SD-WAN Make Simpler for Almost Anyone + YouTube Video

By Thomas B. Cross Author of MindMeld: CEO and AI Merging Mental & Metal

Presented Exclusively Anywhere-Anytime

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Meanwhile back to the presentation, you can find the video presentation on YouTube here.

In the beginning, Local Area Networks or LANs connected all your office data devices sometimes called endpoints together via Switches to connect to your local computer server where your office applications were processed and stored.

Then, Wide Area Networks or WANs connected your office via Routers to Data Centers (clouds) where your website might be “hosted” and connections to the internet (interconnection of networks).

Networks grew as more routers and switches were required to make all the connections to different data centers (clouds). As networks grew so complex, they were harder and harder to manage with all the routers and switches.

Let’s look at how this all works together. Buildings and office locations are connected together with optical, copper wire and wireless connections that have different bandwidth speeds to Data Centers. Bandwidth is measured in bits (a one or zero) per second, such as MBS-megabits or millions of bits or GBPS-giga bits or billions of bits per second. You pay for the speed you need generally flat rate though some providers offer other service options.

A Data Center is a building also called a co-location or COLO where networks are connected with one another. Inside a Data Center there are computer servers aka CPU-central processing units which host websites, provide applications backup storage and other services. These servers are contained in separate “cages” for security to keep one company’s equipment separate from another.

To connect one Data Center to another there are routers which direct (routing) data packets called Internet Protocol data bits from one cloud or network to another allowing you to send email, pay bills, backup your data and operate your data systems.

A Data Center can also be a Cloud. Cloud computing means that your computer servers and business applications from word processing, billing, ordering products, managing your website, finding products, ordering a pizza, grocery and more can be connected together via routers. There are thousands of clouds supporting millions of websites.

Clouds (data centers) are connected together via routers as one cloud does not host every website or applications. There are many specialized kinds of clouds designed for private, shared (hybrid) or public use. Companies often want private clouds for security, performance, management and other reasons.

Connecting all these clouds (data centers) with computers, servers, data storage (your pics/videos aka Instagram) and streaming services (NetFlix, iCloud) is rather complicated.

There are two kinds of equipment used to make the internet connect together – routers and switches.

In simple terms, you are traveling and if you change planes on the same airline, train or even package delivery service that is switching.

If you change to a different airline that is routing. 

Background - Switching is easy but routing can be very complicated and requires more management. Routing requires knowledge of another airline network or in this case internet carrier/provider. That is, you need to know if the other network goes where you want to go or publishes where they go and what kind of services that other airline or cloud can provide in case you want to have a video call. Here’s where different technology fits in. Routers are expensive and complex to manage but Switches are not smart and just connect bandwidth pipes or connections to one another. If you have a network of 10 or 100 or more routers that means a lot of expense and time to manage all of them. With switches is easier but may require more bandwidth to provide high performance. 

A new concept called SD-WAN for Software-Defined Wide Area Network has emerged that is designed to eliminate much of the costs associated with routing. A cloud network would have fewer routers with switches used to provide the majority of data services (voice, video, streaming, etc.)

One of the advantages of SD-WAN include which is called a Control Plane (a “level” of management) which is software-defined to “look ahead” like air traffic control to see the status of other switches to optimize flow and provide traffic management.

One final point is that SD-WAN works within your own corporate WAN network, however when you cross connect to another network, you need to connect them via routers.

 I know I promised to keep this really simple but if you are serious about SD-WAN Software Defined Wide Area Network) here are some of the technical benefits:

?      Improved QoS – benefit from on demand and dynamic traffic performance

?      Provider – new ways to manage platform API integration for carrier/network operator integration

?      Root management - enhanced component diagnostics and troubleshooting

?      Disaster Recovery – provide resiliency and auto-reconfiguration for man-made crises and natural disasters

?      Security – no absolute security but faster response to and management of security crisis mitigation

?      Technology – new approaches to chatbots, voice digitization, call routing and more

?      Device management - migration to server and network virtualization accelerates BYOD provisioning

?      Manageable first and then provide scalable growth for customer applications

?      Cost (fewer boxes and lower-layer interfaces) and staff consolidation reducing duplications and inefficiencies

?      Agility – on demand network shaping, orchestration and provisioning

?      Improved traffic and capacity forecasting and physical plant geo-forecasting

?      Strategic – design, test and build new simulations and data visualization systems and change algorithm models for evolving business demands

Summary - SD-WAN is the next wave of network technology. It portends to provide profound changes in the way companies design and management. I look forward to any feedback and thoughts, however, I did not cover everything including MPLS migration and other issues which will be covered in the next article, meanwhile take a look at this Enterprise UP Margin UP Marketing Sales Acceleration course designed to sell SD-WAN and other technologies here: