* Aberdeen Group lays out best practices for optimizing WAN resources, accelerating apps
If you’re still thinking that simply increasing bandwidth is going to solve your application delivery woes, it might be time to give up that notion. Most companies have tried adding bandwidth capacity, but that alone isn’t going to bolster application response times as much as end users would like.
If you’re still thinking that simply increasing bandwidth is going to solve your application delivery woes, it might be time to give up that notion. Most companies have tried adding bandwidth capacity, but that alone isn’t going to bolster application response times as much as end users would like.Consider this: In a survey of 235 companies, 93% of respondents said they increased their bandwidth over the last two years, but only 52% saw an improvement in application response times and only 36% saw WAN latency decrease.What’s needed is a more comprehensive approach to WAN optimization. Aberdeen Group, which conducted the survey, found the companies that are best-in-class when it comes to WAN optimization do a lot more than simply increase bandwidth. They study application performance, put policies in place for prioritization of network traffic, commit staff to the effort, invest in key technologies, and measure the results of their efforts. (Check out my last newsletter for more details on how Aberdeen distinguishes between best-in-class, industry average and laggard organizations, in terms of WAN optimization tactics.)For companies that want to escape the “throw more bandwidth at the problem” rut, Aberdeen lays out tips for getting better mileage out of WAN resources. Here are some of the highlights:* Develop policies and deploy tools for prioritizing WAN traffic. “… organizations need to make decisions about how they want their WAN bandwidth to be used and deploy technology solutions to enable network managers to reinforce those decisions,” the report reads.* Define traffic thresholds and plan WAN capacity based on historic data. Companies that can view bandwidth consumption per network location, and per application, can better plan for changes in capacity and preserve optimal application performance, Aberdeen says.Centralize management of WAN optimization appliances. The ability to manage remote WAN appliances from a central location is critical if a company wants to get to best-in-class performance, Aberdeen says.For lots more tips and information, check out the full report, “Optimizing WAN for Application Acceleration,” sponsored by Virtela Communications, Shunra, Mazu Networks and Exinda Networks. A free copy is available (registration required) on Aberdeen’s site.
* Implement auto alerts for issues with application performance. The quicker network managers become aware that traffic has reached a defined threshold, the faster any performance problems can be repaired.
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