5G
Article | May 18, 2023
The much-anticipated 5G Standalone has arrived. T-Mobile is the first to launch it in the USA, covering 250 million people across 7,500 cities and towns, including rural areas. China Mobile is the only other service provider to launch it in Hong Kong. Overall, 58 operators are currently investing (November 2020) in 5G SA, including those who have launched.
5G SA makes a break from 5G non-standalone by integrating the evolved packet core or the signaling brain of the 5G network, which controls the network's devices. It prepares the groundwork for new services unique to this generation of networks, such as network slicing to customize enterprise services across multiple networks.
Read More
Network Infrastructure, Network Management
Article | July 27, 2023
We are surrounded by acronyms and buzzwords in technology. SD-WAN is one that is often used in the industry nowadays.
Organizations embrace digital transformation to stay up with market developments, consumer needs, and competitiveness. Traditional network designs weren't meant to manage digital transformation workloads and complexity. Business-critical services are commonly spread over numerous clouds, compromising network performance, particularly at branch sites.
Smart network operations teams opt for SD-WAN. SD-WAN reduces overhead and improves network performance. Routing and hardware expenses are saved through SD-WAN solutions while allowing multi-cloud access. SD-WAN also reduces overhead and supports new digital apps and services. This new technology streamlines WAN administration and operation and brings corporate advantages.
Business Challenges that SD-WAN Addresses
There has been a dramatic increase in the pressure on the network as a result of digitalization. Businesses must now rely on a stable and secure network, which conventional router-based network topologies are incapable of providing. An SD-WAN solution assists businesses in addressing use cases in order to expedite digital transformation efforts, lower cybersecurity risks, and increase revenue.
Eases connectivity with far-flung factories and offices.
Effectively deploys new sites and minimizes network equipment sprawl.
Enhances the speed of file transfer and backups to disaster recovery facilities.
Helps in moving applications to the cloud and protecting cloud app. data using Secure Access Service Edge (SASE).
Safeguards IoT devices using a zero-trust network
Helps in complying with the cybersecurity framework of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST).
Ways SD-WAN Can Help Businesses Boost their Bottom Line
Boosts Security
Digital transformation is a double-edged sword. It can increase consumer satisfaction and market reach, but can pose security threats. According to the U.S. State of Cybercrime study, 41% of respondents stated more cybersecurity occurrences in 2017. The good news is that many SD-WAN solutions provide built-in security. Most SD-WAN systems only offer basic firewall and VPN functionalities, requiring IT teams to add security to elastic and dynamic SD-WAN connections after the fact. SD-WAN solutions with NGFW, IPS, encryption, AV, and sandboxing can avoid data loss, downtime, regulatory violations, and legal liability.
Enables Cloud Usage
Cloud services are rapidly being used by businesses. The great news is that SD-WAN enables direct cloud access at the remote branch, removing backhauling traffic – which routes all cloud and branch office traffic through the data center – allowing workers to directly access cloud applications irrespective of location without burdening the core network with additional traffic to manage and secure. Furthermore, SD-WAN enhances cloud application performance by prioritizing vital business apps and allowing branches to interact directly with the Internet.
Reduces Costs
As businesses deploy a growing number of cloud-based services, the volume of data traveling across a WAN rises dramatically, driving up operational expenses. SD-WAN, thankfully, can minimize this cost by utilizing low-cost local Internet connectivity, offering direct cloud access, and lowering traffic via the backbone WAN. According to an IDC poll (prediction), over a quarter of survey respondents anticipate SD-WAN cost reductions of up to 39%, with the other two-thirds anticipating more modest savings of 5–19%.
Improves performance
Data transfer over a network isn't created equal. Fortunately, SD-WAN can be set up to prioritize business-critical traffic and real-time services such as Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) and then successfully guide it over the most efficient path. IT teams can help decrease packet loss and latency concerns by supporting important applications over dependable, high-performance connections, increasing employee productivity and morale. This is business-impacting performance.
Closing Note
Indeed, SD-WAN evolved and flourished in the data center over the first few years of development. However, the time has arrived to take it seriously as a tool for managing your wide area network. There are currently several vendors on the market, as well as several mature solutions to choose from. More significantly, the business cases for SD-WAN are expanding on a daily basis.
Read More
Data Center Networking
Article | July 5, 2023
Something revolutionary that solves problems becomes a product or service with many trade secrets you cannot afford to let loose in the market. All small, medium, and large businesses worry about how vulnerable they are to threats as far as data sharing within the organization is concerned. This is where a private network comes in.
Every business wants to take a technological leap for scalability. Two of the factors that private networks address are independence from commercial carriers for the network and maintaining the privacy of trade secrets. This helps achieve long-term goals to scale your business.
