Flemish government opts for SD-LAN

The agency Het Facilitair Bedrijf of the Flemish government manages the ICT network for seventy departments, administrations and local authorities. The network is spread across some 250 buildings. It connects 17,000 users and 40,000 IoT devices. “The network is definitely business-critical,” says Stefan De Smet, who, as head of the department, is responsible for the joint ICT services of the Flemish government. “Because the time has come for replacement, we are now investing in a network of the latest generation: software-defined.”

The Flemish civil servant is thus always correctly connected, independent of his physical workstation.

Stefan De Smet, head of the ICT department of the Flemish government

With an SD-LAN (Software-Defined Local Area Network), management is done entirely remotely, using software. The administrator no longer has to configure each switch manually. They control access to the entire network in one go via the software. This is why the term Software-Defined Access is often used in this context. “A classic, static network offers little overview of what is happening on the network,” says Luc Verdegem, program manager for networks at the Facility Management Department. “Moreover, we are asking more and more of the network. So it was about time for something new.”

Faster than planned

The roadmap for the network replacement originally ran from 2019 to 2024. “In what has been a good year we have, together with Proximus, already come a long way,” says Luc. “We expect to complete the project in mid-2022, a year and a half earlier than predicted.” Over the past year, more than 100 sites have been made SD-ready, by replacing old hardware.

As a test, one site has already switched completely to SD-LAN. “It's a big change,” Stefan stated. “That's why we certainly provide the right support for the staff everywhere. The aim is to arrive at a situation where the network is no longer a topic. SD-LAN should help us to realize completely frictionless ICT.”

Thanks to the zero-touch deployment we will gain a clear view of the nature and volume of network traffic.

Luc Verdegem, program manager networks at Het Facilitair Bedrijf

Zero-touch

At first glance, many of the advantages of SD-LAN are on the administrator's side. “SD-LAN allows you to roll out new hardware very quickly,” Luc explains. The network is largely self-learning, which means that it recognizes certain hardware, such as IoT sensors, automatically provides it with the right security, and places it in the right network segment. Luc: “That zero-touch deployment will make all the difference. Moreover, we will get a clear view of the nature and extent of the network traffic. If an incident occurs, we can deal with it much more quickly via the central management.”

Nevertheless, every customer of Het Facilitair Bedrijf – such as an administration or a local authority – also benefits from SD-LAN. “Each customer can develop its own customized network access policy,” says Luc. “They each have a separate, own virtual network, with adjusted rights, the necessary capacity and so on.” The centralized approach simplifies the network administrator's tasks, which ultimately increases efficiency and reduces costs.

Stronger security

The greatest advantage, however, lies with the user. Software-Defined Access makes the use of passwords superfluous. Security is based on certificates. Via the certificate on their device, the user automatically gets access to the right network segment, with the right access rights for applications and data, perfectly attuned to their role. “The Flemish civil servant is thus always correctly connected, independent of their physical workstation,” says Stefan. “To do this, we use the zero-trust security principle. The employee only gets access to the applications and data that they are allowed to use as part of their job.”

In that respect, the roll-out of SD-LAN comes at exactly the right time. “In the context of corona, most civil servants now work at home,” Stefan continues. The network plays an essential role in this. “The expectation is that even after the corona crisis we will work more from home. SD-LAN fits in perfectly with the concept of the hybrid workplace, precisely because it enables a very transparent user experience.”

Digital transformation

An additional growth area for the network is IoT. “I am thinking, for example, of IoT applications to control the cleaning and maintenance of buildings more intelligently,” concludes Stefan. “Applications are constantly being added and more and more data is flowing through the network. However, with SD-LAN we have a solid basis to support the further digital transformation of the Flemish government.”