The Traditional Network Procurement Model
Traditionally, organizations have procured and managed their own network infrastructure. This has involved purchasing expensive hardware, such as routers, switches, and firewalls, and then manually configuring and managing them. This model is not only expensive, but it is also inflexible and difficult to scale.
What is Network-as-a-Service (NaaS)?
Network-as-a-Service (NaaS) is a cloud-based model for delivering networking services. In a NaaS model, organizations subscribe to networking services from a provider, rather than building and managing their own infrastructure. The NaaS provider is responsible for all aspects of the network, including the hardware, software, and management.
Key Characteristics of NaaS
NaaS is based on several key characteristics:
- Subscription-based: NaaS is a subscription-based service, which means that organizations pay a monthly or annual fee for the services they use.
- Cloud-delivered: NaaS is delivered from the cloud, which means that it is accessible from anywhere with an internet connection.
- On-demand: NaaS is an on-demand service, which means that organizations can scale their network up or down as needed.
- Managed service: NaaS is a managed service, which means that the NaaS provider is responsible for all aspects of the network.
Benefits of NaaS
NaaS can provide a number of benefits, including:
- Reduced Costs: NaaS can help organizations to reduce their networking costs by eliminating the need to purchase and manage their own hardware.
- Increased Agility: NaaS can help organizations to be more agile by allowing them to quickly and easily provision new networking services.
- Improved Scalability: NaaS can help organizations to scale their network up or down as needed to meet changing business demands.
- Enhanced Security: NaaS providers can offer a range of security services to help organizations to protect their network from attack.
Conclusion
Network-as-a-Service is a new and innovative way to deliver networking services. It offers a number of benefits over the traditional network procurement model, including reduced costs, increased agility, and improved scalability. As organizations continue to embrace the cloud, NaaS is likely to become an increasingly popular option for delivering networking services.