Software-defined networking, or SDN, is a relatively new approach in the IT world. But in the next few years, it could become the go-to technology for data center networks.
Where today’s networks are traditionally hardware-oriented and difficult to make changes to in many instances, SDN separates the control plane from the access plane and uses software to improve network performance and agility. There’s plenty of promise for how it could reshape the data center network, with many vendors working to bring products to market.
While mainstream SDN implementation is still on the horizon, it’s in your best interest to research the technology now and be prepared for the near future.