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Top Transformative Technology Trends in Networking for 2016

Pete Goldin
Editor and Publisher
APMdigest

The Year 2015 has seen organizations disrupting their markets with the digital transformation of their businesses as they embrace 3rd Platform computing and New IP networking strategies that have helped them become leaders in new markets. According to Brocade, moving into 2016, more businesses are expected to leverage smart machines and transformative technologies to give them a clear competitive advantage.

Brocade outlines the top transformative technology trends in networking to watch for in 2016 and beyond:

1. The cloud will gain even greater traction

According to IDC, more than half of all IT spending is going to be on the 3rd Platform, otherwise known as cloud-based technologies, and that figure will surpass 60 percent of all IT spending by 2020. The migration of old, legacy IP network architectures to New IP networks will accelerate, reaching near-mainstream adoption as enterprises and service providers transform their networks into an open, software-driven platform for innovation and a competitive edge.

2. Software-based networks are clearly the future

Over the past year, software has transformed the data center and networks in general, with service providers and enterprises turning to Software-Defined Networking (SDN) and Network Functions Virtualization (NFV) to create new services quickly, scale them easily, and deliver them in user-centric ways. 2016 will bring about the expanded adoption of innovative, open, and automated software networking platforms as enterprises and service providers migrate to New IP networks. The increasing deployment of x86 server architecture will accelerate this transformation, replacing specialized networking hardware in multiple network roles, such as Application Delivery Controllers (ADCs). ADCs have already begun transforming to a virtual (vADC) model to help enterprises and services providers scale capacity on demand to handle peak workloads. Software is increasingly permeating every aspect of this virtualization transformation.

3. The importance of security will skyrocket

Organizations operating in today's New IP networking environment face increasing demands for cloud-based applications and need to support social, mobile, and Big Data initiatives. However, security-related attacks and breaches continue to impede the delivery of services and create additional challenges to network and service reliability. New IP networking solutions allow organizations to deploy more advanced security that is designed into the network from the start, not bolted on at edge to existing infrastructure. The network itself can be pervasively vigilant and track behavior on and not just access to the network, to quickly identify and prevent unwanted activity. Security services can be virtualized, enabling organizations to distribute security wherever it is needed and customize security at various levels -- by geography or location, function, group or individual, or application.

4. DevOps will play a much larger role

DevOps, or any agile software development methodology that closely matches services with business demands, will gain widespread influence and uptake among both enterprises and service providers as a way to ensure they remain competitive. According to IDC, enterprises pursuing digital transformation strategies will more than double their software development capabilities by 2018. Companies that build and use field-focused development teams that operate without the constraints of rigid traditional product development processes will have a significant advantage in customer-focused innovation. This advantage extends to both the speed of development and to customer intimacy and retention.

5. Big Data and analytics will get even bigger

Organizations that are able to take advantage of the explosion of data will seize the day, and many of these disrupters will be startups that use Big Data to make strategic decisions based on analytics. As data gets increasingly colossal, so do the opportunities, skillsets, and demand for analytic and cognitive services across industries. The ability to derive intelligence from Big Data in real time will create a distinct competitive edge for any business.

6. Machine learning takes off

The advent of machine learning is the computing breakthrough made possible by Big Data. The emergence of algorithms that can learn from and even make predictions based on the enormous amounts of data and meta-data that are generated, transmitted, and stored via networks will change the world of data centers and networks beginning in 2016. This process is already underway, as facial and speech recognition are changing the worlds of consumer electronics and the cloud services that use them, and anomaly detection is quickly becoming a crucial part of network security.

7. The rise of the telco with virtual architecture

Mobile Network Operators (MNOs) that have been struggling to keep up with fast-changing customer needs and market opportunities will be compelled to embrace SDN and NFV in 2016. The risk of falling behind is set to intensify with each passing day as carriers and service providers that embrace change will become the winners in the Internet of Things (IoT) ecosystem and 5G race by 2020.

