Cisco Viptela

Cisco Viptela
Name	Viptela (Cisco Viptela)
Industry	Networking, Software-defined WAN
Founded	2012
Fate	Acquired by Cisco Systems
Headquarters	San Jose, California
Products	SD-WAN edge devices, vEdge, vSmart, vBond, vManage

Cisco Viptela Cisco Viptela is a software-defined WAN (SD-WAN) technology platform originally developed by Viptela, Inc., and later integrated into Cisco Systems' portfolio. The platform provides wide area networking, orchestration, and policy-driven connectivity for enterprise, carrier, and cloud environments. It is used to replace or augment legacy MPLS and internet-based WANs with centralized control, segment-aware routing, and cloud on-ramps.

Overview

Viptela's SD-WAN solution combines edge appliances, a centralized control plane, and management consoles to deliver application-aware routing and segmentation across distributed sites. The architecture separates the control plane from the data plane and emphasizes centralized policy enforcement, overlay networks, and transport independence. Major competitors and adjacent technologies include Cisco Systems, VMware NSX, Aruba Networks, Juniper Networks, and Fortinet.

History and Acquisition

Viptela, Inc. was founded in 2012 by veterans from networking startups and semiconductor firms, competing in the SD-WAN market alongside firms such as Silver Peak, VeloCloud, Riverbed Technology, Talari Networks, and Cato Networks. The company raised venture capital from investors associated with Sequoia Capital and strategic partners before gaining commercial traction with service providers and enterprises. In 2017, Cisco Systems announced the acquisition of Viptela, joining previous Cisco SD-WAN efforts and later integrating with Cisco’s broader product families including Cisco ISR, Cisco ASR, and cloud offerings like Amazon Web Services, Microsoft Azure, and Google Cloud Platform.

Architecture and Components

Viptela's design comprises distinct components: edge routers (vEdge and Cisco SD-WAN appliances), control plane elements (vSmart controllers), orchestrators (vManage), and authentication gateways (vBond). Edge devices establish encrypted overlays across heterogeneous transports such as MPLS circuits, broadband internet, and LTE from carriers like Verizon, AT&T, and Vodafone. The control plane uses secure key distribution and route exchange mechanisms that interoperate with routing protocols and platforms like Border Gateway Protocol, Open Shortest Path First, and enterprise routers from Juniper Networks and Arista Networks. Management and analytics integrate with orchestration and monitoring systems developed by vendors such as Splunk, Dynatrace, and SolarWinds.

Features and Capabilities

Key capabilities include application-aware routing, centralized policy, multi-path support, WAN optimization integration, and service chaining for functions from partners including Palo Alto Networks, Check Point, and F5 Networks. The platform supports segmentation for tenant isolation and compliance, quality of service controls compatible with carrier SLAs from Level 3 Communications and CenturyLink, and dynamic path selection based on latency, jitter, and packet loss metrics. Cisco Viptela also supports integrations with cloud-native services and orchestration frameworks exemplified by Kubernetes, OpenStack, and Ansible.

Deployment and Management

Deployments span branch offices, data centers, cloud sites, and mobile environments, often coordinated by network operations teams that follow practices from standards bodies like IEEE and IETF. Management is centralized via vManage, which provides templates, dashboards, and upgrade workflows; logging and telemetry interfaces integrate with systems by Splunk, ELK Stack, and Prometheus. Service providers often offer managed SD-WAN from portfolios including Orange Business Services, BT Group, and NTT Communications while systems integrators such as Accenture and Deloitte handle large-scale rollouts.

Use Cases and Industry Adoption

Enterprises adopt Viptela-based SD-WAN for retail branch connectivity, multi-site WAN consolidation, cloud migration, and direct SaaS access for vendors such as Salesforce, ServiceNow, and Microsoft 365. Telecommunications carriers and managed service providers use the technology for wholesale SD-WAN and wholesale VPN services competing with offerings from Equinix, Telstra, and Deutsche Telekom. Industry adoption includes sectors like banking (with institutions linked to SWIFT infrastructures), healthcare organizations that interoperate with vendors such as Cerner and Epic Systems, and retail chains integrating point-of-sale networks with platforms from Oracle and SAP.

Security and Compliance

Security features include AES encryption for overlays, certificate-based authentication, segmentation, and integrated firewall/service chaining with partners like Palo Alto Networks, Fortinet, and Check Point. Compliance and auditing workflows map to regulatory regimes and standards referenced by enterprises working with ISO frameworks, PCI DSS for payment processing, and controls expected by government contractors working with agencies such as NATO or national procurement bodies. Integration with identity providers and logging platforms supports incident response processes used by security teams who follow frameworks like NIST and CIS.

Category:Software-defined WAN Category:Cisco Systems products