SD-WANs can help enterprises to manage increasingly complex and diverse network infrastructures at a lower cost, but there are pitfalls to avoid.

Software-defined WANs (SD-WAN) are becoming key components of modern IT infrastructures. Because they use a centralized control function to securely direct network traffic over the Internet, they can deliver benefits such as increased application performance, better user experience, and lower costs.

SD-WAN technology simplifies the management and operation of a WAN by decoupling networking hardware from its control mechanism. As organizations look to support a hybrid workforce and cloud-native network architectures, SD-WAN infrastructure has become an important technology for enabling flexible, agile, and optimized connectivity.

Not surprisingly, demand for SD-WAN is on the rise. The SD-WAN infrastructure market grew 27% in 2021 compared with 2020, to reach $3.8 billion, according to research firm IDC. The market is forecast to grow at a 19% compound annual growth rate over the next five years, reaching $7.1 billion by 2025.

Deploying this technology is not without challenges, however. Here are some of the potential issues that IT and network managers might confront.