VIEWPOINT
NAVIGATING YOUR SASE JOURNEY JACOB CHACKO, REGIONAL DIRECTOR, MIDDLE EAST, SAUDI & SOUTH AFRICA AT ARUBA, A HEWLETT PACKARD ENTERPRISE COMPANY, EXPLORES HOW ENTERPRISES AND SERVICE PROVIDERS SHOULD EVALUATE AND ASSESS THE NETWORKING AND SECURITY TECHNOLOGY COMPONENTS OF A MULTI-VENDOR OR SINGLE VENDOR SASE SOLUTION
W
hen we go shopping for new clothes, we often select different brands for shoes, shirts, or trousers. We rarely select a single brand for every clothing item simply because we want the best brand quality for each of those three categories. Similarly, when it comes to technology, why would we not want the best choice for networking and security technology platforms when it comes to SASE? Does one size fit all? SASE is the term Gartner coined to describe the Secure Access Service Edge framework that has emerged to define the convergence of WAN and
36
CXO INSIGHT ME
MAY 2022
network security functions into a single, cloud-delivered model that will support enterprise digital transformation initiatives. One of the key foundations of a SASE framework is a robust SDWAN component. So how should enterprises and service providers evaluate and assess the networking and security technology components of a multi-vendor or single vendor SASE technology vendor solution? The promise of SASE For most enterprises, software-defined wide area networks (SD-WAN) have emerged as the technology of choice
to evolve existing legacy WANs to a network connectivity architecture that is focused on supporting a cloud-first environment – where the majority of business applications are hosted in the cloud rather than the data centre. Advanced SD-WAN solutions can reduce networking complexity, improve application performance, and enable more efficient connectivity between users and applications residing in the cloud. Depending on the solution, they can also be deployed by organisations either as DIY (do it yourself) or as part of a managed SDWAN service from a managed service provider.