A Symphony of Network Success: Simplify, Secure, and Scale with Cisco SD-WAN Enhancements

In the intricate world of networking, delivering a seamless experience is no easy feat.

Your network is like an orchestra, where each element assumes the role of a unique instrument—computers, devices, applications, security measures, remote connections.

Without direction and coordination, a concert can devolve into a cacophony of disjointed sounds. To play great music, these elements need the guidance of a maestro. Cisco SD-WAN empowers both enterprise IT teams and managed service providers (MSPs) to become the maestros of their networks, conducting a symphony of simplified operations, secure networking, and a superior user experience.

As the digital landscape continues to evolve and the demands on network infrastructure escalate, Cisco SD-WAN offers a suite of enhancements that simplify network operations, enhance security, and elevate user experience. Let’s explore the specifics of these enhancements and discover how they help you get the most out of your network.

Simplified operations for your business success

Setting up and managing hierarchical or multi-region networks just got simpler with newly introduced enhancements in Multi-Region Fabric configuration and monitoring with UX2.0.

The Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN Manager (formerly vManage) now brings an intuitive UI to the table, simplifying the setup and configuration of regions, sub-regions, and secondary regions via network hierarchy. With this enhanced UI, network teams can efficiently onboard sites, create configuration groups, and deploy configurations. The enhanced global monitoring dashboard now offers a logical, region-based perspective of the entire network infrastructure, allowing you to easily assess the health of your border router and edge router sites within each region.

Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN Manager also helps monitor tunnel health, access other critical metrics, and gain a comprehensive, bird’s-eye overview of your entire network. In the event of any issues or anomalies, users can quickly identify the precise location needing attention, ensuring a proactive and efficient response to maintain network stability and optimal performance.

Managing app performance across networks used to be challenging, but not anymore. We’ve got eyes on your network with Cisco ThousandEyes, now available on Meraki MX. This native integration enables businesses to quickly use the Meraki dashboard to set up perpetual monitoring across all of their networks for their most critical applications—no matter where they reside. This integration provides in-depth visibility, offering actionable insights and hop-by-hop analysis for targeted troubleshooting.

With rapid deployment capabilities, users can activate branch monitoring using preconfigured test templates in just minutes. Additionally, ThousandEyes on Meraki enables proactive monitoring through synthetic tests, helping identify and address performance issues before they impact users.

Enhanced security for your peace of mind

Address evolving network security threats with the latest enhancements in Catalyst SD-WAN Manager.

For example, with the introduction of security enhancements in SD-Routing mode in the 17.13 release, comprehensive support for on-premises next-generation firewall (NGFW) solutions with Catalyst SD-WAN Manager is included when managing a traditional routing environment. Security stack configuration and visibility are seamlessly managed through the SD-WAN Manager, so traditional routing customers can effortlessly leverage the NGFW stack’s capabilities.

This includes security zones, segmentation, application aware firewall, advanced malware protection (AMP), intrusion prevention system (IPS), and URL filtering. Use the simplified and guided security workflow to expedite implementation and to ensure that your security policies are consistently applied across multiple branch locations. You’ll be able to minimize complexity and maintain consistent security standards throughout your network.

With Catalyst SD-WAN Service Insertion, you can streamline IT configurations, reduce operational cycles through automated service insertion, and fortify network security with consistent policies across multicloud environments. Use this feature to automate on-demand service insertion into the SD-WAN fabric. Whether it’s a physical or virtual service, Cisco or third-party, on-premises or in the cloud, we’ve got you covered.

Empowering a connected workforce

Today, remote work demands more than just connectivity; it requires a holistic solution that is secure and always on. The Meraki Z4C cloud-managed teleworker gateway acts as a router, VPN, cellular modem, and firewall that provides secure remote access for your distributed workforce. This addition to Meraki’s line of teleworker gateways delivers flawless connectivity that is as reliable as being in the office, delivered in a sleek, silent, and secure desktop form factor.

With integrated cellular capabilities, automatic WAN to wireless failover, and 500mbps of firewall throughput, the Z4C ensures remote employees consistently maintain a secure connection to the corporate network. When combined with the Secure Teleworker license, you’ll get heightened network visibility and improved security, thanks to seamless integrations with Cisco Talos and AMP.

Maximizing success for MSPs

For MSPs, simplicity and scalability are paramount. Cisco SD-WAN now includes multitenant edge, which means you can host multiple enterprise customers securely using a single physical or virtual SD-WAN platform. This simplifies and accelerates SD-WAN design and deployment while also providing capital and operating expense savings. You’ll also benefit from adding new service offerings to your catalog, enabling you to generate additional business.

MSPs, system integrators, and end customers can now securely split responsibilities through granular role-based access control (RBAC). With granular RBAC, users gain co-management functionality over application routing and security policies while leaving the day-to-day network management to the MSP. This ensures that end customers can focus on their core business without worrying about the intricacies of network operation. For MSPs, the ability to define roles with granular control means faster adoption of new features, reduced development efforts, and a streamlined co-management process.

Much like a conductor directing various instruments to bring an orchestra into harmony, you can use Cisco SD-WAN to simplify operations, secure the network, and provide an exceptional user experience. Whether you’re on an enterprise IT team or optimizing networks for diverse users, you’ll have the help you need to excel in the ever-evolving digital landscape.

With these technologies, enterprises can streamline operations, fortify network security, and foster innovation like a maestro, and MSPs can effortlessly manage and optimize clients’ networks, streamline internal operations, and maximize business potential.

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