Great Things Are Coming to SD-WAN – Joining the Excellence Already Here

In my prior post, I described 2017 as the year SD-WAN caught fire and discussed trends that should propel SD-WAN squarely into the mainstream in 2018. Look for this trend to be on full display at SD-WAN Expo, Feb. 14-16 in Fort Lauderdale, FL, pictured above (part of the broader ITEXPO) – the leading event “to connect, learn about and discuss how this market is growing, how it is evolving.”

As the SD-WAN space is still rapidly evolving, its proponents (including me) tend to be mostly forward-focused, and new developments afoot are indeed exciting. But it’s important to remember the value SD-WAN already delivers today. We’re way past the early stage of emerging technology.

SD-WAN rocks!

As scores of forward-thinking enterprises that have made the transition can attest, SD-WAN already rocks. Here are three of the core advantages that nobody has to wait on:

• Made for the cloud. Enterprise computing is shifting to the cloud more quickly than ever, and SD-WAN transforms the network powering that shift with optimized performance, reliability, and availability that best satisfy expectations for always-on connectivity. Many solutions use SDN technology to dynamically route SD-WAN traffic over diverse access types to connect multiple locations with active/active redundancy, and enterprises can control entire networks from a centralized location. The resulting network/application visibility and control were never achievable with traditional network technology – making SD-WAN a far preferable platform for cloud application performance.
• Cost-effective bandwidth. SD-WAN leverages lower cost, high-bandwidth broadband to reduce operating expenses. By giving adopters the ability to supplement existing networks with highly available broadband, SD-WAN delivers much more bandwidth at significantly lower costs. SD-WAN also makes it easier to control and prioritize apps, leveraging the power of bandwidth even further.
• Maximum uptime. SD-WAN’s active/active configuration delivers up to 100% uptime, helping to ensure business continuity, limit financial exposure from loss of network/communication connectivity, and deliver a more satisfying customer experience. SD-WAN solutions with dynamic WAN selection support application routing, which can further minimize downtime while maximizing performance.

Now, back to the future

While SD-WAN is already terrific, developers are hard at work building on its core advantages with impressive breakthroughs – which I very much look forward to seeing at SD-WAN Expo.

While checking out breakthroughs for yourself, be sure to attend the SD-WAN Expo / ITEXPO Keynote Presentation by Layne Levine, president of Windstream’s Cloud and Connectivity division, Thurs. Feb. 15 at 9:30am, as well as a separate presentation by Windstream CMO Joseph Harding kicking off the IDEA Showcase later that day at 4:25pm.

I will also be speaking on a panel at 1:00pm on Thursday, 2/15, “Painting the Perfect Network with SD-WAN,” with industry colleagues from AireSpring and MegaPath. We would of course love to have a room full of attendees, and hope to see you there.

Finally, please make note to visit Windstream at booth #208. We have something really big coming with our own SD-WAN solution that we’ll reveal there. It’s tempting to say more about it here, but I mustn’t get ahead of myself. Circle back to us at SD-WAN Expo for the rest of the story!