SD-WAN and orchestration: The Ericsson advantage

This blog post discusses the Ericsson view of SD-WAN orchestration and provides an examination of the key benefits of the Ericsson dynamic orchestration solution.

SD-WAN is a multi-domain, multi-vendor game

Service providers today are building multi-vendor SD-WAN deployments that provide enterprises with more options and greater flexibility. In addition, as 5G and edge deployments roll out, making network slicing a requirement, service providers will likely want to extend SD-WAN networks into an end-to-end network fabric.

In the first two blog posts in this series, we discussed the need for an orchestrator that can handle multiple domains, from network access, to backhaul transport, to enterprise core to 5G edge and network slices. Such an orchestrator, proven by Verizon’s deployment, is the Ericsson Orchestrator.

Ericsson SD-WAN orchestration and key benefits

Ericsson Dynamic Orchestration is our pre-integrated solution that enables rapid deployment for service providers. Consisting of components for orchestration, assurance, analytics, inventory, network management and test automation, Ericsson Dynamic Orchestration can not only handle SD-WAN services, but also vCPE, mobile core vEPC and vIMS deployments. The key benefits are:

• Simplified management for a multi-vendor environment
• Agility to deploy enterprise services
• Revenue growth with a full suite of enterprise services
• Automation from ordering to assurance

The first benefit that Ericsson provides is simplified SD-WAN management. The solution is built on a foundation of open standards and provides a model-driven architecture that meets the needs of real-world SD-WAN deployments. We also actively participate in open-source initiatives, taking a model-driven approach that scales and adapts well to multi-vendor SD-WAN environment.

The second benefit offered is agility to deploy enterprise services. The solution automates onboarding and continuous deployment for multi-vendor VNFs and network services resulting around 30% time-to-market improvement. Furthermore, it can manage both software and hardware platforms, providing test engines for SD-WAN, EPC and IMS services as well as NFV infrastructure. This leads to the third benefit of driving revenue growth with fast onboarding of a full suite of enterprise services beyond SD-WAN.

The solution also collects statistics to build a closed-loop automation, utilizing its capabilities to correlate across layers, and has the ability to integrate existing topology, performance and fault information. With assurance as part of the overall suite, Ericsson can enable fast troubleshooting across SD-WAN layers, including MPLS, LTE or 5G underlays, by identifying root causes and allowing self-healing throughout end-to-end multi-layer networks. The forth benefit achieved is automation from ordering to deployment to assurance.

SD-WAN is not the end goal - NFV is

While the Ericsson Dynamic Orchestration solution has proven a valuable framework, which supports multiple SD-WAN deployments, it’s also the foundation of a more comprehensive NFV offering. Service providers understand that basic SD-WAN service is seldom enough. Enterprise customers usually demand additional services and capabilities on top of the SD-WAN offering. Whether enterprises already have a pre-certified next-gen firewall (NGFW) that they need to use for compliance reasons, or an application-specific WAN optimizer for improving their virtual desktop experience, bundled offerings that include SD-WAN plus additional VNFs are gaining popularity.

Ericsson's solution has been proven in Verizon’s deployment to support bundles of SD-WAN with security, SD-WAN with WAN optimization and many more variations. Plus, the platform has been certified to interoperate well with some of the leading SD-WAN vendors in the market. New VNFs can be easily onboarded thanks to our ability to manage the full lifecycle of VNFs, with integrated test automation for seamless and reliable deployments, and closed-loop assurance to ensure ongoing smooth operation.

With our platform capabilities, service providers can build out bundles of SD-WAN services, while extending value with a full-stack NFV platform that can span beyond SD-WAN into multiple domains.

Learn more about Ericsson's approach

To learn more about Ericsson Dynamic Orchestration, download the Appledore vendor profile on Ericsson SD-WAN management solution:

Read also about 5G orchestration: The automation journey.

If you want to know more reach out to us directly to discuss how our experts at Ericsson can help you orchestrate your SD-WAN deployments more effectively.