Gigamon is a technology partner that is becoming increasingly important for Mobile Network Operators (MNOs) as they transition to 5G from 4G.



Gigamon has recently developed deep observability for encrypted 5G core traffic, which is accelerating the adoption of their 5G services. Their innovation is enabling MNOs around the world to expedite their transition to 5G deployments.

Over the past year, there has been an increase in the number of clients using Gigamon's Deep Observability Pipeline for 5G core services. Currently, 43 MNOs are either in deployment or trials, continuing to provide extensive 4G core services while embracing emerging 5G networks.

Data from the 2022 Ericsson Mobility Report shows that MNO network traffic has doubled over the past two years and predicts a 24% annual growth over the next half-decade. Although investments in 5G spectrum and infrastructure are substantial, subscriber traffic still primarily uses 4G core networks.

To service both 4G and 5G subscribers, MNOs are moving towards adopting converged cores in their migration efforts. Gigamon has emerged as a crucial technology partner for a growing number of 5G core deployments. They offer a range of sophisticated features and capabilities that make them a valuable part of MNOs' strategies.

Gigamon's focus on delivering converged 4G/5G core efficiency is a vital element of their strategy. They have successfully incorporated various capabilities such as sampling, load-balancing, forward-listing, and network-aware filtering into feature sets for MNO cores. Gigamon's Deep Observability Pipeline efficiently correlates control plane traffic with user plane traffic across 4G and 5G networks, utilizing the same underlying monitoring infrastructure, thus preserving the depth of insight and ensuring the quality of telemetry aligns with required service levels.

Gigamon's approach to addressing encrypted 5G core traffic is particularly noteworthy. They have achieved deep observability into control plane traffic through validated integrations with leading 5G providers, including Ericsson and Nokia. Operators using encrypted Ericsson 5G cores are now gaining clear-text visibility via Gigamon across all traffic for monitoring purposes.

In summary, Gigamon is an essential technology partner for MNOs in their transition to 5G from 4G. They offer various sophisticated features and capabilities that enable MNOs to provide extensive 4G core services while embracing emerging 5G networks. Gigamon's approach to addressing encrypted 5G core traffic is particularly impressive, making them a valuable part of MNOs' overall strategies in the telecommunications sector.

With the proliferation of encryption in 5G networks, traditional network monitoring tools struggle to provide visibility into encrypted traffic flows. This lack of visibility can hinder troubleshooting, security monitoring, and overall network performance optimization. Gigamon's recent innovations aim to bridge this gap by enabling deep observability into encrypted 5G core traffic.

One of their key solutions is the GigaSMART SSL/TLS Decryption technology, which allows for the decryption of encrypted traffic at scale. This technology helps organizations gain visibility into the content and context of encrypted traffic flows, without compromising on security or performance.

Gigamon also leverages machine learning and advanced analytics techniques to perform real-time analysis of decrypted 5G core traffic. By applying intelligent algorithms, they can extract valuable insights, detect anomalies, and identify potential security threats within the encrypted traffic.

These innovations from Gigamon are essential for service providers, enterprises, and government agencies that rely on 5G networks. The ability to monitor and analyze encrypted traffic helps them ensure network performance, optimize resource allocation, and enhance security posture in the face of evolving threats.

One such feature is the ability to inspect both user plane and control plane traffic. This is crucial in 5G networks where the control plane carries critical signaling messages that control network functions and user plane handles data traffic. With deep observability into both planes, organizations can have a comprehensive view of their network and gain insights into performance, signaling issues, and overall network health.

Another key aspect of Gigamon's innovations is their support for virtualized environments. As 5G networks increasingly rely on network functions virtualization (NFV) and software-defined networking (SDN), Gigamon provides solutions that are compatible with these virtualized infrastructures. This ensures seamless integration with existing network architectures and allows for efficient monitoring and analysis of encrypted traffic in virtualized 5G environments.

Furthermore, Gigamon's deep observability solutions are designed to scale. With the exponential growth in data volume and traffic within 5G networks, it is crucial for monitoring tools to handle high traffic loads without compromising performance. Gigamon offers scalable solutions that can handle the increasing demands of encrypted 5G core traffic, providing reliable visibility and analysis capabilities.

In addition to the features I mentioned earlier, let's dive deeper into some of the specific capabilities and benefits of Gigamon's deep observability solutions for encrypted 5G core traffic:

1. Enhanced Security: With the ability to decrypt and analyze encrypted traffic, Gigamon helps organizations identify potential security threats within the 5G network. By detecting anomalies and unusual patterns in encrypted traffic flows, they can proactively respond to security breaches and mitigate risks.

2. Troubleshooting and Performance Optimization: Deep observability allows organizations to troubleshoot network issues and optimize performance by analyzing decrypted traffic. It helps identify bottlenecks, latency issues, and other performance-related problems, enabling network administrators to take corrective measures promptly.

3. Compliance and Regulatory Requirements: Many industries have strict compliance and regulatory requirements regarding data privacy and security. Gigamon's deep observability solutions provide insights into encrypted traffic without compromising data privacy, enabling organizations to meet these requirements effectively.

4. Network Monitoring at Scale: Gigamon's scalable solutions ensure high-performance monitoring and analysis of encrypted 5G core traffic, even in high-volume, complex network environments. They can handle the increasing traffic demands of 5G networks, ensuring reliable and accurate observability.

5. Actionable Intelligence: Through the application of machine learning and advanced analytics techniques, Gigamon's solutions provide actionable intelligence from decrypted traffic. This allows organizations to make informed decisions, optimize network resources, and enhance overall network efficiency.