Benefits of Software-Defined Networking

Software-Defined Networking - The most significant promise of software-defined networks (SDN) is that they centralize and simplify management control over corporate networks. But what are the specific advantages of the software-defined network? Different providers make different claims, but the most cited benefits of the software-defined network are traffic planning, greater agility, the ability to create a policy-oriented network monitoring and implement network automation. Net. SDN promises to allow systems to keep up with the speed of change.

One of the main advantages of the software-defined network is that it creates a framework to support applications with higher data usage, such as big data and virtualization. Big Data is expected to grow at a compound annual rate of 27%, according to IDC, which means it will become a $ 32.4 billion market in 2017. IDC also predicts that by the end of this year, 70% of all the workloads of the installed server will be in virtual machines. Big Data motivate the adoption of virtualization, and SDN provides the means to manage virtual machines and Big Data network traffic.

Here is a list of some of the specific advantages of the software-defined network:

1. Centralized Network Provisioning

Software-defined networks provide a centralized view of the entire system, making it easy to centralize administration and provisioning for the enterprise. For example, more and more VLANs are becoming physical LANs, creating a Gordian knot of links and dependencies. Bypassing control and data plans, SDN can accelerate service delivery and provide more agility in provisioning virtual and physical network devices from a central location.

2. Complete Business Management

Commercial networks must configure new applications and virtual machines on-demand to meet further processing demands, such as big data. SDN allows IT managers to experiment with network configuration without affecting the network. SDN also supports the administration of physical and virtual switches and network devices from a central controller, something you cannot do with SNMP. SDN provides a unique set of APIs to create a single management console for physical and virtual devices.

3. More Granular Security

One of the benefits of defined security networks that appeals most to IT administrators is centralized security. Virtualization has made network management more difficult. With virtual machines entering and leaving as part of physical systems, it is more challenging to enforce firewall policies and content filtering consistently. When you add complexities, such as protecting BYOD devices, the security issue is compounded.

The SDN controller provides a central point of control to distribute security information and policies consistently throughout the company. Centralizing security control in a single entity, such as the SDN controller, has the disadvantage of creating a central attack point, but the SDN can be used to manage security throughout the enterprise if configured. They are implemented safely and correctly.

4. Reduction Of Operating Costs

Administrative efficiency, improved server use, better virtualization control, and other benefits are expected to generate operational savings. While it is still too early to show real evidence of savings, SDN is expected to reduce overall operating costs and make administrative savings, since many routine network management problems can be centralized and automated.

5. Reduced Material Savings And Reduced Capital Costs

The adoption of SDN also gives new life to existing network devices. SDN facilitates the optimization of standardized equipment. Existing hardware can be reused using the instructions of the SDN controller, and the cheaper hardware can be implemented more effectively, since the new devices essentially become "white box" switches, with all the intelligence centered on the SDN controller.