Network Services
Business Benefits of SD-WAN
Article by ATI partner Michael Gough, VP Channel Sales – GTT
Cloud adoption places intense new demands on enterprise networks. Performance, security and scalable bandwidth are vital to running mission-critical applications hosted in the cloud. Network transformation is a priority on the CIO agenda to support a cloud strategy and a more distributed enterprise IT environment. The traditional wide area network (WAN) was not designed for cloud-based application performance, which is why SD-WAN now commands the attention of many CIOs. Industry research firm IDC estimates that 82 percent of enterprises will have implemented SD-WAN within the next 18 months, increasing from 38 percent in early 2017.
Below are four use cases highlighting the business benefits of SD-WAN:
Reduced costs. Enterprises need direct and cost-effective network access to applications hosted in the cloud. SD-WAN can route non-mission-critical application flows over less expensive broadband internet directly to the cloud by leveraging application-aware intelligent routing. This results in reduced WAN operating costs while ensuring appropriate security, reliability and performance for all applications.
Improved IT agility and simplicity. Enterprises seek reduced complexity, faster service provisioning and greater flexibility. SD-WAN’s centralized provisioning of WAN connectivity at a site level, aligned to business policies, reduce the complexity of managing network equipment at the branch level and relieves the burden on local IT resources.
Strengthened data security for all applications, especially those hosted in the cloud. Traditional WAN connectivity options guarantee the reliability and security of data traffic, while broadband internet or LTE may not offer the same assurances. SD-WAN solutions leverage integrated security features such as network address translation, IPSec tunnels and firewalls to enhance data security for all applications connecting to the cloud.
Enhanced customer engagement. Improving customer experience ranks high on the list of priorities for many CIOs. SD-WAN enables improvements in user experience by ensuring applications are available and performing well.
GTT’s managed SD-WAN service utilizes the company’s Tier 1 global IP backbone, ranked among the largest in the industry, securely connecting client locations to any destination on the internet and to any application in the cloud. GTT offers the widest range of access options with bundled network security, making it simple and cost-effective to add network locations and bandwidth as needed. Clients benefit from a flexible networking platform and a company culture that strives to say yes.
No obligation SD-WAN Assessment. WAN optimization analysis & application bandwidth evaluation.
Article by ATI partner Michael Gough, VP Channel Sales – GTT
