Comcast Business introduced its gigabit-ready "ActiveCore" SDN platform for helping enterprises manage their networks, systems and costs across multiple locations, branch offices or data centers. SD-WAN is the first service to be powered by the ActiveCore platform.
ActiveCore delivers new services and network changes via software. It features an embedded orchestration capability, allowing it to seamlessly deliver and manage multiple virtualized network functions (VNF). ActiveCore can be paired with Comcast’s high-performance, DOCSIS 3.1-based gigabit broadband service, which is already available in much of the Northeastern, Mid-Atlantic and Central United States, and will be available to the entire national Comcast service area by the end of 2017.
Comcast Business SD-WAN combines secure IP-VPN, application-aware routing, and a stateful network firewall. This is delivered over the public internet via a carrier-class IP-backbone, leveraging Comcast’s broadband solutions. With Comcast Business SD-WAN on the ActiveCore platform, customers can augment or replace their existing network with an alternative providing bandwidth, reliability and flexibility.
Comcast Business is positioning SD-WAN as a cost-effective, alternative to MPLS running over T1 lines. With firewall-secured, branch-level internet connectivity to a public cloud, Comcast Business SD-WAN accelerates performance and can reduce the cost of backhauling data traffic through corporate data centers. Comcast Business plans to add additional ActiveCore VNFs in the near future which complement SD-WAN.
“ActiveCore and SD-WAN represent a ‘generational moment’ for our industry and are designed for businesses that embrace the consumerization of IT, SaaS and cloud services to run their enterprise operations,” said Kevin O’Toole, senior vice president of Product Management for Comcast Business. “We now offer enterprises a robust, future-proof alternative to legacy MPLS solutions; allowing them to easily add capacity to branch offices at scale and unlock the potential of virtualized networks for today’s connected economy.”
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