Virtualization and Cloud executives share their predictions for 2015. Read them in this VMblog.com series exclusive.
Contributed article by Srini Beereddy, Founder and CTO, Anuta Networks
2015: The year of NaaS (Network as a Service)
There has been significant
activity in the networking area around technologies such as NFV, SDN and OpenFlow.
Telcos are partnering with standard bodies and vendors to push for NFV.
Enterprises are thinking of deploying SDN based solutions in their datacenters.
Various vendors are promising to simplify the network complexity by using
overlays and OpenFlow. The main driver of all these activities is the need to
create agile network services that can be designed and deployed quickly based
on application and user requirements.
Creating an end to end
network service requires expertise in configuring devices such as routers, switches,
firewalls, load-balancers, WAN optimization etc, from multiple vendors. Doing
it manually leads to longer service delivery, configuration errors and security
violations. Delivering agile network services is going to need orchestration
platforms which can work with physical and virtual appliances using overlays,
underlays and OpenFlow protocols.
At Anuta Networks, we
set out to develop such an orchestration platform to enable agile network
services. The Anuta NCX network service orchestrator integrates with many cloud
portals such as OpenStack and introduces self-service for network operations.
Using an intuitive graphical designer, network administrators can define
various levels of network services combining L2-L7 network functions. The
network services are orchestrated on-demand and delivered within minutes using
industry best practices. The solution works with both legacy, physical and
upcoming virtual appliance- based solutions in a multi-tenant
environment.
In summary, Vendor and
Technology agnostic Network Service Orchestration will be the key enabler for
Network Virtualization. Coupled with advancements in Compute and Storage
virtualization, 2015 will be a game changing year for agile service delivery.
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About the AuthorSrini Beereddy brings over 20 years of
networking experience to Anuta Networks. Prior to co-founding Anuta Networks,
he was also a co-founder of Jahi Networks, where he served as VP of
Engineering. Srini worked at Cisco as a Technical Leader and Engineering
Manager following the Jahi Networks acquisition. His earlier roles include
senior technical positions at Intel and Trillium, where he served as a Senior
Architect. Srini received an MS in Computer Automation from IIT Kharagpur,
India, and holds several patents in networking.