For small businesses that think they are experiencing slow internet and have no knowledge about networking technology, it can be difficult to determine the cause. But did you know that your “slow internet” can be related to security issues or congestion within your network and actually have nothing to do with the internet service itself? This is where software-defined wide area networking (SD-WAN) comes in. Learn more below about the inner workings of your internet speeds and network functionality to discover the true reason behind your “slow internet” and what to do about it.

Why Do I Have Slow Internet?

You may find yourself confused as to why your internet is slow. Your staff may complain from time to time and maybe you’ve been blaming your internet connection for lagging speed. In reality, the problem has always been the network and is probably a result of congestion in the network. For example, if you’ve got someone in the office watching cat videos all day, they’re most likely using up all the bandwidth, leaving the rest of the office with a poor connection.

As more business owners move their apps to the cloud, they are having to access data that isn’t on site, creating even more congestion and affecting internet speeds. And while your internet may be equipped to handle the apps you’ve implemented, it may not be able to deliver the speeds you expect when everyone in the office is using the apps at the same time.

Think About Your Network Like It’s a Freeway

Your network is the freeway on which every driver is going 100 mph. Those drivers are equivalent to the users on your network. They’re using cloud apps, and they need to move at high speeds to get where they’re going. There are multiple lanes for multiple users. But, to get onto the freeway/network, you have to enter through an onramp, and you can’t join everyone going 100 mph immediately. You have to get on going 30 mph to then catch up. This bottleneck of users getting on (and off) your network where everyone needs super high speeds causes a bottleneck. This bottleneck slows down your network.

How SD-WAN Helps

SD-WAN helps to prioritize the traffic on your network. SD-WAN is the traffic cop, and it allows for the most crucial traffic to move efficiently without disruptions. With SD-WAN, you can create a path that allows for the right traffic to move at a faster speed. If your team needs to make a VoIP video conference call, you can rest assured that call will not be interrupted by the rest of the office’s Spotify streaming, YouTube watching, or other cloud app usage.

As an example, if you’re having issues with Zoom due to the data use that comes with utilizing its video and voice features, SD-WAN can choose to slow down email. While you may not notice an email that takes one minute or longer to send, the same can’t be said about a video/voice call. Instead, you’ll get static on the line and blurry videos when that line of traffic is slowed. In this way, SD-WAN optimizes your traffic flow and ensures that the lanes that are the most important are the ones that stay bottleneck-free.

Cyber Security Is Another Concern That Affects Your Network Speeds

It’s common for SMB owners to think that they’re immune to cyber attacks. Unfortunately, it’s quite the opposite. SMBs can be used as the gateway to access their enterprise partners. Hackers know that SMBs are often ill-equipped and don’t have the right security measures to protect their network, making it easy for them to launch an attack with success. An example of this can be seen in Target’s breach, which occurred through a smaller contracting partner.

So next time you have a slow computer, or you have issues you can’t quite resolve, it could be a virus. Someone could have breached your network and installed a virus without your knowledge. The same can be said when you suddenly get the “blue screen of death” on your computer. That doesn’t just mean your computer is crashing, it might be something deeper and far more dangerous.

Additionally, another way security can be affected is through your employees. They can mistakenly allow for viruses to be exposed due to lack of training or negligence. SimpleWAN’s SD-WAN can address this issue specifically through honeypot and intelligent sharing which consists of fake servers and other items within the environment that attract hackers intentionally. SimpleWAN’s SD-WAN can then identify and share intelligent security measures with SimpleWAN devices to make them more astute.

While security isn’t something that SMBs talk about quite often, it’s crucial to have a system in place that not only protects your own network but also that of your partners. If you have yet to implement a solution that can address security issues, think SD-WAN.

Ready for SD-WAN?

If you’re an SMB that is currently struggling with slow internet and lack the right security measures to protect your network, consider SD-WAN by SimpleWAN. SD-WAN can help keep your business PCI compliant, ensure you’re free of traffic congestion, and keep your network secure from cyber threats. If you’d like to learn more about how this solution can benefit your business, reach out to us today to get started.