News

New in SD-WAN: Versa Powers networkWCS Service, SimpleWAN Does SD-WAN 2.0

• By David Ramel
• 04/23/2018

From its roots in academia and test labs, software-defined networking (SDN) is making increasing enterprise inroads through targeted initiatives such as software-defined wide-area networks (SD-WAN).

These put SDN to work in connecting geographically dispersed corporate networks, hooking up datacenters and branch offices, for example.

Demonstrating the growth in this area are two new announcements from SDN players Versa Networks and SimpleWAN.

Versa Partners with Wholesale Carrier Services
Versa, which describes itself as a SD-WAN and SD-Security specialist, last week announced its Cloud IP Platform will power the networkWCS service from Wholesale Carrier Services (WCS), a global managed communications service provider.

"This carrier-grade offering, built for the enterprise, delivers advanced application-aware networking, security and visibility in a single unified software platform," the company said in a statement. "WCS can now deliver a complete secure Software-Defined Branch (SD-Branch) solution that integrates SD-WAN and SD-Security, thus simplifying the IT experience while improving the end-user experience for cloud and SaaS applications."

Versa earlier this year updated its Cloud IP Platform, extending the company's software-defined branch (SD-Branch) capabilities with new voice and video functionality.

Now, the company is putting those updates to use in the WCS deal. "Specifically, the integrated security offering adds a multi-layer of protection that includes next-generation firewall (NGFW) and unified threat management (UTM)," the company said. "This comprehensive solution provides an application user experience-focused infrastructure with multi-layer security to protect the enterprise as they transition to multi-cloud services."

SimpleWAN Moves to SD-WAN 2.0
SimpleWAN, which provides an all-in-one offering of (SD-WAN), managed Wi-Fi and security technologies, announced its foray into SD-WAN 2.0 -- the next generation of SD-WAN.

"SD-WAN has been about improving Internet performance, getting businesses on faster speeds, prioritizing traffic, and moving away from MPLS, but SD-WAN 2.0 adds layers to this solution that fill the gaps for enterprises," SimpleWAN said in a recent statement.

As it explained in a post last week, SD-WAN 2.0 is about providing more control and better remote management that goes beyond WANs and into SD-Branch systems.

The company's focus on security is exemplified by what it describes as the industry's most advanced cyber-security measures in its new offering, such as intelligent sharing to ensure all network-attached devices are safe.

Furthermore, SD-WAN 2.0 lets users manage individual segments of a network, providing more granular control management. In SimpleWAN's case, a single dashboard provides access to a full diagnostic suite that goes beyond the firewall.

"Gone are the days of having to purchase a firewall, managed WiFi, network diagnostics packages, content filtering, and LAN management all separately," said CEO Erik Knight. "And, gone are the days of needing IT people at every branch location. With 2.0, you go deeper into your network."