By CIOReview | Friday, September 13, 2024

Similar to many technological advancements, software-defined networking (SDN) is associated with significant challenges. This article highlights four key challenges in SDN.

Fremont, CA: The separation of data and control planes in conventional networks allows software-defined networking to introduce a new era of affordable hardware. This enables software development communities to collaborate in designing economical and resilient network services customized to specific requirements. Nevertheless, established enterprises and networking organizations face numerous obstacles that must be addressed to fully harness SDN's advantages.

The following outlines prevalent challenges in SDN arising from the transition of software-defined services from traditional hardware-centric networking:

Security:

Given the pivotal role of the control plane within SDN architecture, security measures must prioritize the safeguarding of the controller and the authentication of applications seeking access to the control plane.

Introducing new services may pose security risks, as developers and network administrators might inadvertently incorporate vulnerable code, amplifying the threat across the network via a centralized or partially distributed controller. Additionally, the virtual characteristics of SDN can lead to the establishment of numerous network segments, each possessing distinct risks and security needs.

Scalability:

The SDN architecture, which features centralized or partially distributed controllers that connect with data planes across various devices, presents a risk of the controllers becoming a bottleneck within the network. This issue is particularly pronounced in large networks that experience high volumes of networking requests, which can easily overwhelm the controllers. As the network expands, the bottleneck becomes more pronounced, leading to a decline in overall network performance.

Decentralized control architecture or alternative solutions like split or fully distributed control planes may enhance scalability. However, these approaches can also introduce new challenges, including issues related to convergence and the need to configure and manage numerous control instances.

Interoperability:

Implementing Software-Defined Networking (SDN) in new networks is relatively simple, as all network devices are equipped to support SDN. However, migrating a legacy network to SDN presents a more complex challenge, mainly because the legacy network is likely to be integral to ongoing business operations and networking systems. Organizations and various networking environments must transition to SDN, necessitating a phase of interoperability between the existing legacy infrastructure and the new SDN framework. SDN and legacy network components can function concurrently, facilitated by a suitable protocol that enables SDN communication while ensuring compatibility with current IP and MPLS control plane technologies. This approach minimizes costs, mitigates risks, and reduces service disruptions during the transition to SDN.

Performance:

Performance is the primary concern for all networks. No matter how robust, secure, scalable, or interoperable a network may be, it becomes ineffective if it does not deliver adequate performance.

The distinct separation of control and data planes in Software-Defined Networking (SDN) can lead to increased latency. In extensive networks, this latency can accumulate to an unacceptable level, thereby impairing overall network performance. Additionally, the controller's response time and throughput can further exacerbate performance issues, collectively resulting in challenges related to scalability.

Addressing numerous performance challenges in expansive and evolving networks often involves enhancing the intelligence within the data plane or adopting a form of distributed control plane architecture.