require machine-to-machine (M2M) and IoT capability to control and monitor operations on windfarms, oil rigs and installations that are traditionally “out of reach.” With the relay of live video no longer the preserve of news organizations, but a mainstay of multiple sectors and consumers, the biggest challenges are no longer around relaying footage from A to B, but with the network and available bandwidth. Now, the key to delivering the highest quality video is bonding available networks to increase bandwidth, seamlessly correcting errors and optimizing the link. Even the cars we drive and the appliances we use daily are harnessing variations of satellite, Wi-Fi and cellular communications, and with low earth orbit (LEO) satellites becoming more and more accessible, the applications and opportunities are endless. Factors such as latency, packet loss and network congestion can hinder the integration of networks, resulting in suboptimal user experiences. As a result, the envisioned performance improvements of hybrid connectivity become overshadowed by the complexities and compromises it introduces in the classic approach – hence a need to think differently. Security, Compliance and QoS Integrating different network technologies from diverse sources introduces additional security challenges and consideration across various network endpoints and connection points. The lack of a unified security framework can result in vulnerabilities and inconsistencies that make the overall network infrastructure more susceptible to cyber threats. Moreover, ensuring compliance with industry regulations and data protection standards becomes increasingly challenging in a fragmented network environment which incorporates public networks and the internet. When it comes to being efficient with cost-management, a key consideration is that with true hybrid, heterogeneous connectivity, different parameters can be configured to allow for cost efficiencies to be made. For example, with the transmission of voice calls, parameters can be set to allow for the most cost-effective bearer to be used if it’s good enough – i.e., cellular can take preference over satellite if it’s “stable enough,” thus reducing the costs of always using satellite. This also applies to the handling of quality of service (QoS), to ensure the performance of critical applications where there’s limited network capacity, rapid variations in bandwidth and latency across each network. While security and compliance remain a network engineer’s priority in many organizations, it should never be compromised by cost. In a true hybrid ecosystem, this compromise need never be a concern because factors such as priority, efficiency and cost have formed part of the underlying design and are mirrored in the configuration settings. Why does all this matter? The old adage says that if you do what you’ve always done, you’ll get what you always got. But that’s not the case in networking. If you do what you’ve always done in a networking environment, where the explosion of tech, amount of data being transferred and the sheer weight of traffic vying for space on our heavily congested networks, you will in fact get considerably less than you always got. So, we need to think differently. Many hybrid systems are not the least bit hybrid, they simply provide a backup where the switchover is often measured in minutes. While this might be adequate for some, it doesn’t meet the evolving requirements of industries that rely upon always-on, fail-safe connectivity, as cited earlier. To achieve full hybrid connectivity, Livewire Digital developed RazorLink, a software defined networking (SDN) solution that seamlessly and dynamically bonds any number of bearers, from satellite, cellular, point-to-point radio, Wi-Fi and terrestrial services in line with user-defined objectives and prevailing conditions. This is true hybrid, a WAN which is capable of efficiently combining high-latency VSAT with low latency cellular, and any range of other bearers in-between to create an aggregate service with optimized configurable bandwidth. Failover achieves none of this, and tomorrow’s data-hungry world is rapidly going to wake up to this. o Tristan Wood is managing director of Livewire Digital. 32 CHANNELVISION | JULY - AUGUST 2023 Source: Enterprise Management Associates (EMA) Biggest challenges to using the internet for primary WAN connectivity Source: Next Move Strategy Consulting; Statista Does your organization use wireless connectivity as a primary WAN connectivity for any of its sites? Source: Enterprise Management Associates (EMA) Yes, for many of our sites Yes, for some of our sites Yes, for specific applications (ATMs, mobile point of sale, etc.) No, it is only a backup option 39.9% 7.1% 3.0% 50.0% 250,000 500,000 0 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 2026 2027 2028 2029 2030 Security risk Complexity of managing multiple ISP relationships (procuring, managing connectivity Lack of effective monitoring/visibility Overall application performance Instability across multipe internet service providers Skills gaps Inconsistent global performance across geographies (i.e., middle mile) Hardware complexity Lack of traditional service-level agreements None - we perceive no significant challenges 34.5% 25.9% 19.2% 18.5% 17.3% 17.3% 16.3% 14.7% 13.1% 6.1%
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy NTg4Njc=