WAN software-defined platform NSX SD-WAN by VeloCloud
Software Defined SD-WAN WAN
Traditionally, large companies are generally expensive leased line to connect through multiple regional headquarters and regional offices spread around the country, remote employees to access corporate data center via a wide area network. Broadband networks in general due to the concerns on the low reliability and safety, only for backup. With the development of cloud computing technology, enterprise applications have not only running in the data center, many companies began to use cloud services (such as SalesForce, Office365, WebEx, etc.), these services exist on the Internet outside the corporate leased line network, access speed difficult to guarantee. Traditional enterprise WAN architecture is not only expensive, but bandwidth is limited, difficult to meet the requirements of SaaS services and real-time applications, enterprises need a new network architecture to meet the operational requirements of next-generation applications.
Software-defined WAN (SD-WAN: Software-Defined Wide Area Network) It is in this context came into being, it has the same purpose with data center software defined network (SDN). In the company’s existing wide area network based on the physical, the virtualization layer completely software-based wide area network, to improve data transmission efficiency through virtual WAN software. SD-WAN WAN is how to optimize it? There are two main methods:
- Route optimization: Dynamically determined according to bandwidth congestion and each segment of virtual WAN transmission route data packets, like opened the intelligent navigation with real-time traffic, you always go with the least total elapsed time, the smoothest road traffic . Each enterprise site can access a variety of ways, such as dedicated line, MPLS (Multiple protocol Label Switching), broadband, and even an LTE mobile data connection, SD-WAN can select the optimal path in these networks, the reduction of transmission delay and packet loss.
- Depending on the application to determine the type of SLA(Service Level Agreement): SD-WAN can identify the type of data packet transmission, to determine the transmission priority, such as Message Transfer slow down will not affect the user experience based on application type, but network latency for real-time applications such as Skype for Business, WebEx the user experience has deadly effects, it should give priority to transmission of data packets such applications.
NSX SD-WAN by VeloCloud
By the end of 2017 VMware acquired the market leader SD-WAN solution VeloCloud, their products into the NSX network virtualization product family, renamed NSX SD-WAN by VeloCloud (hereinafter referred to as VeloCloud). Through this acquisition, VMware will further expand the network virtualization from traditional data center to the WAN, provides SD-WAN services for business users. VeloCloud architecture consists of the following components:
- Orchestrator: Orchestrator is the manager of the entire software-defined WAN administrators to configure, install and real-time monitoring of the entire network through the interface Orchestrator provided; Orchestrator also responsible for scheduling packet traffic routing throughout the virtual WAN, in order to achieve the goal to optimize performance.
- Gateway: Gateway deployed in the world’s major cloud data center for cloud services, branches, access to enterprise data centers provide access path optimization.
- Edge: Edge entire SD-WAN access equipment, charged with virtual WAN access each site, and is responsible for the data packet is scanned to determine the type of application, network performance monitoring, virtual network services to provide end to end.
Can greatly improve the agility of the network by the VeloCloud the entire WAN virtualization, because this time the entire WAN have become a software-based network can respond flexibly respond to various emergencies, such as occurs when a certain period of network failure or delay, continue to dynamically change the routing of data to ensure the quality of application-layer data transmission.
- Ease of Deployment: Another important feature of VeloCloud, VeloCloud introduced zero touch (Zero-Touch) management concept, just need to be sent to various branches of the Edge device, then connect the power supply network and by local staff, you can by a cloud Orchestrator to unify the management of remote, all system configuration from the clouds are pushed to each Edge device. This management model greatly reducing the workload management, no longer need to send people to travel to each site for installation configuration, so that enterprises save a lot of administrative costs.
VeloCloud also provides centralized management and control for the wide area network, Orchestrator summarizes all network activity in the WAN, alarm and fault information, the real-time operational status of the entire network is displayed in front of the administrator. Administrators can remotely troubleshoot the network, the network configuration by Orchestrator quickly pushed to each network node, adjust and implement change through the WAN software.
VeloCloud application examples
Deploying VeloCloud of SD-WAN for business has two advantages:
- cut costs: Companies no longer need to hire an expensive business growth and green-bandwidth, just use the original green-bandwidth, with a number of other low-cost network access such as broadband, LTE, etc. you can achieve better performance.
- Guaranteed Performance: For WAN optimization, employee user experience in the use of video conferencing, SalesForce applications greatly improved the work done by VeloCloud.
Here is an example of VeloCloud optimized video conferencing effect: under conditions WAN packet loss rate of 2%, the effect can be seen VeloCloud optimized for video conferencing applications is still very obvious, the original picture is very Caton, the use of video becomes VeloCloud I was fluent.
Another example is VeloCloud for accelerated file transfer: under conditions WAN packet loss rate of 2%, a transmission speed of 50MB Box file improved nearly 10 times, raised from 341 KB / sec to 4.1 MB / sec.
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