Current Trends and Practices in NetworkingIT299 – Brian ApplegarthThe field of networking has many current trends and practices that I find interesting. Some of these trends are related to the increase in the number of devices (and therefore an increased need for security and monitoring) on ​​the network due to policies such as BYOD. Another trend I find interesting is the continued migration of small businesses to more cloud-based infrastructure. A third trend closely related to the previous one is the fact that companies are starting to see the value of using the cloud to create much less regional emergency plans and offer the possibility of recovering much more quickly from a natural disaster. . The final trend that I find very interesting is how small businesses have had the ability to sift through huge piles of data to help determine trends that might otherwise go unnoticed. (Clancy, 2012) The first trend I want to discuss is the influx of personal devices that businesses will face over the next few years. Moshe (2013) indicates that many companies may not be ready to handle such a massive influx of mobile users. Fully implementing BYOD could easily double or triple the size of a company's mobile workforce. Every company that will allow their employees to use personal devices for their business needs is using mobile device management (MDM) software like Airwatch. From my understanding, this type of software basically allows businesses to track wireless devices on a network. I am also very interested in a company like Bitglass. Bitglass has taken an innovative approach to BYOD policies by securing corporate data on the cloud. This allows any user device to access the enterprise...... middle of paper...... unidentifiable models. In the past, only large companies could achieve this trend, simply due to the lack of programs and models that could be found. As more programs are created for this purpose and they can find more models that may be relevant, this trend will continue to grow. (Clancy, 2012) References: Bitglass. (2014). BYOD and Cloud. Unstoppable. Retrieved from: http://www.bitglass.com/Clancy, H. (December 2012). Information Technology Trends 2013: Five Channel Hotspots. Retrieved from: http://searchitchannel.techtarget.com/feature/Information-technology-trends-2013-Five-channel-hot-spotsMoshe, O. (November 21, 2013). Gartner's top IT predictions for 2014: BYOD and cloud computing will take over. Retrieved from http://www.sysaid.com/blog/entry/gartner-s-top-it-predictions-for-2014-byod-and-cloud-computing-to-take-over