Tata Communications Transformation Services (TCTS), a wholly owned subsidiary of Tata Communications, and Fortinet, working with Microsoft Azure, have launched a fully managed SD-WAN offering for Azure Virtual WAN. The TCTS SD-WAN offering will help service providers create solutions to further enable enterprises with seamless migration to Azure, thereby helping to accelerate their revenue in IT migration to public clouds. This joint offering will also enable inter-branch connectivity for customers using the Microsoft backbone and help them to meet SLAs while securing access to applications running on Azure.
In collaboration with Azure, Fortinet and Equinixi, TCTS has augmented Azure’s current Virtual WAN offering in which application policies can be centrally configured using Fortinet’s SD-WAN technologies integrated with Equinix Network Edge to create Virtual Network Services that deliver enhanced performance and security protection.
Madhusudhan Mysore, Executive Chairman and CEO of TCTS said, “TCTS’s Cloud Networking-as-a-Service was developed to address the most complex real-world enterprise IT migration to the cloud. It offers a best-in-class white-labeled managed service provider (MSP) offering for operators worldwide to help them accelerate their MSP revenues through Microsoft’s worldwide enterprise customer base. TCTS has a significant set of highly skilled CNaaS technical consultants to provide white-labeled services to operators worldwide, thereby supporting the easy adoption and ongoing use of Microsoft Azure.”
“Wide Area Network (WAN) requirements for the enterprise are becoming more cloud centric. Microsoft Azure Virtual WAN (VWAN) is addressing these needs by allowing devices and sites to connect to Azure’s public cloud more easily and globally. TCTS’ SD-WAN managed services over Azure’s VWAN, will enable service providers worldwide to deliver CNaaS managed services,” added Ross Ortega, Partner Program Manager, Microsoft Azure Networking at Microsoft Corp.
Through this offering, enterprises at any given site can use a hybrid deployment of MPLS and Internet to steer the traffic between mission critical traffic (MPLS and Carrier Ethernet) and non-mission critical traffic (Internet), which further connects directly to Azure via Azure ExpressRoute. This connection can be established leveraging TCTS’ highly commended platform, ‘Virtual Cloud exchange,’ for building within native service provider environments or white-labeled options using the Equinix’ Cloud Exchange Fabric (ECX Fabric) and Network Edge solution offerings within their data centers globally.
Rajesh Maurya, Regional Vice President, India & SAARC, Fortinet said, “Enterprise cloud adoption is driving a global WAN transformation by leveraging SD-WAN technology, but this increases security risks. Fortinet’s Secure SD-WAN offers best-of-breed SD-WAN, next-generation firewall security, advanced routing and WAN optimization capabilities integrated into a single offering. TCTS’ Managed SD-WAN offering with Fortinet provides communication service providers with a turn-key solution to deliver robust, secure and low latency connectivity services.”
TCTS’ Virtual Cloud exchange (US patent pending) automates connection and management to Azure and other public cloud delivered via a fully managed turn-key white-label solution for CSPs worldwide. With this service from TCTS, service providers can enable Azure enterprise customers to choose either a standard offering that needs no further SD-WAN Virtual Network Function (VNF) in Azure, or a more advanced option that places a SD-WAN VNF in Azure to deliver SD-WAN application traffic steering and security protection.
TCTS will provide customers with professional services for Azure CNaaS capabilities in planning, deployment and operations.
