As organisations strive for greater operational efficiency, scalability and agility, the role of network automation has become increasingly pivotal. The current landscape requires rapid responses, high availability and seamless connectivity to ensure complex systems can meet the needs of businesses today. As the demands on networks continue to grow, the importance of network automation will grow with it. The network automation market is forecast to grow by around 30 per cent over the next five years as it climbs up organisations’ IT agendas. But before we dive into the latest network automation developments, let’s start by defining what it is.
What is Network Automation?
Network automation involves automating the configuration, management, testing, deployment and operations of physical and virtual devices within networks. By automating routine tasks, organisations can reduce the number of human errors, increase efficiency by speeding up network tasks and enable scalability when required.
Recent Network Automation Developments
Over the past 40 years, network automation has come a long way. From the introduction of the first network automation tools in the 1980s to the increasing adoption of network automation in the early 2020s, technological innovation won’t stop any time soon. Over the last couple of years, several trends have been making waves in the network infrastructure space:
The role of machine learning and AI in network automation
One of the most significant developments of 2023 is the proliferation of generative AI systems, such as ChatGPT (boasting over 200 million users) and Bard (with 142.6 million users). A Deloitte study revealed that over 50 per cent of organisations are planning to use AI and automation technologies in 2023. But how will machine learning and AI affect network automation going forward?
Since the 2010s, machine learning and AI have been employed to enhance process automation and decision-making within IT operations. Unfortunately, human decision-making can only go so far, in part due to the complexity and unpredictability of systems. Machine learning and AI are being used to automate tasks such as provisioning servers, troubleshooting problems and configuring devices.
Additionally, machine learning and AI are being used to identify patterns in data that humans may not be able to identify in a timely manner, including trends in network traffic or anomalies in performance. Last but by no means least, machine learning will be increasingly used to make predictions about future events relating to networks, such as the likelihood of an outage or changes in demand for IT resources.
The rise of Network as Code
In recent years, the Infrastructure-as-Code (IaC) has been applied to networking. Network as Code (NaC) can be broken down into three principles: store network configurations in source control, treat source control as the single source of truth and deploy configurations with programmatic APIs.
NaC is a relatively new technology in the networking automation scene, but it is rapidly gaining popularity due to its numerous benefits. First, NaC can allow organisations to be more agile by automating the deployment and configuration of network devices. It also helps businesses boost the reliability of their networks by automating the testing and verification process of network configurations, preventing serious errors and costly outages. Finally, NaC helps organisations reduce network management costs, allowing IT staff to focus on other strategically important tasks requiring nuance and human input.
The Future of Network Automation
As we look ahead, the trajectory for network automation is greate intelligence, integration and adaptability. So, what’s likely to happen with network automation over the next decade? Here are our predictions:
Self-healing networks, powered by machine learning and AI, will detect issues and rectify them autonomously, minimising disruptive downtime.
Security concerns will grow as automation becomes more prevalent; there will be more focus on securing automated processes to reduce their vulnerability.
Edge computing will continue to grow in popularity as the number of IoT devices skyrockets.
In Summary: Jumpstart Your Network Development Journey
Network automation is fundamentally reshaping the IT landscape as we know it. With recent developments in machine learning and AI and the adoption of Network as Code, organisations have various opportunities to embrace change and prepare for future challenges. The good news is that with our expertise, your organisation can confidently navigate the evolving landscape, harnessing the full power of network automation.
Our Network Automation Jumpstart is built on the foundation of decades of experience in some of the world’s largest and most complex networking environments. We have experience automating a myriad of network functions, such as global data centre deployments and enterprise-wide automated network compliance reporting. But that’s not all—we’ve also created enterprise self-service global DNS platforms that service thousands of requests each day. Our CCIE-trained experts have the deep knowledge and experience to ensure organisations get immediate benefits from their network automation plans. Contact us today to learn more about our Network Automation Jumpstart service.