In our last post [Software-Defined WAN: Cheaper, Faster, More Secure], we discussed how software-defined WAN (SD-WAN) solutions enable you to reduce WAN cost and complexity while increasing performance, reliability and security. The software-defined component of SD-WAN lies in a smart centralized controller capable of differentiating and segmenting traffic and making routing decisions on the fly. 

Software-defined WAN (SD-WAN) technology is being adopted at a phenomenal rate. IDC expects that 70 percent of enterprises will implement some form of SD-WAN within the next two years. As a result, the research firm predicts that the SD-WAN market will see a compound annual growth rate of more than 90 percent.

The IT industry is often guilty of hype and oversimplification. New technologies are marketed in a way that creates overinflated expectations, while the potential challenges associated with implementing and managing the technology are minimized. Software-defined WAN (SD-WAN) technology has, for the most part, lived up to the hype.

Almost everyone has a cell phone these days — from your little sister in elementary school all the way up to your grandmother. It’s hard to imagine life without these handheld devices, which allow us to do so much more than simply make phone calls.