What to expect from SD-WAN in 2019? Five major trends to watch

There’s probably no hotter topic in networking circles right now than SD-WAN, and that’s because WAN technology has remained unchanged for the better part of three decades, and most companies are long overdue for an update to their WAN architecture — and SD-WAN makes that a reality.

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SD-WAN has definitely exited the early adoption phase and entered mainstream adoption. Whenever a technology does that, the market changes. Here are the main ways SD-WAN will change in 2019:

1. Reduced focus on cost savings

At the beginning of the SD-WAN promotion, it promised to cut network costs by replacing MPLS with broadband. If an enterprise is willing to abandon all MPLS, which is a big problem, and replace it completely with broadband, it will save private network costs. However, it may need to add some optimization technology to solve the unpredictability of broadband.

In addition, most companies running a hybrid network with different operators' network products is what they already do, so there will be no cost savings in this case. Enterprises should not carry out IT projects with saving money as the only goal, because there are other ways to achieve this goal. SD-WAN value is higher than saving network costs.

2. More focus on safety

When enterprises migrate to SD-WAN, the network structure should be changed so that branch users can access cloud services directly from the branch. This has a profound impact on network security because the number of entry and exit points ranges from one to hundreds or even thousands, depending on the number of branches.

After SD-WAN is deployed, security no longer needs to be considered separately but instead needs to be integrated into the architecture, and deployment options are expected to increase, including cloud security, virtual appliances and containerized services.

3. More SD-WAN services

Traditional WANs are highly inefficient but simple. SD-WANs are flexible, efficient, and provide greater application performance, but they can be complex. Network professionals need to make several decisions they have never had to make before, including where to put local internet, network segmentation, path selection criteria, how to connect to the cloud, and what kind of security to deploy.

Further complicating matters, there is no global or even nationwide broadband provider, so large companies are faced with managing dozens of contracts. Put this together, and many companies may abandon the do-it-yourself model and opt for an SD-WAN managed services provider.

4. Overcrowded market

The shift toward security and managed services will create a new crop of vendors. Gartner currently counts 20 vendors offering SD-WAN. Many public cloud vendors and telcos have added SD-WAN to their portfolios over the past few years, adding about 20 products. In 2019, we should expect more managed service providers (MSPs) and edge security vendors to enter the market, giving companies more than 50 possibilities. Enterprise customers who like choice will certainly have plenty to choose from.

5. Accelerated market integration

There have been a number of acquisitions over the past few years as the giant vendors have moved quickly into SD-WAN. The abundance of choice is great news for enterprise customers, but it's ultimately bad for the market because supply far outstrips demand. Does this mean that if you're shopping for SD-WAN, you should avoid smaller vendors because they may be experiencing financial difficulties? The most likely scenario is that many of the smaller vendors will be acquired, so the technology won't disappear, just the ownership will change hands.