Introduction

Department of Defense (DOD) operational and collection platforms are only as useful as their ability to transport data around the world in a secure, and timely manner.  As operational and collection platforms are deployed, connected data is now more essential than ever to provide awareness, resiliency, and competitive advantage against our adversaries.  Today, everything requires Wide Area Networks (WANs) to securely transport data to warfighters and analysts around the world.

However, oftentimes the network engineering required to transport operational data around the world is overlooked in the budgeting and planning phases, leaving programs to contend with inadequate resources and capabilities to develop ad hoc WANs on short notice.  

Administrative and development networks are typically given higher priority within the Enterprise Information Technology (IT) budgets.  The operational networks that move data around the world in support of platforms that directly support war plans and intelligence activities, typically are not funded within Enterprise IT budgets, but rather the programs themselves.  This approach leaves each program to plan and budget for its own WAN, and unfortunately many programs do not adequately plan or budget for this critical aspect of their operations.   Consequently, the data transport layer often remains under-resourced and sub-optimized for the overall mission objectives.  Unfortunately, there are still many operational systems that rely on physically transporting removable storage devices to move data from outside the continental US (OCONUS) locations.

Moreover, the operational networks and the data they carry demand distinct technical specifications, security protocols, tradecraft, and expertise to operate successfully when compared to the administrative and development networks that are typically funded within the Enterprise IT budgets.

Current State of Affairs

Program owners for sensitive operational platforms are responsible for soliciting proposals to construct the WAN that will transport their data to sites around the world that need access.  However, oftentimes, these are standalone networks that must be built from scratch, using a “network in a box” approach for each system and classification level.  Unfortunately, our experience has shown that many sensitive programs lack sufficient funding to construct a robust WAN due to lack of foresight in this critical aspect of operations.  As a result, programs often solicit proposals for networked solutions only after platforms are nearly operational.  To make matters worse, programs often resort to taxing other parts of the program or other sponsors to cobble together resources, which creates funding holes in future years for sustainment.

Unclassified Example

Program A recognized the need for a reliable Wide Area Network (WAN) and expended funds from within the program to establish its own network infrastructure.  Due to the success of this internal-funded WAN infrastructure, multiple classified programs with similar requirements are leveraging this WAN solution and rely on this WAN for their respective operational needs. However, the original WAN was never designed to support the load of multiple programs.  Moreover, because Program B found internal funds, there is no centralized process for handling how other programs might leverage this WAN or pay into it for maintenance and upgrades.  Therefore, the WAN has not undergone any technological refresh in over a decade. The lack of updates and upgrades poses significant challenges, including potential vulnerabilities, outdated technology, and reduced network performance—all of which will jeopardize the national security mission of Program B and all of the programs that have come to rely on its network.

What is Needed?

The DOD needs a common strategy for WANs that carry operational data.  This strategy would allow programs to plan and budget adequate resources for the procurement and sustainment of operational WANs (and data transport more broadly) at the outset of program design.  The DOD could consider establishing dedicated budget lines for each platform’s WAN requirements to ensure the data transport layer is appropriately resourced.  The current ad hoc, program-by-program approach is leaving operational WANs under resourced, and not suited to the tests of peer competition.

Looking to the future, the network engineering industry is moving to large-scale WAN networks connected via Carrier Neutral Facilities (CNF).  A CNF is a type of data center that operates independently without any specific affiliations to network providers. As a result, customers can select services from a diverse network of providers, rather than a single partner’s portfolio.  Compared to current DOD WAN systems, this new construct is more robust as it is not reliant on the resilience of a single provider and is more cost-effective since every new connection is competed (on price and reliability) amongst all providers.  To fully realize the cost efficiencies and resiliency of CNFs, DOD systems should adopt a similar WAN architecture wherever feasible.  However, to do so requires a concerted networking strategy and the resources to implement that strategy.