InfoVista advanced its software-defined wide area networking (SD-WAN) goals with new partnerships and integrations with ZTE and Nokia's Nuage Networks.

For both partnerships, InfoVista leverages its Ipanema virtual network function (VNF), which helps provide application visibility, dynamic WAN selection, and WAN optimization.

InfoVista’s Senior Director of Strategic Alliances Ranga Thittai said these partnerships represent a shift in the SD-WAN market as it moves past the early adopter phase, or SD-WAN 1.0 as he referred to it, to an application-focused version of SD-WAN that meets growing demands, or SD-WAN 2.0.

“What’s leading the way is a very deep and differentiated visibility into individual applications,” said Thittai. “There’s going to be an expectation in the market to be able to differentiate applications in a very discreet and detailed fashion. That’s essentially what we enable with our VNF.”

These partnerships also exemplify InfoVista’s push to protect, assure, and guarantee critical enterprise applications. “In effect we add that important ingredient to enterprises’ SD-WAN vision,” said Thittai. “Applications are what drive their business: It’s not bandwidth, it’s not the capability to save money.”

Nuage Networks is deploying InfoVista's Ipanema VNF on Nuage’s Virtualized Services Platform. It maximizes application performance across hybrid WAN infrastructure. It provides security, application visibility, quality of service control, path selection, and WAN optimization.

According to Sylvain Quartier, InfoVista’s SVP of digital enterprise products strategy, “The purpose is not only to offer an alternative to MPLS and traditional routers, but really to take care of critical applications.” He added that it does so by managing applications on a network in real-time.

Additionally, InfoVista joined Nuage's technology partner program. This provides customers with a certified version of its VNF on Nuage's network services gateway, 7850 NSG. This allows the two companies to test their products together and support each other's policies.

“Nuage is a great solution provider in the SD-WAN market," Thittai said. “What this partnership targets is a growing number of customers who want a centrally-orchestrated SDN solution from Nuage, then it provides them an application-centric WAN solution as a next step.”

InfoVista and ZTE released general availability of their integrated products at Mobile World Congress. The partnership integrates InfoVista’s VNF with ZTE’s universal CPE (uCPE) router.

This extends the capabilities of ZTE’s micro cloud gateway platform — which includes a single unified branch gateway with routing, overlay, zero-touch management, and service orchestration — with the WAN optimization and other capabilities of the Ipanema VNF.

“We have tested our integration as well with their management platform,” said Quartier. “SD-WAN must be automated, simple, integrated — just a VNF on a uCPE is not enough.” ZTE also has an established global connection and presence in a global market that would “desire that kind of combination” said Thittai.

Thittai summarized the difference between InfoVista's work with ZTE versus Nuage. “In Nuage's case it’s more around building a joint application-aware SD-WAN product, while in the case of ZTE it’s more around bringing that complete SD-WAN capability on ZTE’s uCPE hardware.” He added that business drivers also differentiate the integrations.