Vodafone launches managed SD-WAN service
Software defined wide area network (SD-WAN) technology will transform businesses, bringing more flexibility and mobility to business operations, and is set to become the fastest growing business product of 2020, Vodafone has said.
To allow Irish organisations to take advantage of SD-WAN benefits, the vendor has launched a new software-based enterprise network, SD-WAN, a virtual solution that sits on existing or new networks, giving immediate visibility and control of network traffic. The solution will enable businesses to manage all applications, devices and bandwidth usage through a single self-service portal, said Vodafone.
A key advantage of the new service, Vodafone said, is the option for it to operate in a managed service model for SD-WAN adoption.
“This service will provide support through a team of experts and certified engineers that will monitor and manage the customer network on their behalf – allowing IT teams more time to focus on delivering value add activities,” said Vodafone.
“Vodafone’s SD-WAN network is the future for Irish business,” said Regina Moran, business director, Vodafone Ireland, “giving them greater control over their network usage with enhanced connectivity and security. As businesses follow a digital transformation agenda, use more cloud-based services and support more remote and flexible working, there will be further demands on their network and connectivity requirements. Imagine a tool that gives you total visibility of what’s happening on your network and also allows you to solve every day networking issues.”
Vodafone said the key capability for the new services lies in its ability to combine a centrally controlled and managed Wi-Fi solution, a secure firewall and state of the art analytics and application controls. It said these tools help IT administrators to streamline and improve the end-user experience through the single self-serve portal, and crucially to significantly reduce the time it takes to isolate network or application problems that lie beyond the local area network.
A Cisco Meraki SD-WAN service intelligently optimises network performance over the best available mechanism in the network to meet demand, with the ability to utilise and combine multiple media, such as multiprotocol label (MPLS), internet, mobile. Connectivity can move from broadband to 4G freely, allowing seamless operations for all applications, said Vodafone, which increases application performance, resulting in enhanced user experience, increased business productivity and reduced costs for IT.
As businesses host increased applications on the cloud, the vendor argued, greater connectivity speeds along with security are critical to the success of their digital transformation and performance. Vodafone emphasised that security is embedded across all points of its SD-WAN service, protecting businesses from unwanted threats, with in-built encryption and firewall that secures data, network and users.
The new service is already in place for Ryanair, with whom Vodafone recently signed a contract. Alongside the use of Vodafone’s global network, it has enabled a 10-day turnaround in setting up a new airport site. The service gives Ryanair the agility and flexibility to respond quickly to customer demand when launching new route offerings, instantly managing the added pressure to their network, said Vodafone.
“Ideal for medium to large businesses, migration to SD-WAN is managed by Vodafone’s end to end experts so it can be installed and up and running quickly, without the need for multiple vendors. The overall goal is to simplify the IT administrator’s workload, to free them up to focus on adding value to the system,” said Moran.
TechCentral Reporters
Subscribers 0
Fans 0
Followers 0
Followers