Powering your enterprise private network with the futuristic speeds of 5G can help your business achieve two goals at once. Take a look at why 5G has now started to matter even more.
Why 5G?
By 2026, the 5G market will reach $667.90 billion, with a CAGR of 122.3% from 2021 to 2026. It is estimated to go beyond $1.87 trillion by 2030. This massive technological transition will forever change how we communicate, process information, and connect with the cloud. A boost in turnkey research and development is one of the vital benefits of 5G that will help your business be one step ahead in the market.
What Makes the 5G Enterprise Private Network Ideal for Small and Medium-Sized Businesses?
A private enterprise network is VPN, LAN, WAN, or cloud-based. High-speed internet and low-latency data sharing or transfer are achieved using fiber optics in a 5G EPN. Expect superior service security, network slicing, enhanced service quality, and no risk of network congestion. Design your 5G EPN as per the software integrations required for your small and medium-sized business. This will allow seamless integration for present and future needs.
5G is about 100 times faster than 4G, leading to incredible speeds and unlocking many never-seen-before possibilities accelerating the speed of research for your enterprise. The network efficiency and the traffic capacity it can handle are 100x. Connecting and sharing data in almost real-time is made possible with 5G.
This means, a private 5G network can reduce the infrastructure needs of relatively more demanding managed wired networks for small and medium-sized businesses supporting 5G ecosystems. But it will keep up with the most advanced wireless technologies of the future and stop supporting older ones. In addition, 5G supports lower power consumption than 4G during data transmission. This means enterprises get better battery life on devices running 5G, including 5G IoT devices.
How Secure is a 5G Enterprise Private Network?
The 5G enterprise private networks are integrated or hybrid EPNs (enterprise private networks) and independent EPNs. It depends on whether your business wants to lease 5G spectrum from the government or a mobile network operator (MNO) and whether you will use a hybrid or independent EPN.
• Integrated 5G EPN: A small business can lease a private 5G line from an MNO. A public 5G network backs a virtual private network (VPN) for medium-to-small businesses. On the other hand, MEC and UPF from a public 5G network are used to set up a local network for large businesses.
• Independent 5G EPN: This is the most secure type of 5G EPN, the independent 5G EPN. It is independently built for your enterprise, owned, operated, and managed by you. You will be handling the RAN, core, edge computing nodes, and the wireless spectrum reserved for your use. These are mostly the goals of a large business that sends and stores data that needs to be very secure.
An independent 5G EPN is the best solution for large enterprises looking for the most secure private network. Also, it applies to businesses dealing with massive amounts of data.
Why Use the Cloud for Storage and Retrieval of Data in 5G EPN?
Access computing resources, data storage, development tools, and applications across the internet with the help of the cloud. The combined features of 5G and a private enterprise network create a healthy environment to implement cloud infrastructure. When thinking about using the cloud to store and get data in a 5G EPN, keep in mind the good things about it.
Interconnected, shared resources
5G speed
Improved reliability
Increased data accessibility
Better privacy and security
Efficient connectivity
Now that we have learned networking fundamentals for a better 5G EPN are resolved with the help of the cloud, let us discover how it can help your business scale.
How Can Your Small, Medium, or Large Business Scale up With a 5G EPN Network Easily?
You can use a 5G enterprise private network, or EPN, to get the most important benefits for a small business.
Speed to promote an industrial digital transformation
IoT readiness
Better control over digital assets.
Improved security
Reliable coverage
Network slicing
Ultra-low latency
Improved bandwidth
Improved quality of service (QoS)
You will have complete control over configuring and customizing your EPN, managed independently by your in-house 5G networks. Explore the future avenues of 5G private networks in detail.
The Future of 5G Private Networks and Wi-Fi with Industrial Use Cases:
According to a study by RAN Research, by 2028, private 5G networks will generate about $23.5 billion, with 19% usage in the manufacturing industry and 12% of the network in the healthcare industry. The deployment of the 5G network and upgraded Wi-Fi standards will likely be saturated by 2024. Most of the investments would be towards upgrading the infrastructure and maintaining the network.
The goal of fierce competition among telecom network operators will be to gain rapid market share, bringing down the cost of usage. The new service providers will garner competition from telecom giants, while 5G private networks from different enterprises will still be dominant and mainstream in providing security, privacy, and data isolation.
Leading Industrial Use Cases
Healthcare: A revolution in healthcare benefiting from 5G technology is bound to happen with their transition to a cloud-native architecture. The need for high-speed and reliable connectivity will arise sooner or later, and 5G private networks will perfectly meet the requirement. The driving forces for healthcare to adopt 5G private networks include the shift to demographics, value-based and patient-centric care, and emergency healthcare. In addition, the use of big data analytics, the internet of medical things (IoMT), better wearable medical technology, hospital remote monitoring systems, e-Health and more will need the speed that 5G offers.
