Nuage Networks from Nokia is a market leader in the SD-WAN industry (friendly reminder: that’s software-defined wide area networks). Initially offering end-to-end network automation as enterprises sought enhanced branch connectivity, Nuage is now the forerunner in the industry’s inevitable turn to cloud computing. The public cloud continues to proliferate (forecast to double in value to US$569 billion by 2024); SD-WAN businesses are heightening their focus on cloud enhancement, automation, and security.

The perpetual rise of public cloud

In its recently-released eBook SD-WAN and the Evolution of the Cloud, Nuage acknowledges the appeal of the public cloud, with self-contained on-demand computing, scalability, and elasticity all contributing to its streamlined offering. But the complexity of the public cloud also necessitates network automation that is enhanced by expert routing capabilities, something that many enterprises need help with. This is where SD-WAN comes in, serving as the “foundational networking pillar” of the cloud, offering application-level visibility and centralised control, as well as enhanced network automation. These elements are vital to enterprises building a multi-cloud strategy.

It’s been quite a journey for cloud, which has expanded from simple compute and storage capabilities to encompass SaaS, IaaS and PaaS models, each of which are experiencing ever-elevating activity. Now, and as the eBook states, public clouds are “migrating to the edge […] driven by the need to support industry 4.0, IoT and the promise of 5G,” rendering SD-WAN technology essential.

The world’s largest public cloud providers (AWS, Azure, Google Cloud) have expanded their access to cloud backbone technologies; additional consumption models may have added to the complexity of the network, but have accommodated enterprise customers by providing convenient, local aggregation points.

These include coverage of home telecommunications and mobile use, each of which are seeing sustained peaks as the world navigates the coronavirus pandemic.

Public cloud edge cases

Several evolving industrial applications – the likes of robotics, factory automation, AR and VR included – require a certain proximity between computers and the thing or person they serve. Public cloud services have shifted to these edges in order to provide robust compute, storage and networking to such emerging applications.

The eBook points to the “special use case” of 5G access technology, too, which edge cloud systems can utilise to expertly deliver application traffic. Thanks to excellent latency and performance characteristics – driven by the improved proximity of source and destination – this form of edge cloud provides new opportunities across many industries to improve business insight and productivity.

SD-WAN’s multi-cloud potential

To accommodate and support the growth of multi-cloud strategies – permitting cost optimisations, increased business agility and, vitally, security – SD-WAN has evolved from “WAN technology that only connects branches” to “an intelligent connectivity fabric that connects users to their applications wherever they reside.” SD-WAN 2.0, the central topic of Nuage’s eBook, is multi-cloud ready, provides public cloud integration and a single, comprehensive platform for network governance.

Cloud services in the remote working epoch

Throughout this 2020 whirlwind, remote working has been, and will continue to be, a reality for so many. In the midst of such a ‘new normal’, several public cloud services have taken centre stage, including ‘call centre as a service’ (aiding responsiveness from the home office), ‘unified communications as a service’ (we’ve all been riding the video conference wave) and ‘point of sale’ clouds (a stable connection enabling sales).

Each of these trends come with the principal purpose of minimising disruption or timeouts to the normal course of business and hitting today’s watchwords of ‘quality customer experiences.’ SD-WAN technology from Nuage can be instrumental in supporting the networking requirements of such SaaS cloud demands. “By deploying an SD-WAN appliance at each home, the SD-WAN network can be securely and easily extended.” What enterprise wouldn’t wish for greater visibility and traffic control as its disparate employees tap away at home? SD-WAN offers a common policy and control framework to smooth things over and ensure that ‘work from home’ is the same as ‘work in the office’ – minus the commute.

Nuage Networks SD-WAN 2.0: purpose built for the cloud era

Given its flexibility and having been built from the ground up to “not be constrained across network silos or boundaries,” it’s evident that Nuage Networks stands out from the pack when it comes to SD-WAN vendors. The company’s SD-WAN solution offers a Virtualized Services Platform (VSP), through which enterprises can securely automate their entire network. We’re talking data centres, branches, campuses, construction sites, banks, hospitals, mining sites, and so on. From this single point of control, Nuage’s solution completely accommodates the nuances and innovations of any type of cloud, unifying and managing cloud-based points-of-presence to make your organisation – and its connectivity – better-equipped to serve customers.

To read more on how you can seamlessly connect your clouds, data centres and edge installations, read more on the Nuage Networks SD-WAN 2.0 offering, available as a free and downloadable eBook.