Liberty Living
Focus Group manages a hosted phone system for this busy accommodation provider, to ensure seamless communication.
SD-WAN
Tired of sluggish connections, costly infrastructure, and IT headaches? SD-WAN is the game-changer your business needs—delivering secure, high-performance connectivity across all your sites, without breaking the bank (or your sanity).
SD-WAN for businesses of all sizes
Whether you’re a growing startup or a nationwide enterprise, SD-WAN makes managing your network a breeze. Imagine controlling all your business locations from one easy-to-use dashboard—no magic required. It’s fast, reliable, and perfect for the modern, cloud-first world.
At Focus Group, we bring 20+ years of award-winning expertise to the table, ensuring seamless deployment and a smooth transition—without any unexpected downtime (or gray hairs). We also regularly test our providers, so you only get the best of the best.
Fully managed SD-WAN
Traditional WANs are clunky, expensive, and about as flexible as a brick wall. Enter SD-WAN: a sleek, software-driven solution that overlays your existing infrastructure, making network management a walk in the park.
With a fully managed service from Focus Group, we take care of everything—from setup to ongoing optimization—so your IT team can focus on more important things.
Benefits of deploying SD-WAN
Deploy applications in minutes
SD-WAN greatly accelerates application deployment, allowing your business to set up, launch and utilise applications in a matter of minutes. This rapid deployment can enhance operational efficiency and ensure quicker access to essential tools and services.
Automated deployment
Wave goodbye to manual configurations and human error. SD-WAN automates deployment processes, streamlining network setup and updates. Automated deployment means your IT teams can focus on big-picture issues, like strategic tasks and reliable network performance.
Create hybrid environments
SD-WAN uses the internet to augment - or completely replace - MPLS through any form of connectivity. Switch carriers, mix and match using leased lines, broadband and cellular networks to bring your private and public cloud connections securely onto the WAN.
Simplify branch connectivity
SD-WAN simplifies branch connectivity by providing centralised management and automated network configurations. This reduces the complexity and enhances network performance across all your sites, allowing your business to scale quickly and efficiently.
Portal-based automations
Through portal-based automation, SD-WAN allows for single, centralised control of network operations and management. Utilising a user-friendly interface, SD-WAN simplifies configuration, monitoring, and troubleshooting whilst enhancing the overall reliability of your network.
Secure cloud connectivity layer
SD-WAN provides a secure cloud connectivity layer, ensuring encrypted data transmission whilst protecting against cyber threats. This enhanced security offers reliable and safe access while maintaining high performance and compliance with regulatory and industry standards.
Why should multi-site organisations adopt SD-WAN?
Our SD-WAN solutions will allow your business to:
- Stabilise: Eliminate common issues, keep stores operating for longer, identify root causes, deploy the best connectivity available at each store, create store operational independence and improve security
- Standardise: Create a common blueprint, enable zero-touch deployment, have predictable expenditure, centralise security and reduce cost of maintenance
- Optimise: Implement automation, have access to real-time data and reduce 1st line support tickets
- Enhance: Deliver new customer experience requirements, adapt to new challenges and do the unexpected.
SD-WAN architecture for enterprise
Enterprise networks need more than just speed—they need reliability, security, and the ability to scale on demand. That’s where our SD-WAN architecture comes in.
At Focus Group, we design and deploy robust SD-WAN solutions that give large businesses the agility they need to stay ahead. As an accredited Cisco Viptela and Meraki SD-WAN Managed Service Partner, we deliver enterprise-grade networks that:
- Prioritize your business-critical applications – Say goodbye to laggy video calls and slow cloud applications. Our SD-WAN intelligently routes traffic for the best performance.
- Enhance security at every level – Built-in encryption, next-gen firewalls, and zero-trust access mean your data stays protected, whether it's traveling across branches or into the cloud.
- Optimize performance with automation – No more manual configurations. Our automated traffic management ensures optimal bandwidth allocation, so your network always runs smoothly.
- Seamlessly connect hybrid and multi-cloud environments – Whether you’re using AWS, Azure, or private cloud solutions, we ensure seamless connectivity across all platforms.
From global enterprises to fast-growing mid-sized businesses, we tailor our SD-WAN architectures to fit your exact needs—helping you simplify IT operations, cut costs, and future-proof your infrastructure.
Experts in SD-WAN architectures and more
Focus Group is an accredited Cisco Viptela and Meraki SD-WAN Managed Service Partner. But that’s not all! Our in-house carrier division means you’re able to take advantage of any ISP and carrier to enable the best API-driven SD-WAN solution for your infrastructure or geographic coverage.
In other words, wherever your users and apps are located, we can connect and secure them in the most cost and performance-optimised way.
Our specialist SD-WAN expertise includes:
- Traffic control and security
- Dynamic multi-path optimisation and routing
- Load balancing and traffic prioritisation
- Secure cloud and branch-to-branch connectivity
- Automation and orchestration
- Bandwidth/end-user experience monitoring
- Virtualised security
The deployment process: faster than you’d think
Rolling out SD-WAN doesn’t have to be a logistical nightmare. Thanks to our automation-driven deployment strategy, we can get entire networks up and running in record time—like when we helped a major retailer install SD-WAN across 640 sites in just over 5 hours. (Yes, really.)