Manufacturing: The Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) uses private 5G networks. Depending upon the software-defined implementation of the 5G network, 5G does not just allow remote monitoring of production lines; it also regulates maintenance and device lifecycle while powering industrial automation. 5G is also finding its way into implementing augmented reality for troubleshooting electronics, additive manufacturing and 3D printing, automated guided vehicles, camera-based video analytics and more. Collaborative robotics, supply chain optimization, and maintenance using a digital twin are a few other things that are worth mentioning.
Supply Chain: Due to near-shoring, manufacturing and distribution will decentralize. Due to Internet of Things (IoT) devices with sensors, supply chain and shipping logistics companies will be able to reduce delivery times, have better control over warehouse and transportation environments, and offer great asset management services.
Final Thoughts
Finding the right 5G private network type for your enterprise is easy. It offers enhanced security while connecting to the cloud, IoT and more. This would allow the development of futuristic products and services, touching multiple industries, with healthcare, manufacturing, warehousing, and logistics among the top. Keeping trade secrets and the latest research and development secure and enhancing the capabilities by integrating future technologies will improve with a 5G EPN. With a 5G private network for your enterprise being used on a large scale, the future of networking looks bright.
FAQs:
What is the difference between a public 5G network and a private 5G network?
A single location or several locations of the same institution, business, or organization are the focus of a private 5G network. On the contrary, the public 5G network is nationwide with millions of subscribers without being dedicated to serving a single entity. Because of this, 5G EPN infrastructure solutions will probably be used on college campuses, in factories, hospitals, military bases, transportation hubs, and other places.
What is a private 5G network and what are the benefits of a private 5G network?
A 5G private network offers low latency, high bandwidth and multiple connections with access control, which are perfect for business applications for small, medium and large enterprises. Furthermore, 5G private networks allow you to tailor them to your business requirements, making them an excellent investment for your business. Again, while diversifying your business as per customer and market demand, it is crucial to have a networking infrastructure that can adapt to your changing needs. Therefore, a private 5G network becomes even more critical.
How does EPN help in centralization and business continuity?
When implementing business continuity planning and centralization of your organization, a 5G EPN can provide several benefits over a public network. It makes integrations easy, provides high-quality services, improves access control and reliability, and lets your business share resources in the best way for its current and future needs.
Read More
5G
Article | May 13, 2022
The cloud, robotics, automation, and digital technologies are indispensablefor efficient, adaptable, and dynamic business operations. Artificial intelligence and 5G have evolved to become two of the most revolutionary technologies of the decade. While 5G and AI are capable ofindependently revolutionizing industries and facilitating future experiences, combining the two will be ground-breaking.
The combination of AI with 5G mobile technology has the potential to transform business and society, paving the wayfor new products and services that were previouslyunimaginable.So, let’s check out how AI and 5G can revamp and upgrade businesses.
AI with 5G: Making Network and Devices Better
Using AI on 5G networks and devices will enhance wireless communication and battery, and most importantly, improve the user experience. With the help of machine learning, you can now focus on major wireless issues that are tough to tackle with traditional methods.
The wireless industry has been talking about the ways in which AI can improve 5G networks.AI will significantly impactthe fundamental aspects of 5G network management, including efficiency, deployment, service quality, and security.
One of the less-discussed aspects is how on-device AI will enhance the 5G end-to-end system. Radio frequency awareness (RFA) is at the center of 5G improvements and AI's involvement in the process.Instead of a hand-crafted algorithm, machine learning can decipher the device's RF signals. Improved radio awareness increases device experience, system performance, and radio security.
Embracing 5G for Future Telecom & Business Operations
The fifth generation of mobile technology comes with many use cases that are enough to completely transform almost every industry. As the world gets ready for a substantial transformation, it's important to know what they are and how they can help your business. Presently, 5G is driving three significant global trends.
5G technology will alter connected devices by driving consumer adoption, making them smarter, and making large-scale device integration easier.
Cloud and edge computing depend on accessibility, and 5G will make cloud and edge computing more powerful and accessible than ever before.
As 5G allows algorithms to be much more efficient at collecting and analyzing data at scale, AI becomes more accessible and fundamental for businesses powered by 5G. This can be considered a scientific and ethical endeavor.
PartingThoughts
Like any new technology, there is indeed a lot of hype around 5G's debut. 5G and AI are two synergistic, necessary components driving future advancements. Those whocombine these technologies will have a competitive edge and the opportunity to build future forward brands.Businesses that adopt 5G will not only witness revenue gain but will also emerge as an influential player in the future.
Read More