Cloud networking is an IT infrastructure model that relies on cloud-based services to provide network capabilities. It is the technology that bridges across clouds and connects an enterprise’s applications and workloads in a multi-cloud or hybrid cloud environment. The approach uses network resources that are virtual and controlled by network management software instead of physical hardware. Cloud networking is becoming the new standard in enterprise networks due to its agility, scalability, efficiency and performance.
What Are the Benefits of Cloud Networking?
In reality, the IT environments of most enterprises are a diverse patchwork of legacy systems and applications, on-site technologies, and public and private clouds. Cloud networking bridges these diverse resources, making it a vanguard of a new era of network architecture. Cloud network benefits are numerous and offer a decisive advantage over piecemeal networking approaches.
- Consistent connectivity: Since all resources are unified in cloud networking, fragmentation of the network is eliminated, which fosters persistence and reliability in their connections.
- Universal security: Regardless of their location within the network, apps and data are comprehensively protected through a consistent policy enforced by cloud networking.
- Reach: Cloud networking extends across a globally distributed network, quickly making edge-to-edge connections within your organization.
- Scalability: Because cloud networking is a service, it can scale with ease and deploy quickly to keep up with your growing business.
- Minimized cost: With no physical infrastructure to maintain and independence from telecommunications providers, cloud networking provides centralized maintenance and monitoring.
How Does Cloud Networking Work?
Several technologies enable cloud networking architecture. The concept of virtualization is key. Through Network Functions Virtualization (NFV), cloud networking manages and connects resources by virtualizing network components like routers, firewalls and gateways. Software-defined networking (SDN) is a virtual architecture technology that manages and automates network traffic, dynamically balancing loads between resources and centralizing control. Cloud-based network controllers manage and control information flows within the SDN environment between clouds and the premise-based infrastructure.
What Are the Types of Cloud Networks?
Cloud networking is a broad term that describes the interconnectivity between several forms of cloud-based services and on-premises infrastructure. There are four basic types of cloud networks.
- Public cloud: A third-party provider offers infrastructure and services to host storage, applications and network management tools. These clouds are accessible over the internet. Examples of public cloud providers include AWS, Microsoft Azure, Oracle, IBM Cloud and Google Cloud.
- Private cloud: Network services are organization-specific and only available to authorized users of the cloud. Private cloud networking can virtualize physical hardware and fine-tune internal access to resources. These are dedicated, on-premises internal or corporate clouds.
- Multi-cloud: Networking focuses on cloud interoperability and combines more than one public cloud. Some of the benefits of using more than one public cloud provider are improving resource and data redundancy, selecting services, and optimizing performance.
- Hybrid cloud: Integrating public and private clouds creates a unified network. Hybrid cloud solutions take advantage of the best features of public and private clouds and create an environment where data moves seamlessly across different platforms. Hybrid clouds offer superior flexibility while enabling a higher tier of security by keeping sensitive data in the private cloud.
What Is the Difference Between Cloud Networking and Cloud Computing?
Cloud computing is an umbrella term broadly defined by the use of remote technologies to process, store and manage data on demand. Cloud computing is an alternative to local computing infrastructure.
Cloud networking is a form of cloud computing that effectively creates a network between clouds and on-premises resources. Cloud networking virtualizes the network components within a cloud computing environment. A service provider or your IT team can manage these on-demand network services. Lumen® Cloud Connect can help your enterprise connect to leading public and private clouds.
Unlock a network experience that matches your cloud experience with flexible SDN-based controls and secure, virtualized networking.
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