The CIO Council’s Innovation Committee recently published a white paper titled Networks of the Future highlighting the new and emerging technologies that will disrupt the networking space. The white paper provides insight into how the next generation of networking technologies will impact Federal agencies and citizen services.
Computer networks are fundamental to all information technology and the digital economy. The ways in which agencies manage and secure their networks will change significantly in the coming years as network management is becoming increasingly virtualized and faster mobile network technology becomes available.
The white paper goes in depth about game changing technologies such as the emergence of 5G wireless networks and Software Defined Wire Area Networking (SD-WAN). 5G will enable the next generation of consumer and industrial technologies and promises to change the way companies, citizens, and users interact with technology by making communication faster, with exponentially greater data transfer and more mobility and connectivity.
SD-WAN allows networks to route traffic based on centrally-managed software defined rules to the WAN, thus connecting enterprise networks over large geographic distances. SD-WAN promises to change how agencies configure, monitor, and manage their network infrastructure by centralizing networking management and making networks more responsive and resilient to changing business and security requirements.
The white paper also provides background on the numerous policies and programs that affect network modernization and security and lists several suggested action items agencies can deploy to get ahead. Ultimately, network modernization is critical to all government IT and emerging technologies will fundamentally change how Federal agencies will manage and secure their networks. Keeping the network secure from vulnerabilities while enabling the next generation of technologies and services will require close collaboration between and within agencies.
To learn more about ongoing CIO Council Innovation Committee activities and initiatives, please visit the Innovation Committee’s Connect.gov page.
