VMware unveiled a new vision for the future of networks at Dell Technologies World 2018 in Las Vegas, USA.

The Virtual Cloud Network, unveiled today, helps enterprises build a digital business fabric that connects and protects applications, data, and users across the entire network in extremely distributed environments.

VMware also announced the VMware NSX network and security portfolio, which provides broad and consistent connectivity and security for applications and data across the software-defined data center (SDDC), branch, cloud, and telecommunications environments. This portfolio includes new capabilities such as integration of VMware NSX Data Center, VMware NSX Cloud, and VMware NSX SD-WAN; expansion of NSX Cloud support for Microsoft Azure-based applications, including existing AWS; NSX Data Center support for containers and bare metal applications; and Telco/NFV and networking performance optimizations for distributed workloads within NSX Data Center.

“The future of networking is software, and the network of the future will be the Virtual Cloud Network,” said Rajiv Ramaswami, chief operating officer of VMware Products and Cloud Services. “VMware is building the next generation of software-defined Virtual Cloud Networks that connect and secure applications and users. “Enterprises can build a Virtual Cloud Network with a flexible, programmable, software-based digital business fabric that not only protects the network, but also protects the network,” he said.

The VMware NSX network and security portfolio provides a standardized operating environment for connecting, securing, and operating virtual cloud networks. The portfolio includes new and enhanced capabilities for data centers, branch offices, clouds, and telecommunications environments, and supports traditional and modern application frameworks. The VMware NSX portfolio enables enterprises to operate consistent network and security across private data centers, AWS, Microsoft Azure, and IBM Cloud.

VMware NSX Data Center is the industry's most widely deployed network virtualization platform, chosen by over 4,500 enterprises worldwide for their enterprise data centers. With NSX Data Center, enterprises can design, build, and operate next-generation policies across their data centers that connect, protect, and automate traditional and modern applications, while protecting applications and data with security inherent to the infrastructure.

The latest updates announced in this announcement include networking capabilities for containers and bare-metal environments, providing consistent networking services across all applications and deployment models within NSX Data Center. Container-integrated deployment capabilities, supporting container application environments, provide global security and more for new application platforms like Pivotal Container Service (PKS). VMware adds new performance optimizations for distributed workloads, providing an ideal environment for virtualizing communications and network functions.

VMware NSX SD-WAN is an industry-leading software-defined wide area network solution that combines the economics and flexibility of a real-time network overlay with deployment speed, scale, and automation. With NSX SD-WAN, enterprises can ensure cloud and application performance with complete visibility, metrics, control, and automation across all devices and user endpoints—all at a lower cost.