Seven trends in enterprise networking in 2018

As enterprises gradually establish their own digital network strategies, IT infrastructure is developing rapidly, the demand for mobile devices is surging, the Internet of Things is emerging, and cloud computing applications are becoming more and more popular. Looking at the overall changes, the importance of networks is increasing.

According to the Interop ITX and InformationWeek 2018 Infrastructure Performance Study, enterprises are ramping up their network infrastructure with a focus on increasing bandwidth, exploring software-based network modernization approaches, and expanding wireless network capabilities.

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Another priority is cybersecurity: 59% of respondents believe that cybersecurity is one of the top three priorities for network investment in the coming year. After all, a secure and reliable network is critical to digital business.

This article will mainly summarize the network trends that enterprise networks can explore and research in the next year:

1. Increased cost investment

More than half of IT respondents said their companies expect to spend more money on networking, including wireless and wide area networks, in the coming year.

2. Security***

The biggest motivation for investment in network technology is to improve security. In the survey, it was found that security considerations received 60% of the responses. Therefore, the primary investment focus in the coming year should be on network security. With the increasing sophistication of cybercrime and the transformation of IT infrastructure by cloud and virtualization, companies should gradually strengthen their network security strategies and even consider network security functions beyond traditional firewalls and access control.

Reducing costs has always been the main challenge for enterprises to drive network investment. At the same time, improving network utilization and efficiency is also a challenge.

3. Improve bandwidth utilization

The need for increased bandwidth continues: After security was listed as the top priority for network investment in the next year, the survey found that high-speed Ethernet was highly valued. After all, speed is the highest productivity.

As network traffic increases, networks are under tremendous pressure. According to Cisco's Visual Networking Index, U.S. IP networks will transmit 2.6 quintillion bytes per day in 2021, up from 1 quintillion bytes per day in 2016. Cisco predicts that during the same period, the popularity of high-definition video in enterprises will lead to a three-fold increase in enterprise IP traffic.

4. Software Defined Networking (SDN): High interest, low action

The survey found that SDN (Software Defined Network) is an interesting topic. Although SDN/NFV was voted as one of the top three priorities by only 11%, 20% said they are researching SDN, 8% are evaluating SDN vendors and products, 5% are planning to implement SDN in the lab or in a limited test bed, 4% have already deployed SDN in the lab or in trials, and 6% have already deployed SDN in production environments. Another 18% said they are very interested in SDN, but have not yet started research in practice.

According to Gartner data, SDN has gained huge traction and influence in the service provider market, but adopting SDN in enterprise networks is even more attractive.

5. Continue to make dedicated network equipment

White-box switches, popular among web-scale companies like Facebook, have slashed the price of open networking, but appear to be having trouble in the enterprise. In fact, 63% of respondents said they have no plans to buy white-box switches, and 51% do not plan to use an open network operating system. Still, the concept of separating network software from the underlying hardware has its appeal, with 34% saying they are interested in a more affordable open network operating system, while 22% said they want to avoid vendor lock-in.

6. Wide Area Network (WAN) Pressure

WAN bandwidth has adapted to strong growth momentum, with 69% believing that WAN bandwidth demand will increase significantly (49%) or slightly (20%). According to a WAN report released by Aryaka Networks this year, many factors are putting pressure on WAN links, including bandwidth-intensive applications such as big data, cloud computing, IoT and video.

Software-defined wide area network (SD-WAN) technology has become a popular way to deal with wide area network (WAN) problems, but according to the Interop ITX and InformationWeek weekly survey, many companies have not made it a priority. Although 25% said they hope to deploy software-defined wide area network (SD-WAN) in the next 6 to 24 months, only 8% are currently using it. And 42% of companies do not plan to implement software-defined wide area network (SD-WAN) production deployment.

7. Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN) upgrade

Wireless networks have become an important part of the infrastructure structure, and most companies are also committed to expanding their wireless local area network (WLAN). The main investments in wireless technology in the next year include wireless access points (47%), wireless/mobile security (39%), mobile devices (36%), security/surveillance (34%), wireless local area network (WLAN) management (25%) and wireless switches (21%).

According to IDC data, the global wireless local area network (WLAN) market grew 9.4% in the second quarter of this year compared to the same quarter last year, reaching $1.48 billion. IDC said that the steady and continuous upgrade of the 802.11ac wireless standard contributed greatly to this growth. IDC senior research analyst said: "Wireless local area network (WLAN) is a key enabler of end-to-end digital transformation strategy, and wireless applications and devices will continue to release new digital and business results."