What Are Aggregation Services Routers (ASR)?
Aggregation services in routers and edge platforms help enable network edge routing. These devices combine traffic links at greater speeds to support the growing need for remote access to internal networks and external networks like the internet and cloud.
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Why would a large enterprise need an aggregation router or edge platform?
Large enterprises use aggregation devices to help manage the explosive growth in network traffic due to mobility, cloud networking, video, and collaboration. An aggregation router or edge platform can consolidate traffic streams and help an enterprise maintain consistent performance among its various sites and cloud locations.
The recent and rapid expansion of remote work, digital collaboration solutions, and multicloud environments has heightened the need for managing network traffic and application performance more efficiently.
Why would a service provider need an aggregation router or edge platform?
Network service providers need to deliver high-performance services and high-bandwidth applications to their customers on demand. And they need to be highly secure, reliable and efficient in that delivery.
Aggregation routers and edge platforms help to flexibly and cost-effectively deliver complex consumer and business services. They can also improve operational efficiency while reducing the risk of downtime.
What is SD-WAN and how does it relate to aggregation?
SD-WAN (software-defined WAN) is an approach to managing a WAN. Organizations use a remote SD-WAN console to manage network connectivity between branches, data centers, cloud instances, and the devices of employees working from home. Options to select link types and deploy connectivity, troubleshoot issues, and observe and secure traffic while applying policies and templates across the entire network can cut costs and improve the overall digital experience.
Aggregation devices can enable an SD-WAN platform to combine multiple WAN connections, using various network transports, and network services such as encryption. The SD-WAN platform can then forward those aggregated connections and services across WAN connections at high speeds to external networks like the cloud to provide a better experience. If the aggregation router or edge platform contains a hardware-accelerated data plane or custom silicon, performance will be optimal.
What do the newest aggregation devices offer?
As more workforces become distributed and remote and more apps move to the cloud, it's important to create network architectures that can evolve. Organizations that want to adopt emerging technology like 5G require the flexibility to deploy any service, anywhere—and implement intelligent capacity planning without compromising performance or uptime.
The latest aggregation services routers enable multicloud architectures, delivering scalable cloud applications for the best connected experience. To do this, aggregation devices provide high-performance SD-WAN and secure access service edge (SASE) platforms, rich cloud networking, and security capabilities to give IT teams needed visibility and control.
The latest ASR technology can provide the application visibility that IT and network teams need to deliver consistent, reliable connectivity and application performance over networks and services that the organization may not own or directly control.
Benefits for large enterprises
Aggregation technology has advanced significantly since it was first introduced more than a decade ago. When a large enterprise uses an aggregation router or edge platform device that provides an SD-WAN platform, it can:
Deliver a better user experience
Applications can be deployed within minutes on any platform and provide a consistent user experience.
Deploy a WAN with speed and ease
Enterprises can achieve faster performance from their WAN while using less bandwidth. They also can quickly add revenue-generating services to their business.
Enable more robust security
An aggregation device that provides SD-WAN can offer advanced threat protection. Users can connect to apps quickly but securely, and data is protected from the edge of the WAN to the cloud.
Benefits for service providers
Perhaps the most important benefit that service providers will see is the ability to plan for the future while deploying current networks. With an aggregation router or edge platform, service providers can:
Support growth
A high-density, high-performance platform for edge routing is well suited to meet the needs of mass-scale networks. Aggregation devices that support connections up to 400 GB help enable service providers to scale capacity in anticipation of demand from growing edge markets—including for 5G services.
Scale for next-generation services
The latest aggregation technology provides increased bandwidth capabilities that can support additional services in the future. It also establishes the groundwork for integrating service intelligence into network elements—essential for achieving true network and service convergence.
Achieve energy efficiency
Aggregation devices can provide greater energy efficiency and help service providers lower power costs. They also can help reduce providers' carbon footprint, use less rack space to serve more customers, and deliver more services with MEF 3.0 SD-WAN certified products.