8. The technical talent crunch gets serious

Vendors, service providers, and user organizations are all competing for a limited pool of next-generation talent with the required coding and technical skills. The talent crunch issue will become increasingly acute, and organizations will have to rethink their human resource strategies and policies in order to attract, develop, and retain strong talent. Technical qualifications that were only recently seen as de facto passports to important positions in networking will change in the face of self-provisioning and self-programming networks. Increasingly, critical networking positions will begin to require advanced analytical and coding skills that are in very short supply today.

Pete Goldin is Editor and Publisher of APMdigest

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Top Transformative Technology Trends in Networking for 2016

Pete Goldin
Editor and Publisher
APMdigest

The Year 2015 has seen organizations disrupting their markets with the digital transformation of their businesses as they embrace 3rd Platform computing and New IP networking strategies that have helped them become leaders in new markets. According to Brocade, moving into 2016, more businesses are expected to leverage smart machines and transformative technologies to give them a clear competitive advantage.

Brocade outlines the top transformative technology trends in networking to watch for in 2016 and beyond:

1. The cloud will gain even greater traction

According to IDC, more than half of all IT spending is going to be on the 3rd Platform, otherwise known as cloud-based technologies, and that figure will surpass 60 percent of all IT spending by 2020. The migration of old, legacy IP network architectures to New IP networks will accelerate, reaching near-mainstream adoption as enterprises and service providers transform their networks into an open, software-driven platform for innovation and a competitive edge.

2. Software-based networks are clearly the future

Over the past year, software has transformed the data center and networks in general, with service providers and enterprises turning to Software-Defined Networking (SDN) and Network Functions Virtualization (NFV) to create new services quickly, scale them easily, and deliver them in user-centric ways. 2016 will bring about the expanded adoption of innovative, open, and automated software networking platforms as enterprises and service providers migrate to New IP networks. The increasing deployment of x86 server architecture will accelerate this transformation, replacing specialized networking hardware in multiple network roles, such as Application Delivery Controllers (ADCs). ADCs have already begun transforming to a virtual (vADC) model to help enterprises and services providers scale capacity on demand to handle peak workloads. Software is increasingly permeating every aspect of this virtualization transformation.

3. The importance of security will skyrocket

Organizations operating in today's New IP networking environment face increasing demands for cloud-based applications and need to support social, mobile, and Big Data initiatives. However, security-related attacks and breaches continue to impede the delivery of services and create additional challenges to network and service reliability. New IP networking solutions allow organizations to deploy more advanced security that is designed into the network from the start, not bolted on at edge to existing infrastructure. The network itself can be pervasively vigilant and track behavior on and not just access to the network, to quickly identify and prevent unwanted activity. Security services can be virtualized, enabling organizations to distribute security wherever it is needed and customize security at various levels -- by geography or location, function, group or individual, or application.

4. DevOps will play a much larger role

DevOps, or any agile software development methodology that closely matches services with business demands, will gain widespread influence and uptake among both enterprises and service providers as a way to ensure they remain competitive. According to IDC, enterprises pursuing digital transformation strategies will more than double their software development capabilities by 2018. Companies that build and use field-focused development teams that operate without the constraints of rigid traditional product development processes will have a significant advantage in customer-focused innovation. This advantage extends to both the speed of development and to customer intimacy and retention.

5. Big Data and analytics will get even bigger

Organizations that are able to take advantage of the explosion of data will seize the day, and many of these disrupters will be startups that use Big Data to make strategic decisions based on analytics. As data gets increasingly colossal, so do the opportunities, skillsets, and demand for analytic and cognitive services across industries. The ability to derive intelligence from Big Data in real time will create a distinct competitive edge for any business.

