Automated SD-WAN – Why You Need to Automate SD-WAN?
What is SD-WAN and why businesses are embracing it? For most, automating SD-WAN is not only an excellent idea, but it also helps you save on time and cost. By eliminating the need for central traffic management, you can connect your users to any application, anywhere from the data center to the cloud. It also offers contextual policies based on identity.
Reduces Costs By Eliminating The Need To Backhaul Traffic
The cost of backhauling traffic is rising, so operators are working to reduce this by optimizing their networks. Ethernet-based IP-enabled packet networks can lower backhaul costs and offer greater scalability. Backhaul traffic can include data, management and control, clock synchronization, and operations and maintenance (OAM). By eliminating the need to backhaul traffic, SD-WAN significantly reduces operating costs. Because it uses policy-based routing practices to direct traffic intelligently, SD-WAN also reduces expenses associated with managing and configuring WAN equipment. This enables organizations to increase their bandwidth availability and respond faster to customer requests.
Connects Users To Any Application From The Data Center To The Cloud
Automated SD-WAN is a software-defined wide area network connecting users to any cloud or data center application. Instead of relying on a traditional router with a routing table, SD-WAN utilizes software for transport services, which routes data more efficiently and securely. It also provides a highly flexible environment for cloud connectivity.
With the help of SD-WAN, administrators can define where to run each application. Moreover, the software helps them share resources across data centers. This approach to WAN management reduces the complexity of the WAN, enabling professionals to understand and implement the configurations more easily.
SD-WAN enables IT to control complex networks and respond quickly to changing business needs. This flexible architecture also helps companies centrally manage new network equipment. In addition, an SD-WAN gateway can be shipped to a remote location and installed by someone without IT expertise. Once the gateway is installed, the controller orchestrates zero-touch provisioning.
Secure SD-WAN ensures application security and reliability. It supports multiple applications, including airline reservations, retail POS systems, and transportation logistics. It also helps businesses improve internal business operations. In addition, it frees IT from proprietary hardware and allows it to take advantage of third-party VNFs and security features.
Provides Contextual Policies Based On Identity
Identity awareness helps organizations simplify their networks while maintaining the intent of business policies. For example, quality of service policies can be applied to a specific user or group, and voice-over IP calls to executives can receive higher priority. Identity-aware routing is one of the newest features in Cato Networks’ SD-WAN as a service platform. It dynamically correlates Microsoft Active Directory information with network traffic and associates packet flows with users.
Traditional routing protocols can create operational complexity that limits IT teams’ options and capabilities. Fortunately, SD-WAN simplifies these processes by providing fine-grained control over packets and streamlined management and administration platform. These new features make life easier for IT teams and help them achieve their business goals. In addition, with an SD-WAN, organizations can also take advantage of better security and user experience.
Another key component of an SD-WAN solution is session awareness. Each session contains specific application flows, which vary in quality. By applying a policy-based routing approach to each session, intelligent fabrics can steer each session with the appropriate traffic. As a result, they can provide the best experience across the entire network.