Remote Offices Trickier To Network

Solution providers who help their customers build out branch offices, take note: The technological requirements of such installations have changed dramatically during the past several years and continue to evolve.

That's the message from a newly published research paper by IDC called "Branch Networks--The Way Ahead." To compile the report, IDC analysts interviewed corporate CIOs and network managers from global enterprises across a variety of sectors that had from 25 to several hundred branch offices.

The authors of the report concluded that the networking requirements of these multinational branch offices have evolved from relying on their organizations' headquarters to handle their networking operations. Now these remote offices require increasingly complex services that "transform the network silos of their branch offices into intelligent network nodes to increase the overall effectiveness of the enterprise network."

The changeover presents many challenges for these organizations, their vendors and solution providers. New networks can be disruptive additions. As branch offices add new services and equipment, they require more capital and operating expenses, which could result in at least a temporary lack of control over network management and security.

Networking vendors have begun to address these issues by simplifying installation via a converged-services approach for firewalls, IP PBXs and VPNs. Survey respondents viewed these developments favorably, but still expressed concerns about losing connectivity with their branches. The authors suggest that focusing on modular, converged platforms with scalability; reliable remote-management functions; and single interfaces and usage policies will reduce the impact of these migrations.