Network security has been stuck in a box for too long. Much of what we know consists of perimeter or zone-based rules that limit which network segments can talk to which other network segments over which ports. The workhorse of this world has been the firewall appliance, interconnecting network segments and enforcing these rules. In the meantime, applications have moved to the public cloud and users have left the building. Hybrid work is challenging the very notion of the enterprise WAN. So what does this…
Rapidly evolving customer expectations, growing market pressures, and overall organizational goals have fueled digital transformation in every industry. It’s projected that by 2025, global spending for transformational efforts is expected to reach $2.8 trillion.[1] Digital transformation is the process of leveraging new technologies, across all areas of an organization, to optimize operations and drive growth by providing new value to customers. Digital transformation evolves the way an organization conducts business, enabling them to transition from outdated processes and legacy equipment with the use of new…
2021 has been a tremendous year for the ONUG Enterprise Cloud Community of Global 2000 IT business leaders, developers and sponsor members. 2021 broke all attendance records and marked the start of a massive IT enterprise cloud 2022 spending cycle. In 2020 – 2021, ONUG held four digital events attended by well over 13,000 enterprise attendees and built a community that is stronger than ever as we approach our 10-year anniversary and get back to in-person meetings! ONUG is in the most powerful position to…
It’s a challenge for most organizations to find the best ways to build environments that bridge their legacy and newer hybrid or multi-cloud networks. Whether it’s competitive pressure, time to market, innovation, or the demand for remote work, organizations now have pressing strategic business reasons to shift to the cloud. But research has shown that the gulf between network and cloud teams can be one of the biggest inhibitors to cloud adoption success. Recently, A Cloud Guru’s Drew Firment sat down with Padraig O’Connor, a Cloud Center of Excellence (CCoE)…
This was an exciting month, as Riverbed hosted our Global User Conference and we participated in ONUG Fall 2021 and connected with colleagues, customers and the wider enterprise technology community. As we look forward to what’s coming for enterprises—it’s digital-first and hybrid by design, with cloud, SaaS and legacy technologies working together and employees collaborating and engaging with users anywhere, anytime on any device. To achieve the needs of today’s enterprise, businesses and customers are demanding IT organizations take the following steps to successfully move…
Beginning your Network Automation journey can seem like an overwhelming task. We often hear questions from our clients, such as, “Where do I even begin?” or “How can I ensure that I am building a platform the right way from the start?” All great questions. However, journey is the key word when it comes to automating your network. This blog post will detail some of the key findings I’ve discovered leading business development efforts at Network to Code and how our customers are successfully implementing…
Corporate networks have evolved over the years around the notion of physical spaces — offices, retail stores, factory floors, production studios, and data centers. We predominantly used client-server applications, with the server-side hosted in private data centers, and the client-side running on desktop and laptop computers at physical office locations. We accommodated remote users, business travelers, and the occasional home-based employees using the dreaded three-letter acronym — VPN. VPNs were deemed a necessary evil, both by the end-users who tolerated the clunky user experience and…
Malware has been the archenemy of organizations around the globe for years, with ransomware, in particular, being an extremely deadly foe. Locking down victims’ files through encryption and demanding a ransom for decryption has proven to be an effective tactic for cybercriminals, with a steady stream of recent attacks serving as a constant reminder. However, these attackers are continually refining their tactics and have recently turned to double-extortion, whereby they threaten to leak victims’ sensitive files in order to increase the odds of ransoms being paid. Kaseya-style…
At a theoretical level, implementing zero trust makes significant sense. Cybersecurity threats can come from anywhere—outside or inside the network, and even start in one place then move to another. Adopting a zero trust— “Never trust, always verify” —strategy can help you tamp down on application- and services-related vulnerabilities, thereby reducing friction for the rest of the organization. But despite its widespread use in cybersecurity circles, the term “zero trust” is not well understood—especially when it is applied to segmentation or microsegmentation—and it’s up to security teams to explain why…
In the last few years, organizations have begun to focus more on digital transformation – moving workloads to the cloud, deploying the Internet of Things (IoT), experimenting with artificial intelligence and data analytics, and embracing a myriad of other technologies – all to become more efficient, deliver a better customer experience and, ultimately, drive more revenue. The pandemic kicked this gradual transformation into high gear, forcing CIOs to re-examine their IT infrastructure. Smart CIOs looked at expensive on-premise and dated data centers, saw them as…
