VMware’s VeloCloud SD-WAN offering will soon be available as a virtual network function (VNF) on Equinix’s data centres, the two companies announced this week.
Equinix says the partnership expands the reach of VMware’s SD-WAN and secure access service edge (SASE) offering to Equinix’s 205 data centres – which now includes 25 additional data centres after a deal with Bell Canada in June. According to a Sept. 21 press release, Equinix says the extended VMware presence will also apply to Equinix’s International Business Exchange data centers across the Americas, Asia Pacific, and the Middle East.
“With VMware SD-WAN edge now available as a virtual network service on Equinix’s Network Edge, enterprises, partners, and service providers alike will be able to have unique, globally available network solutions optimized for intrinsically secure access to any public, private, or cloud or remote and branch users,” said Sanjay Uppal, SVP and GM of the VeloCloud business unit at VMware, in a statement.
Equinix and VMware will also allow provisioning and accessibility of SASE components over the VMware Orchestrator portal.
IDC’s research vice-president of data centre networks, Brad Casemore, said the SD-WAN market has withstood the uncertain times of the past six months.
“Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, the long-term growth prospects for the SD-WAN market remain exceptionally robust. Driven by the ubiquitous imperative of digital transformation, a growing number of organizations worldwide are looking to scale initial deployments, which often begin with a limited number of sites, to encompass all branch offices supported by their WAN. As they do so, they prize agility, resilience and operational simplicity. VMware’s SD-WAN by VeloCloud solution, now available on Equinix’s Network Edge, is designed to address those needs and help organizations dynamically scale their IT infrastructure in lockstep with the demands of digital business,” he said in a statement.
Equinix and VMware have been partners since 2013 when the companies began working together on hybrid-cloud deployments.