Keeping track of the ever-changing network

One of the key benefits of an SDN/NFV-based network is the ability to continuously optimize the infrastructure and service topology to address changes. If a virtual router is reaching capacity, create a new virtual router to share the load. If there’s a failure or high congestion on a particular link, re-route traffic to avoid the problem link. And since SDN/NFV networks rely on orchestration to make these changes, there may not even be a human involved.

Keeping track of how the network and services change, in real time, is essential for both service provisioning and fault isolation. Knowing there’s adequate bandwidth available to provision a new service, or knowing which virtual and physical elements a service runs through, are critical for effective operations.

Real-time topology mapping must become a fundamental building block of any solution, both for virtual and hybrid virtual/ physical networks. Without it, operations teams can waste significant effort trying to piece together what they need—and even then, because of automated orchestration, things may change without notice.