SD WAN (Software Defined Wide Area Network) allows you to connect multiple companies to multiple interfaces by using an SD WAN capable firewall. The SD WAN firewall is application aware and automatically steers traffic over different providers depending on certain conditions.
As an example you could connect an MPLS network one WAN connection and connect to the Internet on the second WAN connection. With SD WAN the traffic would then dynamically route over either connection according to policies you define.
Overview
To understand how SD WAN works and the way it benefits your organization it is very important first know how things were configured previously.
Consider hot and cold taps while on an outdated wash hand basin. Think about the hot tap (WAN 1 Interface) is linked to the MPLS Network as well as the cold tap (WAN 2 Interface) is linked to the Internet.
Once the hot tap and cold taps are operated separately it is difficult to manipulate the temperature and flow with the water since they are totally separate from the other person. Similarly, before SD WAN it was tough to mix, control and manage traffic (business applications) across separate independent WAN Interfaces (in this example MPLS and Internet) the same as the water in the old wash hand basin.
Exactly why is SD WAN better?
SD WAN is as being a modern wash hand basin with both the hot and cold taps combined in the easy to adjust mixer tap. The water temperature might be controlled and may be automatically regulated to offer you the best temperature of water constantly.
With SD WAN you’ll have granular treating traffic across all WAN networks with advanced flexibility and agility. For example, you are able to define policies very often send traffic out of your main business application in the MPLS network as an example but automatically transition online VPN if your MPLS network is congested or unavailable.
SD WAN transfers the load of traffic management from physical devices to software and lets you effectively and securely route traffic to remote locations like branch offices. Centralised control gives full visibility throughout the network and enables ease of management.
In conclusion SD WAN will provide you with complete control over the way you dynamically route and prioritise traffic depending on application type along with other factors for example congestion and availability.
How can SD WAN benefit your business?
Lower bandwidth costs
Centralised network management
Full network visibility
Increased options for vendor selection and connection type
SD-WAN benefits businesses by removing expensive routing hardware and instead provisioning connectivity and services from your cloud. Together with the increased dependency on cloud-based services in the current workplace SD WAN offers a a lot more robust and reliable network.
SD WAN is often a much more flexible option that enables a business to scale connectivity along as their business dictates and will automatically adjust and steer cloud-based traffic over different routes when congestion or company failure occurs. This permits a company to perform an infinitely more efficient and cost-effective enterprise reducing bandwidth costs when needed without compromising availability. Companies are effectively avoiding over provisioning which lowers overall WAN costs.
The centralised control enables changes to become implemented and quickly pushed in the market to network hardware like routers and switches.
After a basic investment SD-WAN can improve a business’s connectivity between branch locations, the key office, data centres along with the cloud while reducing running costs making long-term savings as time passes.
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