Back to Blog Home

The Benefits of Network as a Service (NaaS)

Multi-site organizations often struggle with the costs and complexities of managing separate wide area networks (WAN) that connect several locations. As businesses add new offices and advanced technologies to their IT infrastructure, these demands can stretch existing networks beyond capacity. The resulting downtimes and increased expenses are pushing more companies to consider the benefits of Network as a Service (Naas).

On top of these enterprise IT challenges, individual branch locations often add their own unique networking requirements, such as bring-your-own-device (BYOD) policies that incorporate non-traditional devices through the Internet of Things (IoT). An out-of-date multiprotocol label switching (MPLS) approach to network connectivity can’t handle these changes while also providing the security, flexibility, and scalability that modern companies need.

A fully managed NaaS solution from OnX Canada can modernize and simplify your company’s network infrastructure by providing a scalable way to support, secure, maintain, and expand your network on the cloud. By offloading these networking tasks to the engineering experts at OnX, businesses can tap into the benefits of Naas to reduce IT costs, improve network performance, and streamline operations through the cloud.

Understanding the basic features and benefits of NaaS

NaaS from OnX is a centralized data service that empowers simple, cost-effective sharing of network resources across all branches of a business. Moving network infrastructure to the cloud allows users to access all the features of the enterprise network from any location or device—helping businesses overcome the limitations of a costly MPLS-based architecture.

Powered by Cisco Meraki technology, this cloud-based networking solution from OnX combines:

  • Higher bandwidth and more reliable network performance at a lower cost than MPLS.
  • Automated virtual private networking (VPN) to securely connect local area networks (LANs).
  • Centralized management of Wi-Fi deployments and distributed multi-site networks through a single interface.
  • Enterprise-grade security protocols, such as intrusion prevention, unified threat management, identity-based firewalls, and advanced encryption standards.
  • 24x7x365 support and monitoring from the experts at OnX.

While NaaS allows companies to transfer networking responsibilities to a managed services provider like OnX, the centralized dashboard also provides visibility across the entire network, enabling in-house IT departments to easily monitor usage and adjust network components as necessary. With the ability to seamlessly add or remove users, NaaS gives companies the flexibility and scalability to optimize network performance without downtime, added expenses, or other burdens.

Also read: What to look for in a cloud security partner

Realizing the benefits of NaaS

While a traditional network infrastructure might hold companies back from growth, NaaS can help future-proof a business by streamlining network connectivity through the cloud. Whether you run a single location or multiple offices, NaaS offers scalable solutions to support any business, particularly in the retail, manufacturing, education, and healthcare sectors.

With a fully managed networking solution from OnX, these data-driven industry verticals can leverage the game-changing benefits of NaaS to improve their network performance. Some examples include:

  • Unified branch oversight

    NaaS frees retail organizations from having to separately manage expensive network resources like LANs at each location. By moving the infrastructure to the cloud, multiple store branches can ubiquitously share wireless connectivity through one centralized data center. This unified approach gives companies full network visibility across their stores, unlocking powerful analytics that can be used to improve performance across the organization.

  • Improved operational efficiency

    By integrating disparate factory floor networks into the company-wide enterprise infrastructure, NaaS keeps manufacturing companies connected across facilities. A managed networking solution can position manufacturers to take advantage of factory automation and IoT devices to help improve operational efficiency, eliminate downtime, and cut capital costs. Plus, NaaS ends technology obsolescence by building hardware updates into the solution lifecycle.

  • Flexible Wi-Fi connectivity

    NaaS delivers the “always-on” connectivity that educational institutions need to ensure sufficient bandwidth for learning within and beyond the classroom walls. Even schools with tight budgets and limited IT resources can benefit from the cost-effective network flexibility that NaaS provides. Whether students are submitting assignments from home or streaming educational videos at school, a cloud-based network solution ensures reliable access from any location.

  • Dependable network security

    With its robust security features, NaaS helps protect even the most sensitive data for healthcare providers and other heavily regulated industries. Identity-based firewalls, intrusion prevention, and advanced malware protection help defend networks from threats of data theft or cyberattack. Plus, proactive network monitoring, application delivery, and failover from redundant data centers help protect private data 24x7x365.

  • Scalable enterprise support

    When companies expand their geographic footprint and add new store locations, NaaS makes it easy to seamlessly scale network operations. This cloud-based solution is flexible enough to support business fluctuations in any industry, whether an organization needs to quickly add or remove users, or provision and decommission entire branches. Companies can even scale the consumption of virtual resources based on dynamic traffic and application demands—eliminating the need to maintain idle capacity during non-peak hours.

  • Significant cost savings

    For companies in any industry, one of the biggest benefits of NaaS is the cost savings it provides. The virtualized service model eliminates the hefty capital expenditures traditionally associated with a major hardware installation. Instead, companies pay a predictable monthly subscription price that includes fully managed support and built-in upgrades. This allows organizations to cut IT costs while improving network quality.

Also read: Combining SD-WAN & NaaS to safeguard collaboration technology now and in the future

NaaS from OnX unlocks powerful business benefits like:

  • Integrated branch operations across multiple office locations.
  • Improved operational efficiency without downtime or debilitating costs.
  • Flexible connectivity to ensure reliable remote access.
  • Built-in security features to protect the privacy of your data.
  • Scalable network support to enable seamless growth.
  • Significant cost-savings at a predictable monthly price.
  • Improving business outcomes with NaaS

    From government municipalities to multi-site retailers, businesses of all sizes from all industries are realizing the benefits of Network as a Service to cut costs and improve operations.

    Through its fully-managed NaaS solution, OnX streamlines the cumbersome task of remotely managing public, private, and hybrid networks—making the process more affordable and less complex while ensuring optimal performance. By offloading network management to the experts at OnX, companies can free their IT teams from the high costs and daily burdens of managing an enterprise network.

    Contact OnX Canada to learn how your business can benefit from NaaS.