Glossary

What Is Network as a Service (NaaS)? A Complete Guide for IT Professionals

Network management is complex and expensive for many organizations. Deploying network infrastructure incurs up-front costs for network hardware and requires specialized expertise to set up and configure correctly. Operational costs can also be significant, as companies pay to monitor, manage, and maintain all this hardware and adapt it to the evolving needs of the business.

Network as a Service (NaaS) offers an alternative approach to implementing network infrastructure. Companies can access key networking capabilities via an on-demand, cloud-based service.  

What Is Network as a Service (NaaS)?

NaaS offers access to networking services under similar models to other cloud-based services. Using software-defined networking (SDN) it creates a software-defined overlay on top of hardware networks. The NaaS provider can then customize the network to the client’s requirements and provide access on an as-needed basis.

Key Features of Network as a Service

NaaS offers cloud-based, on-demand access to networking services. Some key features of NaaS include:

On-Demand Scalability

Scalability is a key element of any cloud-based “as a Service” offering, and NaaS is no exception. NaaS’s use of SDN allows the network to be reconfigured as needed, permitting users to scale their network resources up or down on demand.

Flexible Pricing Models

NaaS often operates under a pay-per-use model like other cloud services. The NaaS provider has visibility into the customer’s usage, enabling them to bill based on bandwidth utilization or other metrics. Alternatively, a customer may be able to purchase packages that permit a certain level of network usage.

Enhanced Security Measures

NaaS offerings implement security best practices within their virtualized networks. For example, network traffic will be encrypted and inspected for threats by a next-generation firewall (NGFW). This helps to secure network traffic without the overhead required to deploy and manage these solutions in-house.

Simplified Network Management

NaaS implements network infrastructure using SDN, which allows it to be reconfigured at the software level. NaaS customers can often manage their virtualized network via a centralized dashboard, which allows them to make changes or automate routine tasks.

What’s the difference between NaaS, IaaS, and SaaS?

Cloud-based “as a Service” offerings like Network as a Service (NaaS), Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS), and Software as a Service (SaaS) all offer on-demand, pay-as-you-go access to resources. However, they differ in what they offer:

  • NaaS: Focuses on networking services, such as connectivity and firewalls
  • IaaS: Provides access to cloud-based compute, storage, and networking
  • SaaS: Allows customers to access software over the Internet

What is the difference between NaaS and managed services?

NaaS services offer networking capabilities delivered via cloud-based services. Managed services offer a wider range of IT services that a third-party provider manages on an organization’s behalf. With NaaS, an organization is responsible for managing its deployment, which has a narrower scope than managed services. A managed services provider (MSP) manages their own services, which often include more than just networking services.

What is the difference between NaaS and SD-WAN/SASE?

Software-defined WAN (SD-WAN) focuses on optimizing the corporate WAN by offering enhanced routing over a set of available transport links. The focus is on improving reliability and performance via intelligent routing and aggregation of multiple transport media. NaaS offers a broader range of networking and security capabilities and a complete service package.

Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) combines SD-WAN with the security capabilities of Secure Service Edge (SSE).  SASE is an architecture designed to deliver secure and optimized connectivity from any edge to any resource. In contrast, NaaS is a consumption-based service model that may leverage SASE principles and architecture to provide organizations with on-demand, scalable, and fully managed networking solutions tailored to the organization’s needs.

Benefits of Network as a Service (NaaS)

NaaS offers an alternative to maintaining and operating networking infrastructure in-house. This can provide organizations with various benefits, including:

Cost-Efficiency

Managing network infrastructure in-house requires purchasing, deploying, and managing various pieces of hardware, which has both upfront and ongoing costs. NaaS operates under a pay-per-use model, which has the potential to create significant cost savings.

AI-Driven Insights for Optimized Network Performance

NaaS solutions implement network infrastructure at the software level, and NaaS providers can integrate AI (Artificial Intelligence) to monitor network data. This AI looks for trends and anomalies, enabling it to proactively identify and alert on potential issues. This allows the provider or customer to resolve issues early, preventing the issues from escalating into more serious problems.

Enhanced security

With NaaS, the service provider implements various defenses for the virtual network infrastructure provided to their customers. This may include basic defenses, like a firewall, but also more advanced systems that offer enhanced security. Additionally, the NaaS provider may have access to more expensive and sophisticated solutions than a company could maintain in-house.

Simplified IT Management and Automation

With NaaS, the service provider is responsible for the physical infrastructure and creating the software overlay. The NaaS customer manages their NaaS deployment via a single dashboard and can use automation to handle simple and common tasks, such as managing bandwidth allocation or setting up application-specific quality of service (QoS) policies.

