IDC broadens that definition of SDN by stating: “Datacenter SDN architectures feature software-defined overlays or controllers that are abstracted from the underlying network hardware, offering intent-or policy-based management of the network as a whole. This results in a datacenter network that is better aligned with the needs of application workloads through automated (thereby faster) provisioning, programmatic network management, pervasive application-oriented visibility, and where needed, direct integration with cloud orchestration platforms.”