Distributed IT environments, multi-cloud, edge deployments and AI integrations all have one thing in common: They require secure and flexible network architectures that scale quickly and deliver low latencies. Enter platform-based networking, an outgrowth of the platformization initiative reshaping cybersecurity. In a nutshell, platform-based networking enables users to oversee software, policy, telemetry data, open APIs and automation all through a single point of control.
The concept is rapidly gaining traction. According to a 2024 Cisco survey on networking trends, more than 72% of networking professionals intend to roll out some form of platform-based networking within the next two years.
A platform approach lets organizations tap into intelligence to improve network response times, reinforce cybersecurity and reduce costs. The strategy reflects the industry's shift toward creating sophisticated, secure and flexible networks and highlights the highly complex interplay within today's IT environments.
The goal is straightforward: enhance operational efficiency and deliver quality digital experiences, while reducing costs and the IT burden. Let's examine platform-based networking and the advantages it offers, as well as review some of the methodology's benefits and challenges.
What is platform-based networking?
Organizations trying to capitalize on digital innovation must first deal with the limitations of their legacy networks, among them siloed data storage, disparate single-use tools and IT skill set hurdles. Moreover, the technical challenge of integrating diverse networks -- WANs, virtual LANs, edge, multi-cloud, etc. -- with security processes requires significant IT resources and Capex.
Modularity is a foundational principle in platform-based networking. To that end, organizations can do the following: scale with control, customize platform capabilities, add new services as they expand and simplify network maintenance.
Modularity is a foundational principle in platform-based networking. To that end, organizations can do the following:
Scale with control.
Customize platform capabilities.
Add new services as they expand.
Simplify network maintenance.
Administrators can, for example, orchestrate management workflows to facilitate network change processes, perform incident tracking and meet compliance regulations. One vendor, a company in the energy industry, reported that its platform-based approach let it connect network switches with environmental monitoring to respond quickly to infrastructure problems, improve network uptime and ensure availability.
Platform-based networking's support of open APIs lets companies interconnect a variety of business and IT software, data storage, network domains and users. Instead of juggling multiple network management systems and single-purpose tools, API-driven integrations enable network teams to adopt new capabilities -- among them AI, IoT, software-defined WAN and 5G -- while lowering costs. Open APIs also give developers global access and abstractions they need to build their own programmable and next-generation networks.
Simplifying management across systems
The single, standardized interface of a network platform lets admins simplify lifecycle management for hardware, software, firmware and security patches. Enterprises can increase productivity by eliminating the inefficiencies of maintaining multiple IT tools and systems, radically accelerate operations and improve cyberprotections.
In fact, platformization -- the term that describes the journey toward automated, holistic network infrastructure -- is also the pathway to next-gen security, such as extended detection and response, identity and access management, and zero trust.
Platform-based networking incorporates the same common data model to make it easier for companies to validate threats, map vulnerable network paths, perform tests and gain visibility across a broad attack surface.
Every day, more organizations choose cloud-based security tools to safeguard complex distributed infrastructures. A platform-based approach extends these protections across LAN, data center and WAN domains in ways that legacy networks simply can't. Moreover, data consolidation eliminates fragmentation overhead, making it easier to implement zero-trust principles and swiftly identify cyberthreats.
Finally, by focusing on a single platform, companies can streamline IT training and reduce both administrative costs and the IT burden. Harnessing disparate IT systems and ad hoc integrations through platform-based networking enables organizations to identify critical business and IT innovations, including AI, IoT, hybrid deployments and 5G.
Kerry Doyle writes about technology for a variety of publications and platforms. His current focus is on issues relevant to IT and enterprise leaders across a range of topics, from nanotech and cloud to distributed services and AI.