And once you’re live, we don’t just disappear. We provide round-the-clock monitoring, proactive maintenance, and continuous optimization to ensure your network runs smoothly 24/7.
Network as a service
Our unique API deployment and orchestration methodology automates network deployment, so you can reach your networking ‘destinations’ quicker and at less cost. We recently enabled a major retailer to roll out SD-WAN to 640 sites in just over 5 hours!
In total, we enabled over 3,000 wireless access points, 100 cellular gateways, 944 switches, 700 Meraki MX security and SD-WAN appliances.
Management and support services
We’ll monitor the status, performance and health of your SD-WAN solution, proactively resolving any incidents and problems. That includes remediating any security threats and incidents as they happen. We’ll also keep your environment constantly updated with the latest releases, ensuring it's tuned to your evolving business, application and security requirements.
SD-WAN professional services
We’ll create detailed designs for both overlay and underlay services, including transitions from and interoperability with your current solutions, after which we’ll migrate your locations and users and take care of deployment.
Brewers
Brewers, with over 150 retail locations, streamlined its network services in order to provide an enhanced customer experience.
Sussex County Cricket Club
While the team focus on their performance on the pitch, Focus Group focus on providing essential technology services to the club.
Frequently asked questions
What is SD-WAN?
SD-WAN (Software-Defined Wide Area Network) is a network management solution that uses software to control connectivity, management, and services between data centres, remote branches, and cloud instances.
By detaching network hardware from its control mechanism, SD-WAN simplifies the management and operation of a WAN. Ultimately, SD-WAN enhances performance, reduces costs, and increases flexibility by enabling dynamic path selection and centralised control over network traffic.
What is SD-WAN used for?
Legacy WAN connections are complicated, expensive to maintain, offer low bandwidth, and can be painful to change, in turn halting innovation and growth. SD-WAN is the answer and puts you in control - making it possible to leverage cutting-edge network technologies and easily manage services over a multi-site network.
What does SD-WAN replace?
At Focus Group, we’ll help you plot your path to software-defined ‘everything’ – connecting physical locations, public and private networks, plus cloud environments to enable optimal digital flexibility to your organisational infrastructure.
Our SD-WAN expertise covers traffic control and security, dynamic multi-path optimisation and routing, load balancing and traffic prioritisation, secure cloud and branch-to-branch connectivity, automation and orchestration, end-user-experience monitoring and virtualised security.
What are the key benefits of SD-WAN?
SD-WAN allows companies to build higher-performance WANs using lower-cost and commercially available internet access. It enables businesses to partially or wholly replace more expensive, private WAN connection technologies such as MPLS.
What is Cisco SD-WAN?
Cisco SD-WAN is a highly secure, cloud-scale architecture that is open, programmable and scalable, with integrated capabilities for multi-cloud, security, unified communications and application optimisation – built on a SASE foundation. It’s used to connect data centres, branches, campuses and colocation facilities to improve network speed, security and efficiency.
What is the difference between SDN and SD-WAN?
The main difference between a software-defined network (SDN) and SD-WAN is how they are used. While SDNs address the modern networking needs of managing local area networks (LANs) or operator-managed networks, SD-WANs are used to connect geographically distributed locations and remote users.
How reliable is SD-WAN?
SD-WAN has proven to be a flexible, robust and reliable alternative to traditional private network connections. A Cisco SD-WAN doesn't require a backhaul to a data centre, which allows branch offices to connect more easily to the internet. This translates into better performance, lower latency and higher-performing connectivity. In addition to this, business IT support services will constantly monitor for faults in the network, rectifying any issues before they occur.
How is SD-WAN different from a VPN?
SD-WAN and VPN both provide secure connections, but SD-WAN offers more advanced features. SD-WAN uses software-defined technology for dynamic path selection, centralised management, and enhanced performance across multiple locations. It optimises traffic and reduces latency. In contrast, VPNs primarily create secure point-to-point connections over the internet without the advanced traffic management and optimisation capabilities an SD-WAN provides.
What are the benefits of API-driven SD-WAN?
Unlike traditional router-centric WAN architectures, SD-WAN is designed to fully support applications hosted in on-premises data centres, public or private clouds and SaaS services such as Salesforce.com and Microsoft 365. In a nutshell, SD-WAN delivers the highest levels of application performance and better quality of experience for users. Plus, organisations can instantly deploy the right security in the right place, all from a single dashboard, protecting end users from a multitude of security threats, while safeguarding the business against data exfiltration and insider threats.
What is SD-WAN architecture?
SD-WAN architecture allows businesses to leverage any combination of services – including MPLS, LTE and broadband internet services – to securely connect users to applications. The technology centralises network control, creating a network overlay that enables IT to remotely configure, manage, monitor and secure most aspects of the WAN including edge devices and traffic flows.
Do I need a firewall with SD-WAN?
While SD-WAN optimises and manages network traffic, a firewall provides critical protection against cyber threats by monitoring and controlling incoming and outgoing network traffic based on security rules. Integrating a firewall with SD-WAN ensures comprehensive security, combining optimised performance with robust threat protection and compliance.
