having to worry about the cost of expanding its network, as well as being easy for IT teams across different locations to control.
