1
00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:00,930
In this lesson,

2
00:00:00,930 --> 00:00:03,990
we're going to cover software-defined wide area networks.

3
00:00:03,990 --> 00:00:06,210
As our organizations become increasingly more reliant

4
00:00:06,210 --> 00:00:07,500
on cloud-based applications

5
00:00:07,500 --> 00:00:10,260
that are used by our geographically distributed workforces,

6
00:00:10,260 --> 00:00:12,810
this has led to an increased demand for agile, secure,

7
00:00:12,810 --> 00:00:14,460
and efficient network infrastructures

8
00:00:14,460 --> 00:00:16,020
that can be created quickly.

9
00:00:16,020 --> 00:00:17,670
A software-defined wide area network,

10
00:00:17,670 --> 00:00:19,890
or an SD-WAN, is a virtualized approach

11
00:00:19,890 --> 00:00:22,530
to managing and optimizing wide area network connections

12
00:00:22,530 --> 00:00:24,960
to efficiently route traffic between remote sites,

13
00:00:24,960 --> 00:00:27,450
data centers, and cloud-based environments.

14
00:00:27,450 --> 00:00:30,480
An SD-WAN represents a huge innovation in our networks

15
00:00:30,480 --> 00:00:32,430
and security architectures.

16
00:00:32,430 --> 00:00:35,280
Now, an SD-WAN, or software-defined wide area network,

17
00:00:35,280 --> 00:00:37,500
is a virtual wide area network architecture

18
00:00:37,500 --> 00:00:39,600
that allows enterprises to leverage any combination

19
00:00:39,600 --> 00:00:42,180
of transport services to securely connect users

20
00:00:42,180 --> 00:00:43,740
to their applications.

21
00:00:43,740 --> 00:00:47,100
An SD-WAN is essentially a software-based WAN architecture

22
00:00:47,100 --> 00:00:50,190
with all the control extracted from the underlying hardware.

23
00:00:50,190 --> 00:00:52,590
So instead of configuring specific infrastructure

24
00:00:52,590 --> 00:00:55,920
to handle application traffic using something like MPLS,

25
00:00:55,920 --> 00:00:59,310
you can now manage an SD-WAN entirely inside a software.

26
00:00:59,310 --> 00:01:00,390
Plus, you can layer it

27
00:01:00,390 --> 00:01:02,640
over multiple types of network transport.

28
00:01:02,640 --> 00:01:04,080
This means we can really use

29
00:01:04,080 --> 00:01:06,480
any of the other WAN connections we may want to,

30
00:01:06,480 --> 00:01:09,750
things like MPLS, a cellular connection, a microwave link,

31
00:01:09,750 --> 00:01:12,150
a regular broadband internet service, like a cable modem,

32
00:01:12,150 --> 00:01:12,983
or anything else

33
00:01:12,983 --> 00:01:15,690
in order to create a virtual wide area network architecture

34
00:01:15,690 --> 00:01:17,970
that we can then run our networks on top of.

35
00:01:17,970 --> 00:01:19,410
To create an SD-WAN,

36
00:01:19,410 --> 00:01:21,240
you can use a centralized control function

37
00:01:21,240 --> 00:01:23,580
to securely and intelligently redirect the traffic

38
00:01:23,580 --> 00:01:24,990
across the WAN.

39
00:01:24,990 --> 00:01:26,220
Our traditional WANs,

40
00:01:26,220 --> 00:01:27,060
which were never developed

41
00:01:27,060 --> 00:01:28,620
with the idea of integrating cloud services

42
00:01:28,620 --> 00:01:31,830
into our enterprise environments, simply can't do this.

43
00:01:31,830 --> 00:01:34,920
Instead, SD-WANs enable our cloud-first enterprises

44
00:01:34,920 --> 00:01:38,130
to deliver amazing quality experiences for our users.

45
00:01:38,130 --> 00:01:39,270
Now, let's consider a company

46
00:01:39,270 --> 00:01:40,800
that has several branch offices

47
00:01:40,800 --> 00:01:42,690
and one headquarters location.

