10 SD-WAN Benefits For Your Business
Over the last few years, software-defined wide-area networking (SD-WAN) has redefined many aspects of how businesses approach their internal networking, cybersecurity, and overall digital functionality. These vital SD-WAN advantages allow organizations of nearly all industries and sizes to optimize and better manage their digital networks, augmenting and strengthening existing wide-area network (WAN) infrastructure to emphasize performance, safety, and cost-effectiveness. As much of the working world continues to implement and traverse remote work functionality, such features remain paramount in keeping employee- and business-related data safe.
There are numerous SD-WAN benefits for organizations looking to improve in these fields, making the technology a lasting cross-industry component of internal transformation and restructuring efforts. Here, we will delve into ten benefits of SD-WAN, exploring how they can contribute to a more secure and cohesive work environment.
1. Improved Network Visibility
One immediate SD-WAN benefit is improved network visibility, which helps organizations better monitor and manage their networks. SD-WAN provides a centralized view of the network, and this enables network administrators to easily track network traffic, monitor performance, and identify potential issues; this means that network administrators can quickly identify and troubleshoot any issues that arise, ensuring that the network remains stable and reliable. Additionally, SD-WAN allows administrators to segment network traffic, which provides greater visibility into the types of traffic that are using the network.
Improved network visibility also benefits workers by providing a more connected digital work environment. With better visibility into network traffic, workers can easily access the resources they need and collaborate with their colleagues more effectively. In addition, SD-WAN helps to reduce network downtime, meaning that workers can remain productive without interruption from network issues.
2. SD-WAN Benefits for Enhanced Security
Another crucial benefit of SD-WAN is the ability to monitor and manage network security. SD-WAN allows administrators to apply security policies across their entire network, segmenting and scanning all traffic to ensure it is free of potential security threats. This framework helps to create a safer, more secure digital work environment by reducing the risk of cyber-attacks and data breaches – both of which have become commonplace in an increasingly digital, remote working world. By creating separate network segments for different types of traffic – such as voice, video, and data – organizations can more effectively control access to sensitive data and applications.
SD-WAN’s security framework can also detect and respond to security threats in real-time. These solutions often include advanced threat intelligence capabilities, which help them identify potential threats, reduce the risk of future cyber-attacks, and minimize the impact of any security breaches that do occur.
3. Reduced Network Complexity
SD-WAN offers organizations reduced network complexity through a range of features that simplify network management and streamline applicable operations. Administrators can oversee multiple network connections and technologies from a single, centralized platform, which reduces the complexity of network management.
SD-WAN also simplifies network management by providing granular control over network traffic. In this sense, administrators can easily prioritize traffic and ensure that critical applications receive the necessary bandwidth to operate effectively. This capability also reduces the complexity of network management, offering quicker issue identification, lessened disruption, and improved performance and reliability.
Reduced network complexity, in turn, helps workers by providing them with a more cohesive digital work environment. With fewer network issues, workers can seamlessly access key resources for stronger job performance.
4. Cloud Compatibility
SD-WAN’s cloud implications suggest a range of features conducive to easier, more optimized network traffic management between cloud-based applications and services. Such connections are both secure and reliable, and this, too, helps workers gain access to the resources they need to do their jobs effectively.
What’s more, SD-WAN simplifies the management of cloud-based applications and services through its aforementioned centralized control over network traffic, and SD-WAN benefits also include advanced analytics capabilities, which help to identify and address issues with network traffic to and from cloud-based resources quickly.
5. Application Optimization
SD-WAN offers organizations application optimization capabilities, enabling them to prioritize and manage network traffic and ensuring that critical applications receive the necessary bandwidth to operate effectively. One of the key benefits of SD-WAN application optimization is the ability to monitor network traffic and automatically adjust network traffic flows to optimize performance. In turn, applications can run at optimal performance levels.
Another important feature of SD-WAN’s application optimization capabilities is the prioritization of network traffic based on business-critical applications. Applications that are essential for business operations, such as video conferencing and CRM systems, receive the necessary bandwidth to operate effectively.
