Intelligent Software-Defined Wide Area Network (SD-WAN) offers several benefits to modern businesses. Here are some of the key advantages:
1. Improved Network Performance: Intelligent SD-WAN optimizes network traffic by dynamically routing data packets over the most efficient path. It prioritises critical applications, reduces latency, and improves overall network performance.
2. Enhanced Security: SD-WAN incorporates robust security features, such as encryption, firewall, and intrusion prevention systems. It gives even small businesses the opportunity to implement consistent security policies across their entire network, ensuring ‘always-on’ protection against cyber threats.
3. Cost savings: Leveraging multiple network connections, from MPLS, broadband to cellular, intelligent SD-WAN enables the cost-effective use of network resources. It can also eliminate the need for expensive hardware such as dedicated circuits bringing significant cost savings for any business.
4. Flexibility and Scalability: From small enterprises to multi-national conglomerates, SD-WAN provides businesses with greater flexibility to adapt to changing network demands. It simplifies network management by centralizing control through a software-based approach. Integrating cloud services, or scaling bandwidth becomes easier and quicker, allowing businesses to be more agile and responsive to their IT requirements.
5. Application Performance Optimisation: With intelligent SD-WAN, businesses can prioritize critical applications and allocate bandwidth accordingly. It employs real-time traffic analysis and quality-of-service (QoS) mechanisms to ensure that time-sensitive applications, such as voice and video conferencing, receive optimal performance.
6. Simplified Management and Automation: SD-WAN essentially centralises network management, providing a unified overview view of the entire network infrastructure. It offers intuitive dashboards and management interfaces, making it easier for IT teams to monitor, configure, and troubleshoot network components.
7. Cloud Connectivity: As businesses increasingly adopt cloud services, SD-WAN offers seamless connectivity to public and private cloud environments. It optimizes traffic flow to cloud applications, ensuring consistent performance, and simplifies the distributed cloud resources to fully leverage the benefits of cloud computing.
8. CBusiness Continuity and Resilience:Intelligent SD-WAN provides built-in resilience and failover mechanisms. It can automatically reroute traffic in the event of network link failures, ensuring uninterrupted connectivity and minimizing downtime.
Overall, intelligent SD-WAN empowers modern businesses, large and small with improved network performance, enhanced security, cost savings, flexibility, and simplified management.
