TREND REPORT Ethernet, MPLS and SD-WAN: What Decision Makers Really Think
TABLE OF CONTENTS Introduction 3 CH. 1 What IT Pros Think of Ethernet 4 CH. 2 What IT Pros Think of MPLS 8 CH. 3 What IT Pros Think of SD-WAN 13 Conclusion 16
Introduction IT decision-makers are continually seeking new ways to keep their company s applications and systems online, up-to-date and secure. Yet as applications become more complex, workloads become more intense, and customers become more demanding, IT pros need to identify and deploy versatile networks better suited to meet their growing demands. But what exactly are IT decision-makers looking for from their networking solutions? A recent Spiceworks survey of more than 250 IT decisionmakers from across the U.S. provides deep, and sometimes surprising insights into how these IT pros view Ethernet, MPLS and SD-WAN networking technologies, including the challenges, benefits and drivers of utilizing these services. In each of the three surveys conducted (Ethernet, MPLS and SD-WAN), reliability, security and quality of service all ranked above cost/value when it came to critical factors in evaluating networking solution providers. Introduction 3
CH. 1 What IT Pros Think of Ethernet Businesses appreciate Ethernet because it provides the higher bandwidth and capacity organizations need to manage data growth and application performance, while enhancing the security of every connected location. A large majority of survey respondents said they currently deploy Ethernet for either Carrier (60%) or Metro (46%) solutions. (Carrier Ethernet is for Internet and for communication among business, academic and government local area networks (LANs). Metro Ethernet is for use in metropolitan area networks (MANs).) A smaller group said they deploy Ethernet for National (30%) or Multipoint-to-Multipoint (34%) support. Nearly two-thirds of organizations have current maximum bandwidth levels of 100 GbE (32%) or 40 GbE (31%), while others report having less capacity. Still, most organizations do not feel bandwidth constrained. More than 3 out of 4 respondents believe that their current Ethernet solution either exceeds (22%) or adequately supports (55%) their current business needs. It s important to note that respondents anticipate the need for increased bandwidth to support future needs, with more than 4 in 5 (81%) reporting that they will require more bandwidth within the next 3 years, including 27% that believe they will require significantly more bandwidth. CURRENT & FUTURE BANDWIDTH REQUIREMENTS 23% Inadequate 55% Adequate 81% Will Require More 22% Exceeds 19% No Change 1% Will Require Less Current Ethernet Performance Future Bandwidth Requirements What IT Pros Think of Ethernet 4
ETHERNET CONNECTIONS STRATEGY Currently Supported Expected Support in 2 3 Years 58% 50% 52% 54% 54% 34% Point-to-Point Point-to-Multipoint Multipoint-to-Multipoint While most current Ethernet solutions are used for local coverage, Point-to-Point and Point-to- Multipoint connections, those surveyed expect Point-to-Point connections to decrease in the next few years, while Point-to-Multipoint, and Multipointto-Multipoint connections are expected to increase in the next 2-3 years.
DRIVERS, BENEFITS, CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES Organizations plan to increase their use of Ethernet solutions to support a wide and growing list of business-critical applications and workloads, from email and database management to cloud-hosted services, big-data analytics, and development/testing. IT pros associate a variety of benefits with the deployment of Ethernet solutions, especially in terms of improving efficiency and productivity, increasing performance and speed, and realizing cost savings. Respondents stated that speed/bandwidth limitations were the top challenge of using Ethernet solutions, with cost and ROI, and traffic control and isolation, also being listed as pain points. When asked, What, if anything, is your organization doing to address these challenges? the vast majority (95%) of respondents said that they are actively taking steps to address current bandwidth challenges and future bandwidth needs. This includes 7 in 10 who are currently researching or evaluating potential solutions/vendors. In evaluating solution providers, reliability (81%), security (77%), quality (75%), and 24x7 support services (62%) are each ranked as more critical factors than cost/value (61%). And nearly half of the respondents stated that they would prefer to purchase Ethernet as part of a service bundle with other networking solutions. TOP ETHERNET BENEFITS AND CHALLENGES Benefits Challenges 44% 43% 42% 27% 25% 25% Increased efficiency/ productivity Increased performance/ speed Cost savings Speed/ bandwidth limitation Cost/ ROI Traffic control/ isolation What IT Pros Think of Ethernet 6
WHEN ASKED FOR THEIR BIGGEST COMPLAINT ABOUT THEIR CURRENT ETHERNET SOLUTIONS, IT PROS RESPONDED: Speed and security. It usually always comes down to these two issues. Keeping everything as secure as possible from outside threats. And of course, how quickly everything moves. It is a challenge to keep up with updates and the growing tech field. All of our supported locations have a designated amount of bandwidth. If any special kinds of events happen at some of these locations, there is a high potential for bandwidth bottlenecks. My biggest complaint about our current Ethernet solution is the constant price fluctuation. What IT Pros Think of Ethernet 7
