Service delivery unit for an enterprise network

A service delivery unit, comprising:

• a network interface port coupleable to a wide area network;
• a data port coupleable to a plurality of local area networks;
• a policy server interface coupleable to a policy server that includes policies for bandwidth allocation stored on a computer readable medium;
• and
• a central processing unit, communicatively coupled to the network interface port, the data port and the policy server interface, wherein the central processing unit executes instructions to selectively allocate bandwidth in the wide area network for users of the plurality of local area networks based on the policies stored in the policy server;
• wherein the central processing unit classifies network requests and identifies the policies that relate to the request.

An enterprise network comprising:

• at least one local area network at a first geographic location;
• at least one additional local area network at a second, different geographic location;
• a first service delivery unit having a data port that is coupled to the at least one local area network and a network interface port that is coupled to a wide area network;
• a second service delivery unit having a data port that is coupled to the at least one additional local area network and a network interface port that is coupled to the wide area network;
• and
• a policy server, communicatively coupled to the first and second service delivery units, the policy server including policies for bandwidth allocation stored on a computer readable medium, such that the service delivery units selectively allocate bandwidth to users based on the policies stored in the policy server,
• wherein the first and second service delivery units classify network requests and identify the policies that relate to the request.

A method for providing bandwidth management in an enterprise network, the method comprising:

• receiving a request for connection over a wide area network;
• classifying the request;
• identifying global policies that relate to the request;
• and
• applying the identified policies to control the priority and amount of bandwidth to allocate to the request over the wide area network.