Network Function Virtualization (NFV) runs network functions as software on standard servers. You replace dedicated hardware appliances with VMs or containers.
Traditional: Each function needs dedicated hardware. Expensive, inflexible, slow to deploy.
NFV: Functions run as VNFs (Virtual Network Functions) on x86 servers. Deploy new functions in minutes. Scale by adding instances.
Common VNFs: Virtual firewalls, virtual routers, virtual load balancers, WAN optimizers.
Benefits: Lower capital costs, faster deployment, flexible scaling, multi-vendor environments.