Design a Cisco network around business traffic, physical sites and failure scenarios, with a clear plan for implementation and handover.
Proxar · UK expertise
SD-WAN and business VPNs
Linking offices and giving a remote employee access are different jobs. We help you work out where a VPN fits and where you need more control over traffic across your connections.
SD-WAN and VPNs can be part of the same design. The right combination depends on your applications, available links and how the network will be run.
Technology partnerships
Technology partners you know
We help you choose and look after the technology your team uses every day.
Follow the traffic that matters to the business
List the sites, users and services that need to connect. Then look at existing circuits, address ranges and routing or firewall constraints. A headline bandwidth figure will not explain why an important application struggles when a link deteriorates.
Calls, file transfers and business applications can react differently to delay, packet loss or a change of path. Identify the work affected so the design solves a real problem rather than simply adding another technology layer.
Decide what control you actually need
A VPN provides a protected connection between defined endpoints. SD-WAN adds policy-driven control over wide-area connectivity. A few stable sites may have different needs from a business using several links and application-specific traffic policies.
Consider encryption, permissions, licences and the circuits available at each site. Include monitoring and supplier follow-up too. Installing connectivity does not settle who maintains configurations, updates software or removes a remote user’s access later.
Advisers planning secure connections between business locations · Illustrative image
Test failures instead of assuming seamless switching
Two circuits may still share a physical route or another upstream dependency. Agree which failure scenarios the design is meant to address and what remains outside it. Test a representative call or application session during a link failure and when the connection returns.
Do not assume every session survives a path change without interruption. Acceptance should describe behaviour the business can tolerate, not simply confirm that another route became available.
For individual users and device permissions, see secure remote access. For reviewing an existing arrangement, network consultancy can help establish what needs changing and which ongoing management tasks belong in the service.
Client experience
What our clients say
“Proxar’s exceptional responsiveness and seamless collaboration with building management and service providers enabled them to deliver a rapid solution that exceeded our expectations.”
Before you decide
Your questions, answered
Will SD-WAN fix a poor internet circuit?
It can provide traffic-routing options where suitable alternatives exist, but it does not remove the limitations of the underlying links. Circuit quality and carrier faults still need investigation. The design should explain what happens when connections degrade and which supplier remains responsible for repairing them.
Is remote-user access the same as linking offices?
No. An individual connection brings questions about identity, device trust and what that person is allowed to reach. A site-to-site link carries a different set of relationships. Keep them separate in the design so a remote user does not gain unnecessary access to an entire network.
What should a managed VPN service include?
Check who owns configuration records, supported software updates, access changes, monitoring and incident follow-up. Distinguish the initial setup from that continuing work. Your agreement should also say how permissions are approved and removed, and who tests the required connections after a change.
Do two internet connections guarantee continuity?
No. They may share a route, equipment or an upstream dependency. Test the failure scenarios you need covered and understand the remaining limits. The behaviour of real applications matters too; a connection changing path does not guarantee every active session will continue without interruption.
Your next step
Are your links keeping up with the way you work?
Tell us which offices and applications are affected, what connections you have and what happens when they fail. We will help you compare a practical way forward.