As a result of many years of rapid growth, points of presence (POPs) in many networks are reaching the limits of their intended design. These POPs create inefficiencies in the network, which have a direct impact on business operations, margins, and service velocity. While network operators recognize the costs of this inefficiency, they are often challenged by how to fix the problem without incurring significant expenses or causing disruption to current customers or management procedures.

With a combination of feature-rich edge functionality and hardware virtualization, Juniper Networks® T Series Core Routers provide an ideal solution that can enable the optimization of POPs with minimal operational disruption. To evaluate the potential benefits of such an approach, Juniper commissioned Network Strategy Partners (NSP), an independent network consulting firm, to conduct a study comparing virtualized POP architectures with those using present mode of operations. This white paper outlines the challenges that service providers are facing in the POP, and presents the results of the NSP study quantifying the operational and capital savings possible through POP consolidation with virtualization.

Readers of this white paper learn how the T Series and Juniper Networks JCS1200 Control System can be used to improve the efficiency of POPs through virtualization, and in what types of networks virtualization provides the most benefits. This document is essential reading for service provider network planners who are faced with ballooning operational expenses in the POP.