CH. 2 What IT Pros Think of MPLS Businesses across a range of industries have discovered that MPLS is a great solution for creating private WANs that offer high performance and security. They know MPLS offers nationwide and even global reach over virtually any connection type, while providing more bandwidth efficiency with routing and application prioritization. These could be some of the reasons why 55% of survey respondents said they are currently deploying MPLS solutions, while another 45% said they were considering using MPLS. CURRENTLY USING / CONSIDERING MPLS SUMMARY 54% 55% Currently Using 45% Considering What IT Pros Think of MPLS 8
DRIVERS, BENEFITS, CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES Organizations are currently using MPLS to support a broad range of applications, but the most common are email (81%), databases (74%), and file sharing (70%). With expected advances in technology, respondents see an increasing use of MPLS for cloud/hosted services (66%), databases (64%), and file sharing (61%) applications/workloads. IT pros surveyed expressed confidence in the reliability and performance of MPLS to support web hosting, email and other applications/workloads. NETWORK ABILITY TO SUPPORT CURRENT WORKLOADS (SHOWING % SAYING VERY GOOD OR EXCELLENT) 81% 80% 78% 78% 78% Web Hosting Email Active Directory Content Creation Cloud/ Hosted
WHEN ASKED HOW MPLS FITS INTO THEIR ORGANIZATION S IT STRATEGY, IT PROS RESPONDED: It helps us with our high traffic load, as we have nearly 10,000 devices connected to our network at times. MPLS fits our strategy in that it s where the tech is heading and we want to be on board. We are reserved to an extent because there s some transparency issues and it is a cost to be concerned. It helps maximize our ROI and productivity it makes it easy to interconnect sites with each other to handle voice and video traffic patterns and MPLS is operationally simpler than managing a large routed network. What IT Pros Think of MPLS 10
Organizations associate many benefits with MPLS, including improved security, increased reliability, and increased performance/speed. The most noted challenges of MPLS included time required to transition/upgrade, cost/roi, speed/bandwidth limitations, and support for cloud workloads. TOP MPLS BENEFITS AND CHALLENGES Benefits Challenges 44% 44% 43% 33% 32% 32% 30% Improved Security Increased Reliability/ Connectivity Increased Performance/ Speed Time Required to Transition/ Upgrade Cost/ ROI Speed/ Bandwidth Limitation Support for Cloud Workloads What IT Pros Think of MPLS 11
Most IT pros report they are currently researching or evaluating potential MPLS solutions to help with their increasing workloads, and cite the private, dedicated connectivity (67%) and enhanced security (62%) as critical features. Survey participants are also looking to evaluate MPLS solution providers, citing reliability (78%), security (76%), and quality (72%) as key factors in selecting a vendor. It s also notable that more than half of the IT pros surveyed (52%) said they would prefer to purchase MPLS solutions as part of a bundle with other networking solutions, citing the expected cost savings and ease of integration as the primary reasons behind the choice. PREFERRED PURCHASE METHOD 31% As a standalone service 52% As part of a bundle with other networking solutions (e.g., Ethernet, MPLS, SD-WAN, etc.) 17% No preference/don t know
CH. 3 What IT Pros Think of SD-WAN SD-WAN continues to be an attractive networking solution because it gives administrators the ability to control network management with software, leading to simplified deployment, centralized management and reduced costs. By serving as a more simplified and effective way of deploying hybrid WAN solutions, SD-WAN has become a favorite choice with businesses that have dispersed locations, such as retail and financial services. Organizations in these types of industries count on SD-WAN s high bandwidth, low latency, and exceptional reliability to keep remote staff productive and customers happy. Nearly half of survey participants have already deployed SD-WAN solutions (45%). An almost equal number are considering SD-WAN (41%), with almost 3 out of 4 respondents anticipating migrating to SD-WAN within the next two years. CURRENTLY USING/CONSIDERING SD-WAN SUMMARY 45% Currently using 41% Considering 14% Familiar with technology, but not currently using or considering TIME EXPECTED TO MIGRATE TO SD-WAN (AMONG THOSE CONSIDERING) Within 2 years (net): 73% 11% 30% 32% 19% 8% In the next 6 months 6 to 12 months from now 1 to 2 years from now 2 to 5 years from now Don t know What IT Pros Think of SD-WAN 13
WHEN ASKED HOW SD-WAN FITS INTO THEIR ORGANIZATION S IT STRATEGY, IT PROS RESPONDED: It s required for future growth of the company. Flexibility to provide a faster solution during outages and overload. Enhanced security. Supports easy management of our complex network and allows us to bring new end points up faster. It s important for our regional offices to be able to communicate with each other, and SD-WAN is integral to that goal. What IT Pros Think of SD-WAN 14