Scalability and Flexibility

NaaS implements network infrastructure at the software level using SDN. This makes it fast and easy to change the customer’s network environment, allowing the customer to reconfigure the network to meet evolving needs or scale their network infrastructure to handle surges or growth in demand.

Overcoming Challenges of Implementing Network-as-a-Service (NaaS)

NaaS provides organizations with several benefits over traditional network infrastructure. However, the process of implementing NaaS can be challenging without the right processes in place.

Key Challenges in Deploying Network-as-a-Service (NaaS)

Some common challenges that companies face when deploying NaaS include:

  • Network Integration: An organization may have existing network infrastructure that needs to be integrated with NaaS offerings. Additionally, legacy infrastructure may struggle to transition over.
  • Control and Compliance: NaaS requires entrusting control of network infrastructure to a third party. An organization will need to ensure that it has the required visibility and control needed for security and regulatory compliance.
  • Cost: NaaS has the potential to offer significant cost savings if deployed and used correctly. However, inefficient implementations could incur significant operating costs.

Best Practices for Successful Network-as-a-Service (NaaS) Implementation

While organizations can face challenges when implementing NaaS, they can be overcome with a clear plan that implements the following best practices:

  • Define Business Needs: Before selecting a vendor, define the business needs for a NaaS solution from an operational, security, and compliance perspective. This aids in identifying capable vendors and deploying NaaS.
  • Integrate Security Controls: When designing a NaaS deployment, implement security controls. For example, NaaS is well-suited to implementing microsegmentation and granular network monitoring.
  • Define Deployment Strategy: Define and, ideally, test a deployment strategy before a full-scale rollout. This helps to identify and address any potential roadblocks or other issues before they can impact operations.
  • Training and Education: NaaS deployments work differently than network infrastructure that an organization owns and controls. Employees should be trained on how to configure, manage, and monitor the new system effectively.
  • Monitoring and Optimization: Ongoing monitoring is important both for the security and the performance of the NaaS deployment. In addition to helping to detect cyberattacks, network monitoring can aid in identifying inefficiencies or errors in the NaaS deployment that require correction.

What is the Future of NaaS?

The NaaS market is anticipated to grow significantly in the next few years, reaching $103.19 billion in 2029, up from $25.67 billion in 2024. This growth is likely due to organizations increasingly adopting cloud-based “as a Service” models and designing their deployments to optimize performance and cost savings.

Some key trends in NaaS’s evolution include the following:

The Emergence of NaaS 2.0: AI and Cloud-Native Technologies

The evolution of AI and cloud-native technologies will significantly impact NaaS offerings. As AI matures, it has the potential to optimize software-defined NaaS deployments, offering enhanced performance and operational efficiency. Additionally, the growing adoption of cloud-native software will drive the need for flexible and scalable network infrastructure to support its capabilities and maximum its potential.

Integration with 5G and IoT

The emergence of 5G mobile networks has enabled the growth of the Internet of Things (IoT) as devices can now be deployed in locations without broadband Internet. NaaS may play a critical role in the growth of IoT as highly mobile devices need adaptable network infrastructure to ensure continuous connectivity.

Automation and Self-Service Capabilities

As AI matures, NaaS’s automation and self-service capabilities will expand as well. By understanding user intent and updating the network infrastructure accordingly, AI can allow non-technical users to manage their own networks more effectively.

Use Cases of Network as a Service (NaaS)

NaaS offers greater flexibility and scalability than is possible with traditional network infrastructure. Some ways that organizations may use it include:

  • Mergers and Acquisitions (M&As): During an M&A, an organization may need to set up temporary network infrastructure to link the two company networks. NaaS is ideal for this use case as infrastructure can be easily adapted over time as the two environments evolve and converge.
  • IoT Devices: NaaS provides a straightforward solution for connecting IoT devices in remote or rural locations to the corporate network, ensuring seamless integration with remote and mobile systems.
  • Temporary Sites: Pop-ups and other temporary sites need network access and secure connectivity to corporate resources. NaaS enables organizations to quickly add these sites to the network and deactivate them when no longer needed.
  • Traffic Surges: NaaS offers scalable, on-demand access to network resources. This can help organizations with high traffic times—like e-commerce on Black Friday—ensure that they have the bandwidth required to meet demand.

Is Network as a Service (NaaS) Right for Your Organization?

NaaS offers an alternative to traditional network infrastructure in which an organization can access networking capabilities via a cloud-based service. This approach to networking offers greater flexibility and scalability than traditional approaches and can be more cost-effective and easier to manage as well.
Cato SASE Cloud offers backbone NaaS as part of its SASE service, converging  advanced security services and SD-WAN capabilities on a private, globally distributed network. To explore if NaaS and SASE are right for your organization, sign up for a demo.