Out-of-Band Datacenter Networking Solved

Tom Daly

July 16, 2024

With Big Network, out-of-band networking isn’t a separate system—it’s an extension of your always-on strategy. Lightweight, secure, and designed for how datacenters operate today.

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Introduction: Why Datacenter Outages Still Cost Millions

Even in the most advanced datacenters, remote management often depends on the very networks that can fail. When something breaks—whether it's a bad config, BGP misfire, or power issue—your IT team can’t fix it remotely if they can’t reach the control plane.

That’s the job of out-of-band (OOB) networking. But most OOB solutions today are complex, expensive, or locked to legacy gear. At Big Network, we think there's a better way: lightweight, software-defined out-of-band connectivity over any available link.

We first introduced this approach in our original OOB post. This updated version expands on it with real-world scenarios, partner deployments, and edge datacenter insights for 2025.

What Is Out-of-Band Networking?

Out-of-band (OOB) networking creates a separate, secure path to manage and recover infrastructure when the primary data plane goes down. Think of it as a backdoor you can use to troubleshoot and reboot systems without relying on your production network.

Traditional OOB setups often require:

Serial console servers
Specialized management interfaces
Dedicated T1 or DSL circuits
Complex VPN access or dial-in modems

But in 2025, this legacy approach no longer scales for modern IT environments.

Why Legacy OOB Falls Short

Expensive to deploy: High CapEx for console hardware and dedicated circuits across every site
Slow to scale: New locations require truck rolls or fixed-line provisioning
Siloed management: OOB often lives outside of your standard monitoring and orchestration stack
Limited availability: Remote access requires IP whitelisting, manual toggles, or static routing workarounds

As datacenters get more distributed and edge sites more critical, OOB needs to be as flexible and fast as your production infrastructure.

Big Network’s Approach: OOB That Works Anywhere

Big Network reimagines out-of-band networking with:

LTE-based backup connectivity when no ISP is available
Static IP Everywhere™ for remote access continuity
Cloud-orchestrated configuration to push rules and policies from anywhere

Instead of needing custom wiring or dedicated access devices, Big Network gives you OOB control through the same plug-and-play edge hardware and orchestration you already use for failover.

How It Works in Practice

Connect your OOB management ports to a Big Network device (Edge Lite or IRG)
Establish LTE or broadband-based backup link
Assign a static IP address via Core Transit
Use the desktop client to access your system’s CLI, reboot interfaces, or restore factory settings

When your production link goes down, OOB access stays up—so your team can respond immediately.

Real-World Use Case: Hybrid Datacenter and Remote Edge

For datacenter operators managing colocation racks, cloud gateway nodes, or critical infrastructure in remote edge sites, Big Network allows you to:

Set up OOB with zero local IT staff
Ensure secure access even during upstream outages
Integrate OOB into your broader failover and provisioning strategy

It’s the same model used by ITDreamwire, Infinite Wireless, and Core Transit to cut truck rolls and maintain SLAs.

Summary: Modern OOB Is Cloud-Native, LTE-Friendly, and Simple