A software-defined world
October 7th, 2022
Software-defined everything (SDx) is an approach where software is used as a lever to define and control the working of a hardware. SDx adds a layer of software that controls the underlying hardware. Any physical item or function can be performed as or automated by software. It is a level of abstraction, making it easy to manage, maintain, and upgrade the hardware.
The global SDx market is forecasted to reach USD 160.8 billion by 2024 from USD 51.7 billion in 2019, at a compound annual growth rate of 25%, led by rising demand for virtualization and cloud in data centers.
What are the business benefits of SDx? It enables agility, offers flexibility, saves energy, and creates new business models to manage digital transformation. SDx has become sophisticated, offering higher value and solving bigger problems. Devices with embedded software become software-defined products. SDx increases operating model flexibility, helping leaders manage corporate mergers, acquisitions, and spin-offs. It is a cost-effective approach to ease the complexities of IT infrastructure, networks, and storage (see Figure 1).
Figure 1. The hierarchy of enterprise IT footprint and software-defined infrastructure
A large multinational manufacturing client faced challenges to manage its disparate data center footprint due to multiple acquisitions. The company consolidated and modernized its globally distributed data centers with software-defined infrastructure. The firm partnered with Infosys to develop a purpose-fit private cloud infrastructure, with software-defined local area network (LAN) and wide area network. The team implemented greenfield software-defined LAN environment across 250 sites in 12 months. The SDx solution reduced data center footprint by 50%, decreased total network cost by 30%, and accelerated network turnaround time.
Software-defined networking (SDN) establishes seamless information flow between three layers: infrastructure, control, and application (see Figure 2). SDN uses software interfaces to provision, automate, and manage networks without physically handling any router or switch.?Daimler Truck North America faced challenges with poor visibility and shop floor monitoring due to network and infrastructure limitations.?This delayed responses to customer orders. SDN implementation helped the firm integrate information and operations technology. The refreshed plant-to-business network provides visibility and reliable, secure connectivity everywhere
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Figure 2. A typical architecture for software-defined networking
Software-defined storage uses a software layer abstracted from physical hardware storage devices for provisioning and control. The control software monitors storage capacity usage and increases it when demand rises, creating elastic storage. Cloud architectures are examples of software-defined storage and computing.
In 2018, Toyota Motor Corp. announced its intent to transform from an automobile to a mobility company. Connectivity between vehicles was a major feature of this mobility. Connected car operations will send billions of data points each day. Toyota needed a cloud-based architecture that was cost-efficient, resilient to fluctuations, and scalable to match growth. The company uses a software-defined, serverless compute service that enables users to run their codes without provisioning or managing servers.
Vehicles are a good example for software-defined products. Tesla popularized the concept of a software-defined vehicle with its Model S, where the onboard software is responsible to operate the vehicle. This approach helped the carmaker manage chip shortages during the pandemic. Tesla followed a design-for-availability approach. It assembled its cars with the available chip and tweaked the software accordingly to make it work.
Ten years ago, only premium cars contained 100 microprocessor-based electronic control units (ECUs) networked throughout the body of a car, executing 100 million lines of code or more. Today, high-end cars like the BMW 7-series with advanced technology like advanced driver-assist systems (ADAS) may contain 150 ECUs or more, while pick-up trucks like Ford’s F-150 top 150 million lines of code. Even low-end vehicles are quickly approaching 100 ECUs and 100 million of lines of code today, says Robert N. Charette.
“Once, software was a part of the car. Now, software determines the value of a car,” - Manfred Broy, emeritus professor of informatics at Technical University, Munich, a leading expert on software in automobiles.
“Software is eating the world” is the oft-quoted yet prophetic 2011 pearl of wisdom from famed tech entrepreneur and author Marc Andreessen. That assessment has only grown in relevance over time. SDx creates benefits beyond individual computing infrastructure, networking, products sold, and manufacturing; the entire enterprise can become software-defined as well. SDx elevates organizations whose value creation strongly depends on software and services.
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