Connected world brings new challenges for 2015 and beyond

Wireless, Unified Network Infrastructure, Unified Management, Security, the Internet of Things (IoT), and SDN in the Enterprise with dominate 2015 for businesses, according to networking provider Allied Telesis.

“As a global networking leader, we have seen the tides of change sweep across the technology landscape for decades," says Seiichiro Sato, director of Global Product Marketing, Allied Telesis.

“The ever-increasing connectedness of our world is resulting in new applications for technology that are driving efficiency and enabling people to do things that just weren’t possible in the past.”

Wireless

Sato believes the "unprecedented adoption rate" of mobile devices in the enterprise landscape means that wireless access is now more important than ever, and will continue to be so for the foreseeable future.

"The technological innovations that the 802.11ac standard is enabling will lead to continuing growth in demand for wireless access products, and will ensure that wireless access has a critical role in unified enterprise network infrastructure," he adds.

"Users will demand pervasive and reliable wireless coverage and seamless mobility. This wireless expansion drives the need for tightly integrated management platforms."

Unified Network Infrastructure

The convergence of multiple services on the same wireless and wired infrastructure will introduce new challenges in managing facilities and their users, adds Sato.

"Unified network infrastructure will enable organisations to network smarter and add more intelligence to their environments as the amount of information collected from sensors and devices increases exponentially," he adds.

"Security solutions will become more heavily integrated to guarantee the security of data and the privacy of users across the entire infrastructure."

Unified Management

According to Sato, the "increasing complexity" and growing number of devices in the network will motivate Information and Communications Technology (ICT) managers to source management systems with proven capability to minimise the Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) of ICT.

As a result, "cloud-based management systems will promote the sales of Management as a Service (MaaS) while SME and SMB will consider partnering with specialised service providers for the management of their infrastructures."

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Security

The increasingly flexible policies of network access and the growing number of threats will escalate the demand for newer network protection technologies.

"The escalating likelihood of attack and the resulting loss of productivity and damage to reputations will ensure that security is a high priority for executive management—particularly given the number of high-profile attacks during 2014," Sato adds.

"Likewise, Next Generation Firewall (NGFW) technology, integrating application control capability, will play a leading role in the security space."

"Internet of Things (IoT)

Sato believes the IoT trend will "dramatically increase" the number of network-connected entities.

"Devices that contain sensors, control, or intelligence will increasingly become network connected," he predicts.

"IPv6 will gain wider adoption, as will management technologies that are required to manage network-connected nodes."

As a result, Sato thinks the IoT will deliver benefits for everyone, from enterprises to municipal councils, but it is the value of information and knowledge that will see new players introduced and new business models emerge during 2015.

SDN in the Enterprise

Sato thinks the flexibility in user location and device usage that is becoming the norm in Enterprise IT, as the BYOD concept has taken hold, will drive requirements for more dynamic operation of Enterprise communication systems.

"Organisations needing solutions to these requirements will increasingly look to SDN as the source of such solutions," he adds.

"The efficiencies to be gained by integration between business rules, user information, and network infrastructure will benefit network administrators and users alike."