In today's globally competitive market, corporate organizations both big and small adopt strategic methods for productivity and business continuity. They need integrated business plans, resource sharing, and faster communications over the global network. Many of these companies are widely using Wide Area Networking (WAN) for global communications. According to Infonetics Research, usage of WAN optimization technologies and appliances in the market is steadily increasing. The report states that WAN application crossed $1 billion mark in 2008, a 29% increase compared to its previous year.

WAN connects distributed offices to the main organization, links data and applications to employees, customers, and partners in different geographical locations, shares resources and information, and enables to transmit critical business data across the network. Optimized performance of these networks is very much necessary for business organizations to perform business functions effectively over the Wide Area Network.

Benefits include

Wide Area Networking (WAN) enables quick and secure data transmissions over the network. WAN optimization technologies provide maximum benefits to businesses in terms of network acceleration, bandwidth optimization and increased user productivity. WAN optimization improves the return on investment (ROI) and lowers the total cost of ownership of their IT and network investments. Some of the benefits of WAN optimization devices are:

Enhances the usability experience for user

WAN optimization devices monitor and optimize the WAN intelligently. They prioritize, manage and accelerate the flow of data in networks on a real-time basis. WAN devices using the optimization technology provide optimal performance and manageability along with end-to-end security to enhance user productivity. As the users get data and applications quickly, they work efficiently increasing productivity.

Enables applications to perform across long distances

For many companies, WANs are now an essential part of their computing infrastructure as they connect remote offices to central offices enabling them to perform big-office tasks with more cost-effective workers. With the rapid globalization, branch offices, outsourcing, telecommuting, and end-users can be located anywhere in the world. As businesses are being set up across a wider geography, there is a need of better connectivity for uninterrupted business operations. Critical business data such as resources, customer or client details, payroll, etc. is shared over the Wide Area Network among these locations. WAN optimization solutions are utilized to prevent problems such as network brown-outs, which can result in huge loss of valuable data and credibility.

Improves transaction time

As we all know, employee productivity and efficient business operations depend on secure and high data transfer across thousands of miles of cables. Transmission delays may affect business efficiency. As businesses spread their workforces across the different parts of the world, fast and secure access between regional branches and headquarters is the key to increased productivity. These businesses, in order to perform productively need increasingly sophisticated applications and services. WAN optimization appliances improve the transaction time by accelerating the applications on WAN and speeding up the data transfer.

Reduces necessity of more bandwidth

Many of the organizations are not aware as what is in their network traffic. In many business organizations, recreational and other unnecessary traffic consumes a significant amount of the total bandwidth on the WAN. Optimization appliances distinguish business-related traffic from surfing/social networking traffic and manage the bandwidth according to the business applications' needs. It controls the network traffic flow and makes sure that users, groups, and applications get appropriate network resources.

Economical

Optimizing WAN technology reduces the cost of infrastructure at remote branches through centralizing IT applications, server, backup, and storage resources. WAN optimization techniques like bandwidth management, caching, compression, and protocol optimization significantly minimizes the bandwidth expenses.

Reduces number of servers for corporate networks

The more the number of servers, the less economical it becomes in terms of purchase, installation and maintenance for the businesses. WAN optimization devices help companies in order to get out of these costly connections. They not only save costs, but also increase security, manageability and flexibility benefits.

WAN applications are vital for modern businesses and their performance has an immediate impact on business productivity. High performance of WAN optimization appliances provide increased user productivity which directly enhances the companies’ image in the market. Nowadays, custom-made solutions which are unique and helpful for particular organization's functionality are also available in the market.