Virtual Network vs Physical Network

17/06/25 Wavenet
Virtual Network vs Physical Network placeholder thumbnail

Virtual Network vs Physical NetworkChoosing the right network infrastructure is a critical decision for any modern business. As organisations increasingly embrace cloud computing, hybrid work, and digital transformation, the conversation around virtual network vs physical network has never been more relevant.

At Wavenet, we specialise in building secure, scalable, and high-performing networks-both physical and virtual-to support evolving business needs. In this blog, we’ll break down the differences between virtual and physical networks, explore their benefits, and help you decide which approach (or combination) is right for your business.

What is a physical network?

A physical network refers to the traditional infrastructure used to connect devices within a business environment. This includes tangible hardware such as Ethernet cables, switches, routers, firewalls, and servers-often hosted on-premises or in a private data centre.

  • Requires physical space and installation
  • Relies on hardware for connectivity and routing
  • Often managed by in-house IT teams or external providers

Pros:

  • Lower latency with direct device connections
  • Greater control over hardware and data flow
  • Reliable for local, high-performance workloads

Cons:

  • Costly to install, maintain, and scale
  • Geographically limited
  • Slower to adapt to business growth or relocation

What is a virtual network?

A virtual network is a software-defined environment that enables devices and applications to communicate over the internet or cloud infrastructure without relying on direct physical connections. Virtual networks are commonly used in public clouds, such as Microsoft Azure, AWS, and Google Cloud. These are:

  • Configured and managed through software
  • Able to support dynamic, cloud-based workloads
  • Ideal for remote work and hybrid cloud environments

Pros:

  • Highly scalable and flexible
  • Quick to deploy and modify
  • Accessible from anywhere with internet connectivity

Cons:

  • Performance depends on internet and cloud provider quality
  • Requires robust security protocols
  • More complex configuration in multi-cloud setups

Virtual network vs physical network: Which should you choose?

The best solution often depends on your organisation’s size, growth trajectory, and IT strategy. Here's how to think about it:

Setup cost
Physical network High (hardware + installation)
Virtual network Lower (cloud subscriptions)
Scalability
Physical network Limited without major investment
Virtual network Instantly scalable
Flexibility
Physical network Rigid, location-dependent
Virtual network Remote-friendly and adaptable
Maintenance
Physical network Hardware upkeep required
Virtual network Software-managed and cloud-automated
Security
Physical network Direct control, localised policies
Virtual network Centralised, cloud-based security

In many cases, a hybrid approach that combines physical and virtual networks delivers the best balance between performance, cost, and flexibility.

How we can help

As the UK's most trusted IT managed services provider, we support businesses across the UK with expert design, deployment, and management of both virtual and physical networks.

Our services include:

Whether you're modernising your infrastructure, enabling remote work, or expanding into new locations, we’ll help you build a network that’s reliable, secure, and ready to grow with your business.

Final thoughts on virtual network vs physical network

Understanding the differences between a virtual network vs physical network is essential for making informed decisions about your IT infrastructure. Each has distinct strengths, and the right choice depends on your specific operational needs and goals.

Find out more about our network connectivity solutions for every business.

Find out more

Networking & Connectivity, Articles, Network Intelligence, Intelligent Connectivity

Latest blogs

See all posts
Placeholder thumbnail
Business continuity software: from compliance tool to strategic advantage

