The most popular network trends in 2019

“SD-WAN has seen incredible market growth since 2016, and the natural progression of network evolution has inevitably led to advantages,” said Mehra, analyst and vice president of IDC Network Infrastructure, at IDC’s annual Directions Conference on March 12. “SD-WAN and edge computing are interdependent. Edge computing requires a dynamic wide area network, and SD-WAN can benefit edge computing use cases. The two are interrelated, just like the chicken and the egg.”

Enterprise networks will see significant changes and advancements throughout 2019 due to other technological developments. Some of the major networking trends include 5G, 802.11ax (or Wi-Fi 6), and Gigabit Ethernet (GbE). Overall, automation and its real-time capabilities play a major role in all of these deployments.

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Network trends worth watching

While many of these networking trends will be relevant and deployed in 2019, their impact on the networking industry will be seen more broadly.

1. 5G and 4G LTE

According to Mehra, 5G is fast approaching. By the end of 2019, 5G networks will be enabled in some cities around the world, while enterprises will launch 5G in the experimental phase, focusing on 5G fixed wireless networks.

Mehra said the broadband-like capabilities of wireless 5G, coupled with automation, will make 5G a "once-in-a-lifetime event." Automation adds speed and flexibility to 5G capabilities, making it a compelling use case for enterprises. A large-scale rollout of 5G this year is not realistic. While we wait for 5G to fully develop, enterprise use of 4G LTE is becoming more common.

Over the past few years, 4G LTE has matured into a technology that can compete with traditional business-grade wireless technologies.

Mobile consumers likely won't see the benefits of 5G until 2021.

“For users to benefit from 5G, everyone needs a 5G-enabled phone,” Mehra said. “We’re still two to three years away.”

2. Network edge

This advantage becomes increasingly important as increasing network complexity requires improved visibility into the network. Mehra said that end-to-end visibility requires automation. Whether it is on the enterprise side, the IoT side, or the cloud, it is key to ensure that the network functions properly in several different use cases.

“Healthcare, utilities, mining and manufacturing, all of these IT-related actions happen at the edge of the network,” Mehra said. “To be successful, you need a more dynamic WAN and connectivity.”

Automation enables dynamic WANs, real-time responses and enhanced customer experience. Mehra added that automation combined with 5G wired or wireless networks can benefit the edge due to 5G’s long-distance communication capabilities.

Another technology that benefits the network edge is SD-WAN, which is itself a dynamic WAN.

3. SD-WAN

Mehra said SD-WAN is a building block towards autonomous networks, but automation also applies to SD-WAN. The SD-WAN market is growing, and while it has not yet reached the mainstream, its time is coming fast. The demand for automation is also fueling this growth, as automation can be built into software.

"As the market moves to a more holistic SD-WAN approach, we think it will be an enabler for new edge architectures," Mehra said. "While SD-WAN looks at the pipes that connect, the WAN is the pipe that connects you."

SD-WAN and automation allow for a more dynamic edge, which tightly connects these network trends.

4. Wi-Fi 6 and 400 GbE

The new Wi-Fi standard, also known as 802.11ax, is expected to be released in late 2019. Wi-Fi 6 promises real-time responsiveness and facets, as well as multi-user MIMO and orthogonal frequency-division multiple access (OFDMA).

“On a client-by-client basis, using MU-MIMO and OFDMA, Wi-Fi 6 delivers the best possible experience and automatically changes its architecture to support that,” Mehra said. “Think of autonomous driving networks as the next step in the Wi-Fi era.”

Although Wi-Fi 6 touts agility, scalability and real-time responsiveness, Mehra said multi-GbE is already sufficient for enterprise needs at this point.

“There is a clear use case for 400 GbE for the data center, but I think multi-GGE in the enterprise will be enough to go up to 100 GbE even with Wi-Fi 6,” he said.

Mehra said most 400 GbE deployments will begin in 2019, with 400 GbE switches launching as spine or core switches in hyperscale data centers and in private and public cloud data centers. Wi-Fi 6 and 400 GbE won’t become mainstream until 2023.

Think before you deploy

Despite the hype surrounding these technologies, Mehra said he encourages businesses to take a step back and not get carried away with new cyber trends. Overall, every organization must weigh its options when deciding on attack tools and techniques.

“With all new technologies, there is a lot of hype,” Mehra said. “The market is exploding, but we need to be pragmatic and cautious with the rollout.”