WAN Optimisation

Application performance is more vital than ever. The growth of bandwidth-intensive applications that share the network such as email, real-time voice and video communications is making performance harder to maintain. These problems are magnified if the Wide Area Network (WAN) has high volumes of back-up data, or if you have a distributed enterprise.

WAN Optimisation enables you to optimise data exchange between specified points across your WAN, so you can tune the network for better application performance, including prioritisation of applications. It also allows you to detect network performance issues. This can help you avoid costly bandwidth upgrades - which often do not solve the problem - as well as the expense of maintaining infrastructure in branch offices. At the same time, it can reduce the load on IT staff so they can focus on more strategic activities.

WAN Optimisation Brochure (PDF, 211kB)

Help improve application performance and productivity

WAN Optimisation can help overcome network latency and accelerate application response to support more traffic and boost application performance. In turn, this can improve user productivity and experience.

help enhance capacity planning

Improved visibility enables you to prioritise business-critical traffic, analyse trends for capacity planning and identify faults and performance metrics.

Help reduce costs of upgrading network capacity

Eliminate redundant traffic and free bandwidth for critical applications, avoiding costly network upgrades that may not solve application performance problems.

Less complexity and reduce the cost of infrastructure management

Centralising and consolidating branch office IT infrastructure helps to cut the time and complexity of managing multiple servers, storage and back-ups across distributed sites. It also helps you to maximise the effectiveness of existing infrastructure, reducing the need for further investment.

Focus on core business

With high-quality support from us, including retuning your solution for ongoing improvement, your IT staff can focus on more strategic activities.

Rapid return on investment

The ability to maximise application performance, while reducing administration and infrastructure cost, can in many cases deliver a return on investment in 12 months or less.

Business advantages from Telstra

• Scale:You’ll be able to do more in more places with the scalability and reach of our Next IP® and Next G® networks. They’ll connect your business to the world on Australia’s largest fully integrated national IP platform, with connections to more than 240 overseas cities via our global IP-VPN.
• Visibility: You’ll have complete end-to-end visibility of your network, so you can monitor its performance 24/7 to optimise your day-to-day operations.
• Experience and capability: You can count on us to support you with deep network and solution expertise, extensive industry accreditations and best practice methodologies.
• Advanced technologies: You can enjoy the extra confidence of working with our best-of-breed tools and systems – giving you the assurance of superior reliability, monitoring and reporting.
• Commitment: Our significant ongoing investments in networks and solutions, plus a clear roadmap for constant improvement, mean you’ll be able to access leading network solutions now and into the future.
• A single source of expertise: With our fully integrated, end-to-end solutions and services, you can enjoy the convenience and simplicity of a single point of contact for all your business telecommunications.

We will deploy either Cisco®, Riverbed or Juniper based WAN Optimisation devices at each site that requires optimisation. The devices use a combination of techniques and technologies including data compression, intelligent caching, TCP flow optimisation, application protocol optimisation and application prioritisation to help improve performance. A dedicated controller linked to the WAN Optimisation devices will collect data for management and reporting purposes.

Depending on the options you choose, our WAN Optimisation service provides:

• CPE Procurement: Purchase or rental of hardware.
• Installation: Physical installation of the equipment at sites.
• Commissioning: Design, device configuration and activation of assurance and reporting systems.
• Proactive Management: Assurance, configuration and change management.
• Maintenance: Restoration of services in the advent of hardware/software failure.
• Reporting: Monthly activity report and additional online reporting with Riverbed Central Management Console or Cisco Central Manager. Our Riverbed solution provides the option of a shared virtual Customer Management Console with access to monthly reports generated by Telstra. Written Reporting providing assessment and recommendations are also available for an extra charge on a monthly or ad hoc basis.
• Mobile WAN Optimisation: With the Riverbed Steelhead Mobile Controller, you can accelerate the application performance of staff using laptops and desktop PCs.
• Virtual Platform options: Reduce complexity and cost with virtual Cisco or Riverbed solutions to consolidate your branch office IT infrastructure.

WAN Optimisation utilises a set of technologies and techniques that work in unison to deliver application performance benefits through these core features:

Data Compression

Using advanced compression algorithms (some are L-Z, Huffman), the service can reduce volumes of data traversing the WAN to free valuable bandwidth for other applications.

Visibility and Prioritisation

Time sensitive applications can be given higher priority to network resources to help ensure they meet end user expectations.

Intelligent Caching

The WAN Optimisation devices at each end have the capability to store large blocks of data patterns and files so that complete transmission of entire data strings and files is not necessary. This reduces data across the WAN and delivers improved response times to end users.

TCP Flow Optimisation

Overcomes the inefficiencies of TCP variable packet sizing by forcing the maximum packet size to be transmitted across the WAN at all times, resulting in more data transmitted in a shorter time.

Application Protocol Optimisation

Certain applications can be extremely ‘chatty’ across a WAN which can mean that a single file transfer may have multiple handshakes before it is fully transmitted. WAN Optimisation technology reduces multiple handshakes so data transfer can be faster.

Online Reporting Portal

The WAN Optimisation service will provide near real-time application and network visibility and performance through a portal that will typically display²:

• Applications traffic mix
• Application acceleration percentage for CIFS, exchange, HTTP
• Bytes dropped out (number)
• Compression (percentage)
• Compression throughput (Kbps)
• Packets dropped out (number)
• TCP acceleration (percentage)
• TCP acceleration throughput in (Kbps)
• WAN throughput in (Kbps)
• WAN throughput out (Kbps)