With underlay and overlay services, Fortinet wants to simplify the implementation of SD-WAN even for companies with more limited resources.

Security specialist Fortinet today announced two new SD-WAN services as part of its comprehensive security offering. They target both underlay and overlay components of the SD-WAN network.

Up and down

We start with the bottom layer. The Underlay Performance Monitoring Service acts as a central overview platform of the entire underlay network, i.e. the physical infrastructure of the network. Here the performance of the ISP connections can be viewed and reported to solve operational problems efficiently.

The focus is on the simplicity of implementation. Fortinet promises a smooth installation and configuration process. All data about the network is collected in a centralized monitoring dashboard with advanced analytics to measure user experience of applications. The solution identifies problems at all levels of the network so they can be resolved faster.

Finally, Fortinet also provides hundreds of preconfigured workloads to prepare for Service Level Agreements. This shortens implementation time and, most importantly, reduces the likelihood of configuration errors, one of the greatest threats to applications.

Overlay as a Service

Every organization has its own specific network requirements. The Overlay as a ServiceThe service is designed for organizations with limited technical expertise and budgets. The overlay network is the software component that controls data movement. Fortinet claims that connecting corporate sites is a matter of minutes with this tool. Installation and management are integral via the Fortinet cloud.

Overlay-as-a-Service for SD-WAN also further automates integration with FortiSASE to securely connect remote workers to the corporate network. The new services will be available from the third quarter of 2023.