SD-WAN, 5G remote work technologies help future networks

As the remote workforce continues to grow, newer network technologies can adapt and enhance an organization’s remote work strategy.

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Recently, three network bloggers discussed how network technologies (such as software-defined WAN or SD-WAN and 5G) can help enterprise employees work remotely, and how features such as split tunneling can negatively impact remote work. IT teams can enhance future business continuity (BC) plans for network infrastructure by integrating SD-WAN and 5G remote work features instead of or in conjunction with traditional options (such as VPNs with split tunneling).

SD-WAN is not new to many enterprises; the technology has been popular because it can help enterprises plan, experience and implement digital transformation strategies. Moreover, SD-WAN and cloud resources can establish reliable and secure connections between branch offices, cloud environments, data centers and corporate headquarters.

Bob Laliberte, practice director and senior analyst at Enterprise Strategy Group, wrote in an ESG blog post that SD-WAN has several connectivity benefits for enterprises with multiple branch locations. SD-WAN benefits include the following capabilities:

• Prioritize application traffic to ensure voice and video applications always run well;
• Utilize all available bandwidth;
• Divide traffic so that personal traffic does not affect business traffic

The benefits of SD-WAN are even more evident when remote work increases, such as during the coronavirus pandemic. Since the COVID-19 outbreak, many enterprises have accelerated SD-WAN deployments or reconsidered BC plans, Laliberte said, largely because IT leaders believe that the benefits of SD-WAN are not limited to traditional workspaces.

“It stands to reason that if SD-WAN can provide benefits to the branch office, it can also provide the same benefits to employees who are now working from home,” Laliberte said.

Click here to learn more about Laliberte's analysis on SD-WAN as an important remote work technology.

With 5G, remote working technology brings business to the home office

Although 5G has not yet become mainstream, its claimed features and benefits have made experts take note of its potential advantages in supporting remote work. Malcolm Rogers, an analyst at GlobalData Plc, wrote on the GlobalData blog that network slicing is a key feature of 5G remote work technology. In addition, 5G may be a more affordable connectivity option for companies with a growing remote workforce.

Network slicing architecture essentially divides the network into multiple slices to separate traffic originating from different services and applications, although the slices typically run in the same hardware. By leveraging network slicing in 5G, remote work will not have to compete for bandwidth with traditional home network traffic (such as streaming or gaming). Rogers said network slicing will enhance 5G remote work technology.

Another benefit of 5G remote work is the mobile edge computing capability, which moves critical business applications, workloads, and sensitive data to the edge of the network to be closer to remote employees, thereby reducing latency and improving performance. Since most people live within cellular network coverage, 5G is also a more accessible and affordable connectivity option for remote employees to divide the network between home and business use.

“When combined with secure 5G network slicing, enterprises can more easily move sensitive data and applications from headquarters to the network edge near employees’ homes,” Rogers said.

Click here to hear more of Rogers’ thoughts on 5G’s remote work capabilities, edge computing, and network slicing.

Long-term remote work could lead to the end of split tunneling

Whether an enterprise uses VPN, SD-WAN or 5G, remote work requires reliable network security. For enterprises with VPN services, this may mean disabling split tunneling, network engineer Russ White wrote on the ECI blog. Split tunneling is a feature that enables a single VPN client to access multiple destinations, and it has a variety of advantages and disadvantages, but they all have one thing in common: malware.

Malware is a program or file that can harm a user. White said the following two reasons to disable VPN split tunneling are both for malware:

1. Without split tunneling, infected data from an infected endpoint has only one way to escape: through the corporate network. There, internal network controls take over and take action against the malware.
2. If a user opens a malware-infected file and split tunneling is disabled, these same internal network controls will take over and take preventative action to protect the corporate network.

However, disabling split tunneling can also create challenges for IT teams. For example, IT teams may have difficulty monitoring whether employees use the corporate network to access personal data or data not related to work. If an employee opens an infected file while connected to the company VPN, this could also allow an attacker to access the corporate network.

To avoid the issue of split tunneling altogether, businesses can choose to avoid using VPN services.

"In split tunneling, there is no clear solution other than adopting a more Web application-style architecture for all access and reducing VPN use to the bare minimum to properly support large numbers of remote users," White said.

Click here for more of White's analysis of the pros and cons of tunnel splitting.