THE EDGE
Making it all work
So how can service providers take more
proactive ownership of these nascent use
cases – which are just the tip of iceberg –
and alchemise them into safe, viable and
profitable realities?
Without question, they will need both
intelligent networking and traffic
management functions at the Edge
Compute site, as well as Application
Delivery Controller (ADC) and security
services in front of the applications
hosted there.
It is worth noting that ADC and security
services were traditionally delivered on
purpose-built infrastructure, leveraging
hardware-based acceleration in order to
deliver high scale and capacity. While most
Edge architectures will be built based on
common off-the-shelf (COTS) servers,
the need for high performance remains.
Recent innovations like Intel’s Quick Assist
Technology address this demand, ensuring
service providers benefit from acceleration
capabilities such as encryption and
compression via COTS platforms.
Edge Computing also calls for a
distributed approach to robust
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Issue 14
application layer security such as a
web-application firewall (WAF). One
of the biggest mistakes is to assume
traditional security controls such as
firewalls are enough. Fortunately, today’s
Advanced WAF (AWAF) solutions are
now capable of dynamically protecting
applications with anti-bot capabilities
and stopping credential theft using
keystroke encryptions. It is also possible
to extend app-layer DDoS detection and
remediation for all applications via a
combination of Machine Learning and
behavioural analysis. Other technological
must-haves include the ability to deliver
cloud-native application services for
microservices-based applications, as well
as API gateway functions to securely
interconnect with third parties accessing
the Edge Compute platform.
While Edge Computing’s reach and
influence may still be (relatively)
embryonic, there has been a growing
momentum across EMEA in the past
couple of years, particularly in the
automotive and manufacturing sectors.
Soon, every organisation dealing with
multiple interconnected devices and rapid
data processing demands will need an
Edge Computing strategy, not to mention
the technology to make it all work. ◊
SOON, EVERY
ORGANISATION
DEALING WITH
MULTIPLE
INTERCONNECTED
DEVICES AND
RAPID DATA
PROCESSING
DEMANDS WILL
NEED AN EDGE
COMPUTING
STRATEGY.
www.intelligentdatacentres.com