As corporate bandwidth requirements continue to surge exponentially with every passing year, it becomes clear that bandwidth demands as well as the business requirements of the modern digital workspace are setting the stage for the implementation of new, advanced technologies. These technologies give rise to fresh possibilities and further fuel the demand for adding intelligent systems to our daily lives and greater reliance on tech support, both in the home and workfronts. With software trends emerging regularly in the IT scene, digital services and people are becoming further intertwined to characterize everything that’s new the world of network technology this year. These recent advancements are more than likely to disrupt existing operations and foster an era of digitization and intelligence throughout the business sector. Let’s see what’s getting hot now in networking technology — and how they will be sizzling by the end of the year.
5G takes center stage
5G trials are almost nearing their end and telecom operators should be ready for non-standalone rollouts this year. The technology serves to enhance not just the mobile device experience but the entirety of the communications tech environment. The greater bandwidth of 5G alongside support for extremely low latency will help fuel groundbreaking applications in the virtual and augmented reality and health-care industries.
Look for amazing new applications in the fields of vehicle-to-vehicle communication and tactile feedback remote surgery, both of which require strong cellular support to unlock their full potential. Moreover, IoT gadgets are growing fast in almost all verticals, such as business, retail, homes, industries, and others. Expect to see a huge surge in the number of systems connecting to always-on 5G networks in the next few years.
Network developments in edge computing
Although cloud systems have made a big splash earlier, right now it’s all about cloud-to-the-edge technology. Edge computing networks are the solution for several computing hurdles, including low connectivity and overcrowded bandwidth. Edge computing promises solutions that decrease latency by keeping all computations close to system endpoints.
Edge computing is one technological area that’s expanded greatly in the past few years. Combined with IoT and AI, it’s led to innovative methods, like using AI to secure IoT systems. And that’s not all: deep learning is being leveraged by datacenters to improve network speed and reduce the mass of transferred data at the edge of networks. Edge computing networks will expand considerably throughout 2019 as more attention is given to productivity and cybersecurity.
Rise of decentralization
Regular architectures directed traffic onto the datacenter for centralizing Internet access and security. However, greater collaboration between suppliers and partners and extensive cloud usage has disputed this model. The growth of direct cloud interconnection and cloud security services are encouraging many companies to adopt a decentralized approach for optimizing their connectivity to cloud platforms.
Changing perspectives on ML and AI
Machine learning and AI will continue to remain hot favorites among vendor marketing teams. Unfortunately, the majority of those teams will fail to properly understand what either of these technologies is as well as the right way to harness their potential. Nearly all network devices are currently instrumented, transmitting telemetry to large data lakes. However, our capacity to find true insights is still lacking. Like IoT, gathering data is easy, but it’s more challenging to convert that data into usable insights. Watch out for more claims in 2019, but lesser quantifiable outcomes.
Greater frequency of IPv6 implementation
The day when IPv6 completely replaces the standard IPv4 addressing system is still a ways off. However, deployment of this technology continues uninterrupted, especially in business computer networks. IPv6 offers several benefits, either indirectly or directly. Expansion of the available IP address space to host limitless devices makes it easier for Internet providers to manage subscriber accounts. Other improvements associated with IPv6 include better security and efficiency when it comes to TCP/IP online traffic management. Home networks will require new IP address notations, but that should not prove hard.
More attention to network security
Network security is one of the key motivators for the rise of new IT services. With hackers and cybercriminals becoming more sophisticated, IT infrastructure is extending gradually into cloud-based, virtual platforms, leaving most client and company data exposed to security risks. Aside from implementing standard firewalls and monitoring user access, companies must implement stronger cybersecurity strategies that allow developers to consider innovative defense approaches. Why? Because one of the potential drawbacks of new networking technology is the security gaps exposed to hackers. That’s why insightful cybersecurity measures are necessary.
Going wireless
Advanced wireless technology as well as related security and management has led numerous companies to go wireless-first. Doing so eliminates the charges related to moves, additions and modifications to the fixed and wired LAN infrastructure. Moreover, it promises greater reliability and resilience. Cloud-specific “as-a-service” deployments and advanced monitoring tools and features are being deployed as well to provide increased performance insight and visibility.
Cloud repatriation
Cloud repatriation is when apps move from the cloud back to on-premises. This indicates that datacenters have not lost their relevance yet. The majority of repatriation activity centers on businesses attempting to discover balance or equilibrium. This does not signify that the cloud is losing relevance; merely that is has been somewhat over-hyped.
Smart automation expands
Companies often spend huge amounts on network automation so they don’t fall behind. Pointed solutions and manual scripting cannot scale to complement the considerable rise in network demands. Thus, expect to see a surge in smart and innovative network automation solutions that manage devices, ensure compliance across hybrid and on-premises deployments, and automate services. The upcoming generation of networks will feature machine learning and AI to ward off security challenges and network complexity.
Importance of SD-WAN
The latest SD-WAN systems help deliver a network infrastructure that is more flexible, including supporting VNFs and universal CPE. This application-centric approach allows companies to leverage a hybrid network transport approach that delivers efficiencies not just through the regular MPLs but even 4G/LTE and Internet connectivity.
Networking technology: Keep up with the changes
Communications and technology are advancing rapidly and it is necessary for companies to consider which of the newer technologies is ideal for their business. Implementing the right networking technology allows the organization to get the most benefits.
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