6. Machine learning takes off

The advent of machine learning is the computing breakthrough made possible by Big Data. The emergence of algorithms that can learn from and even make predictions based on the enormous amounts of data and meta-data that are generated, transmitted, and stored via networks will change the world of data centers and networks beginning in 2016. This process is already underway, as facial and speech recognition are changing the worlds of consumer electronics and the cloud services that use them, and anomaly detection is quickly becoming a crucial part of network security.

7. The rise of the telco with virtual architecture

Mobile Network Operators (MNOs) that have been struggling to keep up with fast-changing customer needs and market opportunities will be compelled to embrace SDN and NFV in 2016. The risk of falling behind is set to intensify with each passing day as carriers and service providers that embrace change will become the winners in the Internet of Things (IoT) ecosystem and 5G race by 2020.

8. The technical talent crunch gets serious

Vendors, service providers, and user organizations are all competing for a limited pool of next-generation talent with the required coding and technical skills. The talent crunch issue will become increasingly acute, and organizations will have to rethink their human resource strategies and policies in order to attract, develop, and retain strong talent. Technical qualifications that were only recently seen as de facto passports to important positions in networking will change in the face of self-provisioning and self-programming networks. Increasingly, critical networking positions will begin to require advanced analytical and coding skills that are in very short supply today.

Pete Goldin is Editor and Publisher of APMdigest

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As businesses increasingly rely on high-performance applications to deliver seamless user experiences, the demand for fast, reliable, and scalable data storage systems has never been greater. Redis — an open-source, in-memory data structure store — has emerged as a popular choice for use cases ranging from caching to real-time analytics. But with great performance comes the need for vigilant monitoring ...

Kubernetes was not initially designed with AI's vast resource variability in mind, and the rapid rise of AI has exposed Kubernetes limitations, particularly when it comes to cost and resource efficiency. Indeed, AI workloads differ from traditional applications in that they require a staggering amount and variety of compute resources, and their consumption is far less consistent than traditional workloads ... Considering the speed of AI innovation, teams cannot afford to be bogged down by these constant infrastructure concerns. A solution is needed ...

AI is the catalyst for significant investment in data teams as enterprises require higher-quality data to power their AI applications, according to the State of Analytics Engineering Report from dbt Labs ...

Misaligned architecture can lead to business consequences, with 93% of respondents reporting negative outcomes such as service disruptions, high operational costs and security challenges ...

A Gartner analyst recently suggested that GenAI tools could create 25% time savings for network operational teams. Where might these time savings come from? How are GenAI tools helping NetOps teams today, and what other tasks might they take on in the future as models continue improving? In general, these savings come from automating or streamlining manual NetOps tasks ...

IT and line-of-business teams are increasingly aligned in their efforts to close the data gap and drive greater collaboration to alleviate IT bottlenecks and offload growing demands on IT teams, according to The 2025 Automation Benchmark Report: Insights from IT Leaders on Enterprise Automation & the Future of AI-Driven Businesses from Jitterbit ...

A large majority (86%) of data management and AI decision makers cite protecting data privacy as a top concern, with 76% of respondents citing ROI on data privacy and AI initiatives across their organization, according to a new Harris Poll from Collibra ...

According to Gartner, Inc. the following six trends will shape the future of cloud over the next four years, ultimately resulting in new ways of working that are digital in nature and transformative in impact ...

2020 was the equivalent of a wedding with a top-shelf open bar. As businesses scrambled to adjust to remote work, digital transformation accelerated at breakneck speed. New software categories emerged overnight. Tech stacks ballooned with all sorts of SaaS apps solving ALL the problems — often with little oversight or long-term integration planning, and yes frequently a lot of duplicated functionality ... But now the music's faded. The lights are on. Everyone from the CIO to the CFO is checking the bill. Welcome to the Great SaaS Hangover ...

Regardless of OpenShift being a scalable and flexible software, it can be a pain to monitor since complete visibility into the underlying operations is not guaranteed ... To effectively monitor an OpenShift environment, IT administrators should focus on these five key elements and their associated metrics ...