6. SD-WAN Cost-Effectiveness
Arguably one of the most notable SD-WAN advantages is its cost-effectiveness compared to traditional WAN systems. The technology is an affordable solution for organizations that want to enhance network performance and safety while minimizing costs. One of the main reasons for this fact is that SD-WAN leverages less expensive broadband connections rather than relying on more expensive MPLS connections; this reduces costs significantly while still delivering enhanced network performance and security.
SD-WAN’s cost-effectiveness also allows organizations to scale their networks more easily and cost-effectively. Traditional network architectures often require expensive hardware and extensive manual configuration to accommodate network growth, which can be a significant barrier to growth for smaller organizations. SD-WAN, on the other hand, can be quickly and easily scaled to accommodate new sites, users, and applications, making it an attractive solution for organizations of all sizes.
7. Bandwidth Optimization
In terms of digital bandwidth, SD-WAN also sports several crucial benefits. SD-WAN systems can optimize bandwidth usage, making it easier for workplaces to leverage their existing network availability in a logical, practical manner.
With SD-WAN, organizations can prioritize traffic and ensure that key applications receive the bandwidth they need to operate effectively, while less critical traffic goes through lower-priority channels. Optimized bandwidth usage ultimately reduces the risk of network congestion and downtime, which can lead to various subsequent issues harming network safety and integrity.
8. SD-WAN Scalability
One other benefit of SD-WAN is its scalability and flexibility – both of which help organizations easily adapt to changing business needs and network requirements. SD-WAN’s ability to scale and adapt is due to its software-based architecture, which allows for easy configuration and management of network resources.
Scalability, in this regard, contributes to a safer and more secure digital work environment by making that network resources easier to expand or reduce as needed. For example, if an organization needs to add a new branch office or remote worker, SD-WAN can seamlessly provision the necessary network resources to aid the new user in accessing the network and all necessary applications.
Additionally, SD-WAN’s flexibility allows organizations to deploy and manage network resources in a way that best suits their specific needs. For example, an organization can choose to use a combination of public and private cloud resources, depending on the specific requirements of their applications and workloads. This flexibility enables organizations to optimize their network performance and cost-effectiveness while also ensuring that their network is fully secure and compliant.
9. Agility
SD-WAN advantages also lend themselves to workplace agility by fostering quick, efficient change in terms of business needs and conditions. Paired with SD-WAN’s inherent scalability, this feature is especially vital, as workplaces can easily manage their network resources and quickly scale network infrastructure up or down as required. This flexibility allows companies to better respond to shifts in customer demand, technological advancements, and business opportunities.
Agility is also an asset to predominantly remote workplaces, where speed and efficiency are important across many different connected devices. With SD-WAN, organizations can provide secure and reliable access to their network resources from anywhere in the world, allowing employees to work from home or on the go while maintaining the same level of connectivity and productivity as if they were in the office.
10. Improved Compliance
SD-WAN has become a valuable tool for organizations prioritizing compliance in their operations. Compliance requirements, such as HIPAA and PCI DSS, demand the implementation of stringent security controls to protect sensitive data. SD-WAN helps organizations meet these compliance requirements by providing a secure and reliable network that meets regulatory standards.
Additionally, thanks to their centralized management characteristics, SD-WAN advantages make it easier to navigate and manage security policies and ensure related compliance across multiple sites.
SD-WAN also provides comprehensive reporting and monitoring capabilities, which help organizations meet audit and compliance requirements. Administrators can generate reports that provide a detailed view of network activity, including traffic volume and usage patterns. This information can be used to identify potential security threats and ensure compliance with related requirements.
Conclusion of SD-WAN Benefits
The preceding SD-WAN benefits underscore how this technology has become a crucial consideration for organizations – both new and established – in a growing list of industries and concentrations. By meshing high-level security optimization, enhanced data visibility and management, and logistical fluidity, SD-WAN stands to innovate digital business infrastructure for years to come.
Ready to take your business to the next level in terms of safety and efficiency? Consider a shift to SD-WAN to bring these goals to fruition. Reach out to our team for questions or more information! https://www.thundercattech.com/contact-us/