Pearson N10-009 New Attempt

Network Functions Virtualization (NFV): NFV is a technology that virtualizes network services like routing, firewalls, and load balancers. It allows these services to run on virtual machines rather than requiring dedicated hardware. This is ideal for remote branch locations where deploying physical devices is costly and complex.

VRF (B): Virtual Routing and Forwarding is used for segmenting routing tables but does not virtualize services.

VLAN (C): Virtual Local Area Networks help segregate broadcast domains but are unrelated to virtualizing network functions.

VPC (D): Virtual Private Cloud is used for cloud computing but does not pertain to virtualizing network services.

A split-tunnel VPN allows some traffic to be routed through the VPN while other traffic goes directly to the internet. This setup offers several advantages, with a primary one being cost-effectiveness due to cloud-based traffic not consuming company bandwidth.

Bandwidth Utilization: Split-tunnel VPNs reduce the amount of traffic passing through the company ' s network, freeing up bandwidth for other uses.

Performance: By allowing internet-bound traffic to bypass the VPN, it can reduce latency and improve the performance for users accessing cloud services directly.

Cost Savings: Reduced load on the company ' s VPN infrastructure can lead to lower costs in terms of both hardware and bandwidth.

Network References:

CompTIA Network+ N10-007 Official Certification Guide: Covers VPN types, including split-tunnel configurations and their advantages.

Cisco Networking Academy: Discusses VPN technologies and the benefits of split-tunneling.

Network+ Certification All-in-One Exam Guide: Provides detailed information on VPN setups, including the cost-effectiveness of split-tunnel VPNs.

By allowing cloud-based traffic to flow outside the company’s network, a split-tunnel VPN optimizes resource usage and enhances the overall network performance without incurring extra costs for bandwidth.

A modern replacement for traditional remote-access VPN for users is SASE (Secure Access Service Edge). Network+ highlights trends in remote connectivity and security where organizations move away from backhauling all user traffic through a VPN concentrator and instead use cloud-delivered security and access controls closer to the user. SASE combines networking and security capabilities—commonly including ZTNA (Zero Trust Network Access), secure web gateway (SWG), CASB, firewall-as-a-service (FWaaS), and centralized policy enforcement—so remote users can securely access applications without relying on a classic “connect to the corporate network first” VPN model.

SD-WAN primarily optimizes connectivity between sites and to cloud services, often for branch networks; it’s not typically the direct replacement for remote user VPN access. Site-to-site VPN connects networks (locations) and is not intended for individual remote users. A reverse proxy can publish specific internal web applications externally and provide some security functions, but it does not replace VPN broadly for remote user access to multiple internal resources the way SASE/Zero Trust access solutions do. Therefore, SASE is the best answer as the likely replacement for traditional remote-access VPN.