Edge Computing: Explore What it is

As one of the important components of modern network architecture, edge computing plays a huge role in the network. It can not only reduce latency and improve processing speed, but also reduce bandwidth requirements and network load. This article will take you to learn what edge computing technology is and how it works, to deepen your understanding of it.

What is Edge Computing

Edge computing is a distributed computing architecture that allows devices to compute, store, and process data at the edge of the network, that is, closer to the data source or user. The data center only needs to transmit the most important data, which can minimize latency reduce the network core load, and increase processing speed, thereby achieving real-time feedback and decision-making. Of course, computing at the edge requires some devices to achieve, such as gateway devices, high-performance NIC, and edge servers.

How Does Edge Computing Work

Edge computing deploys computing resources near the data source so that data processing can be performed near the terminal without transmitting the data to the data center or cloud for processing, which greatly speeds up data processing and real-time feedback. It only transmits the most important data to the data center or cloud for further analysis or storage, which can reduce the network load. Its specific working principle is as follows:

Network terminal: The network terminal consists of various IoT devices, such as sensors, cameras, and smartphones. These devices collect data and transmit it to edge computing nodes for further processing.

Edge computing node: Responsible for providing basic services using computing and storage resources deployed at the edge of the network. It processes data locally to achieve faster response time and lower latency.

Network node: The network node can obtain key data from the edge computing node to the cloud computing node for further analysis and processing, which ensures that important data can be effectively used to help insight and decision-making.

Cloud computing node: The cloud computing node is responsible for storing data uploaded by edge computing nodes, processing analysis, and synthesis tasks beyond the capabilities of edge nodes, and dynamically adjusting the deployment strategy and algorithm of the edge computing layer according to the distribution of network resources.

Why Do We Need Edge Computing Technology

To achieve digital transformation of enterprises, edge computing networks have become increasingly important in all walks of life. Enterprises use computing at the edge to reduce the response time of remote devices and can obtain more information for decision-making and analysis based on uploaded key data. In industries such as autonomous driving, automated factories, and those that rely on smart sensors to ensure worker safety, the lack of edge computing will result in long response times, which will harm users.

Computing at the edge can process and store data near the data source and send key data to the data center or cloud to analyze and process the key data and make correct decisions. This is faster than traditional networks that send all data to the data center or cloud for processing and analysis of key data, thereby improving operational efficiency.

Because computing at the edge can process data near the data source, it can have a faster response time and will not bring a huge network load to the central network. If a traditional network is used, when thousands of terminal devices feed data to the data center at the same time, the data delay and network bottleneck it brings may prevent the data from being processed in time.

Edge computing can make it easier to collect data at remote sites with limited bandwidth. For example, if you need to monitor soil pollution or water quality, sensors can continuously monitor and transmit key data back for processing and analysis when the Internet is available.

The Benefit of Computing at The Edge

Using edge computing can bring multiple benefits, including reducing network latency, because edge computing technology can process data from terminal devices locally without centrally uploading to data centers or the cloud, thereby minimizing data transmission latency and providing a more reliable network. In addition, computing at the edge reduces the amount of data transmitted over the network by processing and analyzing data near the data source, and only uploads key data, avoiding occupying a lot of bandwidth. At the same time, it enhances security because most of the data is processed near the data source and stored at the edge computing node, reducing the risk of data leakage during transmission and ensuring compliance with strict and dynamic data location regulations. When handling sensitive information, edge computing networks also help data compliance and governance, enabling organizations to process data near the data source, keep customer information within the country, ensure its legality, and avoid illegal activities caused by the collection of user information.

Application of Edge Network

Edge computing plays an important role in various industries. Next, I will introduce you to several commonly used edge computing network applications:

Autonomous driving

In the autonomous driving of cars, low latency, and real-time response are undoubtedly crucial. It directly ensures the safety of customers and the car can respond to the vehicle conditions in real-time. Autonomous vehicles can generate about 5TB to 20TB of data every day. If it is uploaded to the cloud or data center for analysis before taking action, it will undoubtedly increase the driving risk. Through computing at the edge, it can be organized, analyzed, and processed in real-time, and respond quickly, which makes autonomous driving possible.

Automated factories

In automated factories, edge computing can ensure the correct process and simplify the manufacturing process during automatic production through real-time insights and analysis. It combines it with robots and artificial intelligence to ensure factory work efficiency and safety.

Environmental monitoring

Edge computing also makes important contributions to environmental monitoring. Where the environment needs to be monitored, network resources are usually limited. Edge computing technology can continuously collect data in these places, and upload key data to the data center or cloud when network resources allow, to achieve continuous monitoring of the environment.

Conclusion

Edge computing is changing the way data is processed in all walks of life in modern networks. It has been widely used in artificial intelligence, the Internet of Things, and autonomous driving with its ability to process data in real-time and with faster response speed. With the advancement of technology, edge computing technology has undoubtedly become a key part of network architecture. If you have any questions about the edge computing network, please feel free to contact QSFPTEK's CCIE/HCIE engineers at [email protected].