FEATURE: SDN
use in most existing networks.
SDN requires a network operator
to think more in terms of their
network and customer needs,
develop some software centric
skills, and take positive steps
to apply software solutions to
address customer problems.
Many network operators
have successfully made the
transformation. The key to
being successful in making this
transformation is to work with
someone who has experienced
it, can apply lessons learned and
provide guidance.
Charbel Khneisser, Regional
Presales Director,
METNA at Riverbed
In traditional networks, the
control and data planes are
combined under the same
network node such as the router,
or switch, whilst, with SDN, the
control is moved from individual
network nodes into a separate,
centralised controller. Hence,
transitioning from a traditional
legacy network to a software
defined one presents four main
challenges: security, scalability,
interoperability and performance.
Having the control plane as
the central function in an SDN
architecture; security strategies
must focus around protecting it
and an authentication mechanism
must be set in place for the
applications accessing it.
When transitioning legacy
networks to software defined,
organisations won’t be able to
swap their legacy devices in just
a day. They would instead have
to go through a hybrid legacy
SDN infrastructure. If this is done
correctly, SDN and legacy network
infrastructure can coexist without
any challenges.
Riverbed’s SD-WAN solution,
Riverbed® SteelConnect™ offers
the scalability, interoperability
and performance requirements
any large organisation needs,
www.intelligentcio.com
coupled with a high-end security
exchange mechanism to
maintain confidentiality.
Alexandre Gibouin International
Business Development,
Connectivity Business Unit,
IMEAR Region, for Orange
Business Services
The first challenge is to select a
carrier class and future proof SDN
platform. Orange is partnering
with industry leaders who have
a long track record in delivering
enterprise grade services on a
global scale. The second challenge
is to avoid vendor lock-in, which
should not be the price to pay
when adopting more proprietary
SD-WAN technologies. Orange
Business Services has adopted a
range of legacy hardware devices
and more importantly when
those devices were purchased
and what is needed from SDN.
But when it comes to greenfield
implementations customers are
surprised to see how simple their
network configurations could be.
Mohannad Abuissa, Head of Sales
Engineering - East Region, Cisco
Middle East
Skills shortage is one of the major
challenges when it comes to SDN.
In order to capitalise on this
technology, enterprises will need
well-trained and skilled staff.
Cisco predicts that approximately
220,000 new engineers will be
needed globally every year for
the next 10 years to keep up with
the technological surge of IoT.
Through the Cisco Networking
Academy (Netacad), we have
been training and enabling IT
professionals to gear up for
trends such as SDN.
Is it wise to currently rely fully
on network virtualization and
SDN?
Ravi Mali, director regional sales,
Ciena
Swapnil Gupte, Solution Architect,
Enterprise Computing Systems,
Alpha Data
multi-vendor approach and will
continue to offer best-of-breed
technology. Finally, each customer
should transition to SDN at their
own pace.
Swapnil Gupte, Solution Architect,
Enterprise Computing Systems,
Alpha Data
SDN is new technology to have
emerged and has been adopted
by many customers. However,
when it comes to implementing
an existing network the biggest
challenge is the existing wide
Networks today are comprised
of a mix of equipment and
technologies. The services being
carried are just as diverse. At
the same time, a change to
SDN requires work. So, while
SDN and virtualization make
sense for many services and
many networking applications, it
would not be practical to apply it
everywhere. SDNs apply where
there is growth and the need for
speed, accuracy and agility. For
example, SDN may not apply to
legacy parts of the network that
are working well and may be
reaching end-of-life.
Alexandre Gibouin International
Business Development,
Connectivity Business Unit, IMEAR
Region, for Orange
Business Services
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