Cloud-based software-defined wide area networking (SD-WAN) vendor Cradlepoint today rolled out Release 6.3 of its NetCloud OS router software, which is part of its NetCloud platform. The release provides extended SD-WAN capabilities for 4G LTE-dependent networks.

Cradlepoint takes a unique approach to SD-WAN by focusing on networks that have a high degree of 4G connectivity, said Todd Krautkremer, SVP of strategy and corporate development at Cradlepoint.

“Cradlepoint is a go-to for 4G failovers — failovers meaning if the WAN goes down, [customers] deploy a 4G LTE bridge,” he added. “So if the primary link fails, the router will instantly send traffic to the Cradlepoint platform and will instantly set up an LTE connection as the WAN.”

Cradlepoint offers its SD-WAN with either MPLS, Ethernet, cable, or LTE as a primary connection, but it said that LTE is more common as a secondary link with its customers.

Among its new features is LAN client visibility. “If someone plugs in a new device, we can see it, identify it, and define a policy on how to handle its traffic across the WAN,” Krautkremer said. This feature is offered as a plugin to the NetCloud platform so users can instantly see all of the traffic from devices that are connected to a WAN.

Its Smart WAN Selections is a new traffic steering capability that is optimized for wireless connections. For example, when an enterprise has a failover, a connection manager makes the decision for which type of connection to send the traffic. This is determined by measuring latency and jitter from multiple connections.

Finally, Cradlepoint’s new adaptive quality of service allows users to go into the platform and define what traffic should be prioritized during a failover. “It manages the amount of traffic that is destined to float into the WAN and intelligently puts traffic where it is most optimized, Krautkremer said. “When you failover to 4G, you have lower throughput than you normally would, and this feature automatically shapes the traffic so the most latency-sensitive traffic gets the performance it needs.”

The Boise, Idaho-based company got its start in 2006 on the consumer side of business, offering a service that allowed consumers to create WiFi hotspots on their phones. Since, the company has evolved to offer LTE as an enterprise component of the WAN. And in late 2015, the company acquired Pertino, which further boosted its technology into SD-WAN.

Cradlepoint has some customers in industries like retail, food, finance, insurance, transportation, healthcare, and government. The company raised an $89 million Series C last month and has raised a total of $157 million to date.