For many organisations, business continuity software still sits in the category of “necessary but non-essential”, a line item justified by regulation or audit, rather than by value. Too often, it’s viewed as an insurance policy that rarely gets used and delivers little measurable return. That perception is understandable. But it’s also fundamentally flawed. After more than three decades working across business continuity, operational resilience, and crisis management, I’ve seen first-hand how organisations behave under pressure. I’ve also worked with a wide range of continuity platforms, some impressive, others far less so. What has become increasingly clear is this: when the right software is implemented well, it materially strengthens an organisation’s ability to withstand disruption. And the larger and more complex the organisation, the greater that advantage becomes. Clarity in the moments that matter most Disruption compresses time and amplifies uncertainty. In those moments, resilience is not about having a document on a shelf, it’s about having absolute clarity on what needs to happen next. When an incident unfolds, leaders and response teams must be able to answer critical questions immediately: What actions need to be taken, and in what order? Who needs to be informed, and what do they need to know? Which services are truly critical and must be prioritised? Where and how will those services be recovered? And if recovery isn’t possible, what is the agreed fallback? Most organisations already hold the answers to these questions, but they’re scattered across spreadsheets, documents, and systems, often owned by different teams and updated at different times. In a crisis, that fragmentation quickly becomes a liability. This is where business continuity software proves its value. At its best, business continuity software does far more than store plans. It helps organisations understand themselves. By capturing and structuring information on critical services, recovery objectives, and the dependencies that underpin them, these platforms provide visibility that simply isn’t achievable through manual approaches alone. Technology, suppliers, facilities, data, and key people can all be mapped in a way that shows not just what’s important, but why it’s important and what it depends on. This insight enables organisations to create clear, actionable response strategies, playbooks, and contact groups that can be relied upon under pressure. It also allows teams to challenge assumptions, identify single points of failure, and uncover hidden risks before an incident exposes them. Many modern platforms also support real-time dependency analysis and data-gap reporting. This makes it possible to visualise upstream and downstream impacts and quickly understand the consequences of disruption. Attempting this level of analysis using spreadsheets or disconnected documents is slow, inefficient, and highly prone to human error, particularly during an incident. A single source of truth, when you need it most Another often overlooked benefit of business continuity software is the ability to act as a central, trusted source of truth. When offices are inaccessible, internal systems are unavailable, or teams are working remotely, continuity information still needs to be accessible. Secure, off-site platforms, typically available via both web browser and mobile, ensure that plans, contacts, and response information remain available even when the organisation itself is under strain. In practice, this accessibility can be the difference between a coordinated response and a reactive scramble. How business continuity software supports resilience Increasingly, business continuity software is being used not just to support response, but to underpin broader operational resilience objectives. Platforms such as Shadow-Planner, for example, are designed to help organisations move beyond static documentation and treat resilience as a living capability. By bringing together critical service identification, dependency mapping, recovery planning, and crisis response within a single environment, such tools help organisations maintain a clear, current view of their operational risk landscape. Used effectively, business continuity software supports better decision-making, clearer accountability, and faster mobilisation during disruption. It reduces reliance on individual knowledge, simplifies complexity, and helps ensure that the right information is available to the right people at the right time. Key takeaways Business continuity software should not be viewed as a compliance artefact or an emergency-only tool. When implemented and maintained properly, it becomes a strategic enabler, one that reduces risk, strengthens preparedness, and supports confident, coordinated action when disruption occurs. In an environment where resilience is increasingly scrutinised by regulators, customers, and boards alike, the real value of these platforms lies not in the software itself, but in the organisational clarity they enable. The right business continuity software doesn’t just help organisations respond to incidents. It helps make them stronger. By embedding resilience into everyday operations, it improves visibility of critical services, keeps plans accurate and actionable, and supports better decision-making. Business continuity becomes part of how the organisation operates, not just something it turns to in a crisis. About the author Colin Jeffs MBCI transitioned into business continuity from IT project management, where resilience was a core requirement of system implementation. He has over 30 years’ experience in business continuity, operational resilience, and crisis management, holding senior leadership roles within major financial institutions in the City of London. Colin now leads Wavenet’s award-winning operational resilience consulting and software division and co-designed the latest version of Shadow-Planner.

Read more
Placeholder thumbnail
What is XDR? The benefits of managed XDR for cyber security

What does XDR stand for? XDR stands for Extended Detection and Response. It is an integrated cyber security approach designed to deliver comprehensive visibility across an organisation’s entire IT environment.

Read more
managed soc
What is a Managed SOC? Key benefits and how it protects your business

With cyber security threats evolving at an unprecedented pace - businesses face constant challenges in safeguarding their data and systems. Managed Security Operations Centres (SOCs) offer a solution to these challenges. They provide round-the-clock monitoring and management of security incidents. This service is crucial for businesses aiming to protect their assets.

Read more
colocation-services
Major business benefits of colocation: cost, efficiency, security & continuity

Managing servers and infrastructure can be costly and complex. Colocation services offer a strategic solution.

