Fine-grained SD-WAN optimization services for cloud-native applications

An apparatus, comprising:

• one or more network interfaces to communicate with a software-defined wide area network (SD-WAN);
• a processor coupled to the one or more network interfaces and configured to execute one or more processes;
• and
• a memory configured to store a process that is executable by the processor, the process when executed configured to:
• receive, from a cloud-native application, contextual data for the cloud-native application that identifies microservices of the cloud-native application;
• identify network requirements for each of the microservices specified in the contextual data for the cloud-native application;
• translate, based on the network requirements identified for each of the microservices, the contextual data for the cloud-native application into a network policy for traffic in the SD-WAN associated with the microservices, wherein the network policy comprises a plurality of corresponding access policies for each of the microservices;
• and
• applying, by the device, an access policy from the plurality of corresponding access policies to a traffic flow in the SD-WAN between an endpoint and particular microservice of the microservices.

A tangible, non-transitory, computer-readable medium storing program instructions that cause a device of a software-defined wide area network (SD-WAN) to execute a process comprising:

• receiving, at the device and from a cloud-native application, contextual data for the cloud-native application that identifies microservices of the cloud-native application;
• identifying, by the device, network requirements for each of the microservices specified in the contextual data for the cloud-native application;
• translating, by the device and based on the network requirements identified for each of the microservices, the contextual data for the cloud-native application into a network policy for traffic in the SD-WAN associated with the microservices, wherein the network policy comprises a plurality of corresponding access policies for each of the microservices;
• and
• applying, by the device, an access policy from the plurality of corresponding access policies to a traffic flow in the SD-WAN between an endpoint and particular microservice of the microservices.