DRIVERS, BENEFITS, CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES More than half of respondents see SD-WAN as critical to organization functionality. IT pros surveyed also predicted that in the future, SD-WAN will be a more critical WAN component than MPLS. Email, file sharing, databases and VoIP are the most common WAN workloads supported today, with cloud and hosted services, big data analytics, and file sharing expected to be the largest workloads in the next three years. While hybrid solutions that incorporate MPLS and SD-WAN are the most used today, more than 1 in 3 respondents reported using or considering an all SD-WAN solution. The top perceived benefits of SD-WAN solutions relate directly to improvements in networking/ connectivity, including better performance, improved scalability, and increased network agility. And IT pros noted a variety of future outcomes they hope to achieve by deploying SD-WAN solutions, with lower costs, improved efficiency/productivity, and increased innovation as the top three choices. Two out of three IT pros surveyed indicated they are currently researching or evaluating potential solutions/vendors to prepare their organization s WAN for increasing workloads. The most critical features/attributes for consideration of an SD-WAN solution are enhanced security (59%) and integration with existing systems/infrastructure (58%). The most critical factors an organization looks for when evaluating SD-WAN solution providers include reliability (67%), quality (63%), and security (63%). And more than half of survey participants stated that they prefer to purchase SD-WAN as a part of a service bundle with other networking solutions. Top SD-WAN Benefits 35% 33% 30% Goals of Deploying SD-WAN 47% 44% 30% Better Performance Improved Scalability Increased Network Agility Lower Costs Improved Efficiency/ Productivity Increased Innovation
A bundle would have like services together so that we can have a single point of contact when things go south, and hopefully, ease administrative burden and reduce costs. Conclusion The Spiceworks survey revealed important data about how IT decision-makers view Ethernet, MPLS and SD-WAN networking solutions, including what drives consideration and purchase, what challenges have been experienced, and what benefits and positive business outcomes have been realized. Still, there are some significant insights to be called out about each of the technologies, as well as data points that are similar across Ethernet, MPLS, and SD-WAN solution, and those that are disparate. Noteworthy data on the individual technologies include: IT pros currently use Ethernet solutions to support business-critical solutions, including email, databases, and VoIP, but in the future see Ethernet as a vital solution in areas like cloud and hosted services, big-data and analytics, and development and testing. Respondents highly value MPLS solutions to protect their enterprise through private, dedicated connectivity and enhanced security. More than half of current SD-WAN users see it as critical to organizational functionality, including more than 7 in 10 respondents who consider it vital for their T1/T3 service, cloud services and MPLS. Noteworthy data that spans across all three technologies include: While most organizations do not currently feel they are bandwidth constrained, more than 4 in 5 report that they will require more bandwidth in the next 3 years. Cost was considered a challenge in deploying Ethernet, MPLS, and SD-WAN; it never ranks as the top challenge of any of the technologies. More than half of the respondents in the MPLS and SD-WAN surveys expressed the preference of purchasing networking solutions as part of a bundled offering, as opposed to a single solution. In the Ethernet survey the number that preferred bundles was 46%. More than 70% of organizations using Ethernet and MPLS, and more than 60% using SD-WAN, are considering or evaluating solution vendors to assist with technology solutions. CenturyLink powers 20% of the world s internet traffic, providing broadband, voice, video, data, and managed services over a robust 250,000- route-mile U.S. fiber network and a 300,000- route-mile international transport network. Get a free networking solutions consultation from CenturyLink and find out how your business can reduce costs, boost performance, and improve your customers experiences. LEARN MORE Conclusion 16
About the Survey In June 2017, Spiceworks surveyed IT decision-makers in the U.S. in an online research panel on behalf of CenturyLink. While the group of more than 250 participants represented a balanced range of industries, company sizes, and job titles, all had influence on Ethernet, MPLS, and SD-WAN purchases by their organizations. Services not available everywhere. CenturyLink may change or cancel products and services or substitute similar products and services at its sole discretion without notice. 2017 CenturyLink. All Rights Reserved. The CenturyLink mark, pathways logo and certain CenturyLink product names are the property of CenturyLink. All other marks are the property of their respective owners.