Edge Networks Provide the Glue for the Business and its Branches
Versa Networks
July 23, 2020
A key component of classic go-to-market strategies is to evaluate the requirements to compete in modern business by how we align our pricing models. We conduct competitive analysis to define product features and functions and build in unique differentiation to one-up our rivals. To support our products, we hire and train staff to ensure customer service and satisfaction ratings are the best in the industry.
This is the digital age, where everyone, on some level, lives and works in a fully virtualized world. Unless we pay cash (remember cash), we can’t buy anything without a secure network. For contemporary times, we can’t even make a phone call, send an email or text a customer, partner or coworker, without dependable, agile and fast networks. The point is networks are as important to business, as our employees, products, services and the buildings we work in.
Business today requires cost-efficient and agile edge connectivity, strong authentication and secure communications. Our businesses rely upon digital technologies, clouds and SaaS, that make virtually all employees as remote to corporate assets and resources, as our customers and partners.
This decentralization requires networks that are built with automation, orchestration and machine learning/artificial intelligence capabilities, which help lower costs, simplify operations and provide the dexterity needed to compete in our digital world. A hallmark of digital transformation is the “simplification” of complex, bloated and cobbled together legacy technologies. Digital transformation is still complex. It’s just a different kind of complexity. In reality, this simplification really has more to do with how software-defined technology makes it easier to take advantage of our changing world, with multi-clouds, virtualization, mobility, big data and Internet of things (IoT).
If enterprise networks aren’t agile and responsive, business suffers. If networks don’t have multi-layered security and flexible multi-cloud access, business can’t effectively compete. If traditional networks aren’t modernized to take advantage of diverse connections and seamless integration of siloed systems, businesses won’t accelerate fast enough, and the costs to maintain legacy networks will disadvantage them.
Versa transforms business by software-defining everything
So, what does it mean to software-define everything? It means all employees, customers and partners supporting sales and supply chains can securely, reliably and quickly conduct business through the enterprise WAN. It means all users, no matter their device, can securely access corporate resources from any location (e.g., corporate data centers, private/public/hybrid clouds, SaaS, and IaaS) to which they have access privileges. This is all accomplished through centralized policy enablement and control, and zero-touch distributed site provisioning of network and security policies, and traffic steering based on user, device, location and application context.
Versa enables software-defined everything with its Secure Cloud IP architecture that automates manually intensive, time-consuming and often error-prone configurations and modifications. Versa converges cloud-based networking and security within a single pane of glass view for complete life-cycle management and real-time monitoring of all services. By taking advantage of the cloud and incorporating security into DevOps, IT professionals can gain further operational and cost efficiencies and unify their network and security infrastructure.
Deploying network function virtualization (NFV) is a powerful capability that virtualizes network services that previously ran on proprietary, single-function hardware. Versa’s Secure Cloud IP architecture includes robust virtual network functions (VNFs) that are delivered more economically, with service automation, self-service activation, and bandwidth and services that can be elastically turned up or down to meet dynamic business demands. Versa VNF functions for routing, SD-WAN, security and more, are all natively embedded within a single software platform. This provides a cohesive, virtualized network and multi-layered security posture that eliminates siloed services and single function appliances that inhibit visibility, and add unnecessary risk, complexity and cost.
Secure SD-WAN as a Service is good for enterprise and MSP business
When secure SD-WAN is provisioned and delivered by a managed service provider (MSP), enterprise IT teams are freed from resource and time intensive tasks, and the Capex costs of having to purchase, provision, manage, troubleshoot and support today’s perimeter-less network infrastructure. Instead, they can focus on leveraging other technologies and applications that help them drive new business programs to help achieve a competitive advantage.
MSPs benefit from secure SD-WAN solutions that are fully multi-tenant, cloud-delivered, and made for easy consumption. The Versa Secure Cloud IP architecture is a multi-service, multi-tenant software platform from which MSPs can create new revenue-generating and value-added services.
For example, a security service can be quickly brought to market, with a full suite of Layer 3 – 7 security capabilities, including NGFW, SWG and UTM functionality in a single software solution that combines both SD-WAN and multilayered security, enables enterprises and MSPs to rapidly support digital transformation and multi-cloud migration.
The benefits of software-defined everywhere approach include:
- Integrated network and security eliminate siloed systems and enables cross-application visibility
- SD-WAN that seamlessly supports hybrid and public clouds
- Lower Capex and reduction in overall WAN total cost of ownership
- 100% uptime with redundancy, resiliency over any type of network connection
- Significantly improved bandwidth capacity at a lower cost, compared to traditional networks
- Network agility to quickly support dynamic new business opportunities
Modern networks accelerate business
Today’s modern networks are all about business enablement and acceleration. Whether it’s adding new mission-critical applications to the network, adding new branch offices or retail stores, or enabling a mobile workforce with seamless access to data center and cloud apps. Software-defining everything changes the nature of IT, from a reactive technology organization with limited visibility, to a proactive service and business organization with end-to-end visibility. IT becomes less about reactively fixing network issues, and more about predictively optimizing and accelerating business initiatives.
