What enables interoperability across vendors in MEF SD-WAN?

• A. A single vendor's control plane must manage all devices to ensure interoperability across vendors.
• B. An abstraction layer plus open APIs and standardized interfaces allows different vendors' edge devices and controllers to interoperate.
• C. Interoperability is achieved by manual, one-off configurations per device.
• D. Interoperability is not applicable to SD-WAN deployments.

Answer: (B)

Interoperability across vendors in MEF SD-WAN is enabled by an abstraction layer paired with open APIs and standardized interfaces. The abstraction layer provides a neutral, unified view of network services, policies, and topology so devices and controllers from different vendors can be managed in the same way, without needing vendor-specific configurations. Open APIs allow the orchestration layer and edge devices from multiple vendors to communicate and exchange control information consistently, while standardized interfaces ensure compatibility across implementations. Together, these elements decouple vendor-specific details from the management and control plane, enabling seamless interoperability and a true multi-vendor environment.

Requiring a single vendor’s control plane would lock you into that vendor and break interoperability. Relying on manual, per-device configurations is brittle and unscalable. Saying interoperability isn’t applicable ignores the reality of multi-vendor SD-WAN deployments where diverse devices must work together.