SASE provides network and security functionality in a single-as-a-service tool, simplifying deployment and management. However, this also creates a single point of failure and exposure for enterprises.
The best SASE solutions combine networking and security with centralized visibility and analytics. This gives organizations flexible and consistent performance, more secure connectivity, and a lower cost of ownership.
Scalability
SASE provides a more flexible, scalable network infrastructure that delivers the performance modern business requires. It unifies networking and security capabilities into a single service, eliminating appliance sprawl and reducing CAPex and OPex costs.
The unified service also removes management burdens from IT teams and shifts them to the service provider, helping to reduce IT overhead. This means fewer vendors, hardware deployed in branch offices and remote locations, and fewer agents on end-user devices.
In addition, the global distribution of SASE PoPs enables low latency wherever users and applications are located. This makes SASE an ideal solution for supporting hybrid cloud environments, providing secure access to applications hosted in the cloud or a data center, and making work-from-anywhere a reality for remote employees. Its transaction-orientated approach to authentication also helps mitigate advanced threats by validating a user or device for each application session rather than at an initial point of entry to the enterprise network. This is a significant improvement over traditional VPN architectures, which validate access to the entire enterprise network based on IP address or location.
Accessibility
One of the SASE benefits is that users get access to what they need, when they need it, on whatever device they choose (as long as it meets security policies). This freedom and flexibility means productivity is maximized. It also eliminates the risk that a compromised worker could become a beachhead for attacks on the entire enterprise.
With micro-segmentation and zero trust network access, SASE prevents malware from spreading across the organization, even if a single user has been compromised. By using a cloud-native approach that combines multiple networking and security capabilities into a single service, SASE delivers greater flexibility at lower upfront costs.
For many organizations, a managed SASE solution from a vendor with expertise in networking and security is the best way to deploy and manage this technology. This approach will provide improved visibility into network performance, help address security threats more quickly, and allow for rapid architecture scaling as business needs change. It will also reduce the number of point products to be managed, resulting in management efficiencies and reduced costs. A SASE-enabled SD-WAN can also deliver lower application latency by routing traffic around the global edge network instead of backhauling it to the data center or corporate headquarters.
Flexibility
With remote work becoming increasingly common, many organizations need a solution that supports their employees and their various devices to access company resources. This is where SASE comes in. SASE is an architecture that combines modern networking and zero-trust security, making it possible to securely connect users to their desired applications and data from anywhere.
By integrating network infrastructure and security functions into the edge of your network, SASE offers increased flexibility that reduces complexity and latency. SASE solutions can scale and adapt seamlessly in response to business changes, helping you stay secure throughout your digital transformation journey.
The best way to start with SASE is by evaluating your current networking and security setup. Identifying pain points or limitations that SASE can address will be helpful for you. It’s also essential to involve your stakeholders in this evaluation process to ensure that everyone understands the benefits of SASE and is on board with the change. Once you’ve identified your objectives, find a managed SASE provider that offers a single point of contact and custom solutions without requiring an overlapping hardware and software deployment.
Security
A key benefit of SASE is the security that it brings. Combining SD-WAN capabilities with several network and security functions delivered from the cloud, SASE reduces complexity and costs, enables more flexible and consistent policy, and helps eliminate the siloed approach to securing data and systems that modern enterprises are dealing with.
For example, SASE solutions enable centralized visibility to detect and fix network problems quickly and efficiently. They also optimize connections to applications by analyzing traffic and routing it to points of presence with sufficient capacity. That can improve user experiences and help protect productivity.
With the growing need for work-from-anywhere access, SASE solutions ensure users have secure and reliable connections to applications and systems regardless of location. It delivers contextual access based on an organization’s security policies rather than a blanket trust model. That means users can use their preferred device and application without slowing the organization down or exposing it to risk. This is known as Zero Trust applied to the WAN.
Cost-effectiveness
Business teams must do their due diligence with any technology to model ROI and determine whether it’s worth the investment. In the case of SASE, teams can expect to see many benefits that will impact their bottom line and help them protect their businesses.
With SASE, teams can consolidate their network and security solutions to reduce operational costs while increasing efficiency and improving user experience. SASE combines SD-WAN capabilities with several network security functions, such as ZTNA and CASB, delivered via a single cloud platform. The result is a simplified solution that cuts complexity and cost while reducing the hardware needed in branch offices and other remote locations.
Additionally, the centralized management of these services reduces overhead and enables IT to develop one policy that can be enforced across all networks. Finally, the pay-per-user business model brings the elasticity companies need to support their growth without the additional cost of purchasing or integrating new hardware infrastructure. Several factors contribute to a notable decrease in the total operating expenses.