Read more
wavenet IT support
How we support our customers | Managed IT services UK

We support organisations by bringing together the core building blocks of modern IT - secure, resilient networking; flexible cloud and data platforms; and collaboration tools that help people work from anywhere. As the UK’s most trusted managed service and security provider, we combine a broad portfolio across connectivity, cloud, communications and cyber security with deep technical expertise to design solutions that fit each customer’s goals, not a one-size-fits-all template. From connecting people and places to applications and data, to optimising Microsoft services and costs, enabling AI-driven productivity, and protecting environments with proactive security and incident response, We help customers stay secure, agile and focused - while building the operational resilience needed to anticipate, respond to, and recover from disruption. Watch this video to find out more Transcript: 0:05 Wavenet is the UK's most trusted managed service and security provider with a broad portfolio in connectivity, cloud, communications and cybersecurity. 0:15 We employ 1700 brilliant people with over 950 of those being highly skilled technologists. 0:22 So how do we use our broad portfolio, market leading partnerships and deep technical expertise to support our customers? 0:30 Intelligent networks are the foundation upon which everything else is built. 0:34 If the network is not robust, secure and scalable then anything that's connected to it will be affected. 0:40 From supplying broadband to designing networks from scratch, we connect people and places to data and applications. 0:46 As an ISP, we know there is no one-size-fits-all when it comes to network connectivity, so we take the time to assess the situation and goals before making a recommendation. 0:56 With the intelligent network in place, we make applications and data accessible. 1:00 These can reside anywhere within the Wavenet cloud, whether that be public, private, community or SAS based services unique to the market on demand. 1:09 Azure provides you with access to technical change and run squads for transformation, engineering and support, aligned with your own initiatives and priorities and as scalable as you need. 1:21 In public services such as Azure and Microsoft 365, financial management is a critical component and we have the tools that can effectively review consumption and make recommendations to streamline costs by effective use of licences, application of Azure services and 365 subscriptions. 1:39 Modern Workplace provides secure access for colleagues to the applications and data they need, regardless of location, whether they're in the office, at home, or working remotely. 1:49 They can access their apps and data from the Wavenet cloud, or they can be delivered as SAS services over the Intelligent network. 1:56 Our Copilot adoption and readiness packages unlock productivity, making your people more efficient. 2:02 Our Desktop as a service offering manages the full life cycle of consumer devices from provision, iMac management, recovery and recycle. 2:10 Bundled with complementary services such as End User Service Desk and Customer Site Tech Desk to support your staff and colleagues, ensuring that they're able to use the technology efficiently. 2:20 Our mobile services offer cost effective connectivity and airtime plans from all the UK's mobile network providers. 2:28 IoT services can be described as modern workplace with cameras, sensors, scanners and other devices providing data and insight over the foundation network. 2:37 Once we have connected users to your business applications and data, we help them communicate and collaborate with colleagues, suppliers and customers. 2:45 We empower sales and contact centre users with generative and agentic AI tools, pulling real time data information from your systems before, during and after customer interactions to deliver outstanding customer experiences. 2:59 We protect your environment with a range of proactive security services including security testing, managed detection and response. 3:06 Seem security awareness training and cyber certifications. 3:10 Providing reassurance in the event of an attack through fast and effective cyber incident response. 3:16 Underpinned by our highly skilled people, modern platforms and ITIL aligned processes. 3:22 Our advisory, monitoring, support and manage services simplify technology management, enhance user experience and control complex environments. 3:31 Helping you stay secure, agile and focused. 3:35 From supporting your in house IT teams to fully outsourced infrastructure and end user support across connectivity, cloud, communications and cybersecurity, we scale our services to support your business needs. 3:48 Wavenet has a long heritage in delivering operational resilience services and business continuity management consultancy. 3:54 With services that have evolved to meet the growing demands of UK organisations and new technology, we deliver the ability to anticipate, prepare for, respond to and recover from disruptive events or challenges that could impact your operations. 4:09 The goal is not just to survive disruptions, but to be able to maintain critical operations and recover quickly when things go wrong. 4:16 This is especially important in a fast-paced, interconnected world where businesses faced increased vulnerabilities. 4:23 As you can see, using our economies of scale, diverse vendor relationships and cutting edge expertise, we empower customers to make their technology work smarter.

Read more
Did your cyber defences hold up during Black Friday and Cyber Monday?
Did your cyber defences hold up during Black Friday and Cyber Monday?

Cyber Monday and Black Friday have come and gone, with the UK consistently ranking second in global participation to what is the biggest online shopping event. Each year continues to set new records, Barclay’s predicted that UK shoppers would spend a whopping £10.2bn this Black Friday1.

Read more

Stay service-savvy

Get all the latest news and insights straight to your inbox.