Next-Level Visibility Keeps Networks on Course
In aviation, “visibility” determines how far pilots can see important landmarks—mountains, runways, or other aircraft—to navigate safely, even without advanced instruments. Similarly, network visibility empowers IT teams to clearly understand performance baselines, swiftly pinpoint issues, and mitigate risks before they escalate.
However, the reliable, time-tested resources and metrics traditionally used to monitor traffic, performance, and security are being challenged. Complex hybrid and multi-cloud network architectures, data overload, and the shift to remote work have pushed organizations to rethink their strategies. Many have embarked on a journey to transition from traditional monitoring practices to an observability mindset, expanding both the range and scope of their visibility. But in this evolution, could the answer lie in revisiting the basics—like packet capture—to regain clarity and control?
Visibility vs Observability
As organizations push for more efficient and secure network operations, improved access to data, automated monitoring platforms, and real-time telemetry have significantly advanced network visibility. Yet, the demand for deeper, more actionable insights continues to grow. According to the VIAVI 2024/25 State of the Network Study, 95% of organizations are navigating an actual or de facto transition to network observability strategies. In this shift, the fundamentals—such as packet capture—are proving to be invaluable. By providing detailed, granular data, packet capture remains a cornerstone for identifying performance issues and uncovering threats, offering the clarity and precision necessary to thrive in today’s complex network environments.
Much like an airliner relying on instruments for safe navigation in inclement weather, the concept of observability is based on the ability to accurately assess the internal state of a system based on external information alone. Observability begins where visibility ends, using situational context and predictive algorithms to provide a more sophisticated level of network insight.
Strategies to Improve Visibility
The quest for enhanced visibility is an ongoing race, with ever-expanding network infrastructures, evolving security threats, and rising customer expectations constantly raising the stakes. Overcoming these challenges begins with recognizing existing limitations and rethinking strategies to eliminate blind spots.
Reaching for the clouds
With the cloud computing market projected to approach $1 trillion by 2026, private and public cloud options have become integral to modern network architecture. However, if the term cloud suggests obscurity, the data agrees—our State of the Network study revealed that 80% of respondents reported significant cloud visibility challenges.
To address this, observability strategies are evolving to integrate diverse internal and external data sources into a unified view of network performance. This effort includes leveraging detailed cloud data, such as Microsoft Azure NSG flow logs and Amazon Web Services VPC flow logs, to enhance clarity. Yet, visibility isn’t just about high-level data aggregation—resources like packet capture play a vital role in providing the raw, granular insights necessary for troubleshooting and performance optimization.
By combining centralized cloud visibility with the precision of full packet data, organizations can quickly pinpoint issues—whether in the client, server, application, or network. This approach streamlines troubleshooting, reduces mean time to resolution (MTTR), and empowers IT teams to confidently navigate complex environments.
Visibility in small packages
When it comes to network visibility, not all data is created equal. Traditional telemetry sources contribute fragmented pieces to the puzzle, but packet data offers the complete story. It captures everything—users, applications, timing, and protocols—providing the full context of network communications. It’s no wonder that 97% of survey respondents identified packet capture as critical or extremely important for maintaining visibility.
For years, packet capture, analysis, and storage have been the unsung heroes of traditional data center operations. But the game is changing. Today’s advanced monitoring tools extend these capabilities into the cloud, unlocking the potential of cloud-based packet data like never before. Observability solutions are now transforming this treasure trove of data—cloud and on-premises alike—into actionable insights, empowering IT teams to troubleshoot faster, optimize performance, and stay ahead of evolving challenges.
The role of AI and ML
Our survey highlights a common challenge: many organizations are grappling with how to integrate emerging technologies into their network monitoring strategies. Yet, overcoming these hurdles is essential, as AI and machine learning (ML) are key to advancing visibility and observability to new heights.
While still in its early stages, AI is already enabling sophisticated network dashboards and dynamic application dependency maps. These technologies not only reduce mean time to resolution (MTTR) by pinpointing bottlenecks and misconfigurations but also provide actionable insights that were previously out of reach. ML further amplifies this by analyzing vast amounts of network data, generating meaningful end-user experience scores, and detecting patterns or anomalies before they impact service quality.
As the demands on networks grow more complex, the need for advanced resources and strategies to ensure performance and security becomes increasingly urgent. The findings from the VIAVI 2024/25 State of the Network Study offer valuable insights into how organizations are navigating these challenges and adopting innovative approaches to visibility and observability. Explore the full report to uncover actionable strategies and stay ahead in this evolving landscape.
Introducing the VIAVI 2024/25 State of the Network Study
The VIAVI State of the Network Study for 2024/2025 leverages survey results from hundreds of enterprise organizations around the world to uncover the latest network performance management trends. The eye-opening study results underscore the need to mitigate complexity through predictive and unified network management tools.
