With a new normal of hybrid work established, trends in network services are once again changing. But unlike the shifts we saw in 2020, this time trends are fueled by technology and innovation—not huge outside forces like a global pandemic.
The modern wide area network (WAN) is evolving within a dynamic, complex environment.
How so? I could point to the establishment of SD-WAN as a standard network technology, the replacement of MPLS service with more affordable internet, the migration of apps and data to the cloud, or changes in security strategies enabled by SASE framework—just to name a few factors.
With the release of our latest WAN Manager Survey—available to all of our Cloud and WAN Research Service subscribers—we wanted to highlight seven major takeaways from our current data.
1. DIA Has Overtaken MPLS
Respondents say they're using DIA at an average of 49% of sites compared to 41% for MPLS.
2. Bandwidth Demand Continues to Grow
All port/circuit speed ranges at 50 Mbps and below have shrunk over the past five years. At the same time, all speeds above 50 Mbps have grown—often significantly.
3. A Provider Mix Is Preferred
MPLS users have been moving away from sourcing from a single global provider and toward a mix of global and regional providers.
4. SD-WAN Isn't the Next Big Thing. It's the Current Big Thing.
SD-WAN has become the norm for enterprise networks, with 65% of respondents having installed an overlay on at least some part of their network and 51% at all or most of their sites.
5. SASE Has Arrived
SASE has hit the mainstream as well, with 53% of respondents having adopted at least some elements of the SASE framework.
6. Three Words: Cloud Data Centers
While a strong majority of respondents have some on-premises data centers, nearly all of them also have data centers in the cloud.
7. Respondents Aren't Sure About NaaS
NaaS remains a cutting-edge solution, with few respondents having already adopted it. Many of the enterprises we surveyed expressed skepticism about its potential use cases.
Download the free executive summary for a closer look at our latest survey results.
And if you prefer your data in deck form, I have great news.
I recently traveled to the Enterprise Network & Security Summit in Dallas to share these key trends. My session The Present and Future of the Enterprise WAN covers several of these major findings.
You can download my full slide deck over here.
Greg Bryan
Greg is Senior Manager, Enterprise Research at TeleGeography. He's spent the last decade and a half at TeleGeography developing many of our pricing products and reports about enterprise networks. He is a frequent speaker at conferences about corporate wide area networks and enterprise telecom services. He also hosts our podcast, TeleGeography Explains the Internet.