48
00:01:42,690 --> 00:01:44,580
In our traditional WAN architectures,

49
00:01:44,580 --> 00:01:46,830
each branch office would likely be connected back

50
00:01:46,830 --> 00:01:49,680
to the central office using a star topology.

51
00:01:49,680 --> 00:01:50,820
This would allow the headquarters

52
00:01:50,820 --> 00:01:53,010
to conduct advanced security on that traffic

53
00:01:53,010 --> 00:01:55,410
as it went from the branch offices to the headquarters

54
00:01:55,410 --> 00:01:57,060
and then out to the internet.

55
00:01:57,060 --> 00:01:58,860
Now, this is great for security, sure,

56
00:01:58,860 --> 00:02:00,840
but it really does slow down the entire process

57
00:02:00,840 --> 00:02:03,600
for our end users who are located at those branch offices,

58
00:02:03,600 --> 00:02:05,490
and it result in a poor user experience

59
00:02:05,490 --> 00:02:07,170
and loss productivity.

60
00:02:07,170 --> 00:02:09,270
Now, unlike traditional architectures, though,

61
00:02:09,270 --> 00:02:11,670
SD-WAN can solve this by using intelligence

62
00:02:11,670 --> 00:02:13,200
to identify the network applications

63
00:02:13,200 --> 00:02:14,970
that are being used by those end users,

64
00:02:14,970 --> 00:02:16,830
and then routing that data across the WAN

65
00:02:16,830 --> 00:02:18,270
to the right places.

66
00:02:18,270 --> 00:02:19,800
This allows your WAN environment

67
00:02:19,800 --> 00:02:21,660
to be much more dynamic and efficient,

68
00:02:21,660 --> 00:02:23,550
while providing improvements in visibility,

69
00:02:23,550 --> 00:02:25,050
performance, and manageability

70
00:02:25,050 --> 00:02:26,460
of an enterprise WAN architecture

71
00:02:26,460 --> 00:02:28,410
from a single centralized point.

72
00:02:28,410 --> 00:02:30,780
So if you're working at a large enterprise network

73
00:02:30,780 --> 00:02:32,400
and you have a lot of branch offices

74
00:02:32,400 --> 00:02:34,230
and they're trying to move more and more into the cloud

75
00:02:34,230 --> 00:02:37,110
using things like IaaS and PaaS and SaaS,

76
00:02:37,110 --> 00:02:38,730
you may need to use an SD-WAN

77
00:02:38,730 --> 00:02:40,860
to increase the performance for your end users

78
00:02:40,860 --> 00:02:42,630
and reduce the bottlenecks they're being caused

79
00:02:42,630 --> 00:02:45,360
by your traditional centralized WAN architectures.

80
00:02:45,360 --> 00:02:47,040
So remember, as our work environments

81
00:02:47,040 --> 00:02:49,440
become increasingly more geographically dispersed,

82
00:02:49,440 --> 00:02:50,970
understanding and implementing a solution

83
00:02:50,970 --> 00:02:54,120
like an SD-WAN is going to be important for you to consider.

84
00:02:54,120 --> 00:02:56,250
This technology isn't just about keeping pace

85
00:02:56,250 --> 00:02:57,810
with digital transformation, though,

86
00:02:57,810 --> 00:03:00,030
but it's really focused on anticipating the future,

87
00:03:00,030 --> 00:03:01,350
preparing for its challenges,

88
00:03:01,350 --> 00:03:03,630
and capitalizing on the opportunities.

89
00:03:03,630 --> 00:03:06,510
An SD-WAN, or a software-defined wide area network,

90
00:03:06,510 --> 00:03:07,680
is a virtualized approach

91
00:03:07,680 --> 00:03:10,500
to managing and optimizing wide area network connections

92
00:03:10,500 --> 00:03:13,020
to efficiently route our traffic between remote sites,

93
00:03:13,020 --> 00:03:15,030
data centers, and cloud environments.

94
00:03:15,030 --> 00:03:16,890
And by leveraging this kind of technology,

95
00:03:16,890 --> 00:03:19,140
we can elevate our organizational security posture

96
00:03:19,140 --> 00:03:21,240
while continuing to move forward in our careers

97
00:03:21,240 --> 00:03:24,190
and migrate more heavily into our cloud-based environments.