'SD-WAN evolves from DIY to business-wide fabric from partners'

10 November 2020

Source: Forrester

SD-WAN has evolved from an early do-it-yourself (DIY) approach to one that enlists industry service providers as partners for business-wide fabric implementations.

That is according to The Forrester Wave: Software-Defined WAN Services, Q4 2020 report which compares and contrasts 10 leading SD-WAN service providers.

While the report names Vodafone and Orange Business Services as "Leaders" among those 10 vendors, it also sheds light on how Forrester believes the SD-WAN market has changed.

"Over the past year, the SD-WAN pendulum has swung away from a DIY approach to one that leverages partners; I&O

teams weren't ready to tackle the new security models needed to support a businesswide WAN fabric, nor did they have the resources to deploy and optimize SD-WAN hardware and software," Forrester said. "This doesn't mean that every organization needs a partner to manage every aspect of a WAN fabric. Your needs can vary widely -- the degree of management will depend on the size of your company and your business type.

The report, which Forrester cautioned should just be used as a starting point for organizations researching the best SD-WAN services fit for their particular circumstances, is available in a licensed-for-distribution PDF from several featured vendors upon providing registration information.