Pavel Bykov, co-founder and CEO of IP Fabric, has been at the forefront of network assurance since 2016. In a recent Q&A, he shared insights on how enterprises can achieve better control over their networks, navigate growing compliance demands, and build a foundation for network-wide automation. IP Fabric modernizes network operations for companies like Red Hat, Major League Baseball, and Air France.
Bykov explained that IP Fabric addresses the lack of end-to-end control in networks. Enterprises rely on a patchwork of point solutions that fail to provide a unified view, leading to blind spots from unmanaged devices, unknown dependencies, and misconfigurations that pose security risks. IP Fabric automates discovery and documentation across complex environments, providing dynamic, time-stamped snapshots to validate security policies and prove continuous compliance.
Since founding IP Fabric in 2016, Bykov has observed a shift in how organizations view visibility and automation. Initially, many believed they would automate once everything else was under control. However, without visibility and automation, control remains elusive. Today, visibility and automation are recognized as foundational, supporting not just network teams but also security, compliance, and digital transformation goals. Bykov noted that CIOs face a tough tradeoff between compliance and operational excellence. His advice is to embed compliance into daily operations through automation, making audits a continuous outcome rather than a reactive event.
Control in networks is difficult because modern environments are fragmented across different teams, technologies, clouds, and regions. No single person or tool sees the entire picture. Control is critical because the business depends on the network, and accountability lies with the organization. IP Fabric builds a network representation from its actual state, not just from documentation.
Key visibility gaps include unmanaged or unknown devices, which IP Fabric frequently discovers during proofs of concept. These assets can bypass security policies and introduce vulnerabilities. Another gap is lack of path mapping, especially with transparent firewall deployments, where unexpected paths can lead to firewall bypass scenarios. Bykov emphasized that without visibility into actual traffic paths, detecting potential breaches becomes difficult.
Compliance frameworks like NIST, ISO 27001, DORA, and NIS2 are raising the bar. Bykov recommends using a digital twin of the network to automate compliance validation. IP Fabric continuously collects, models, and validates network data against policies, enabling organizations to generate audit-ready reports in minutes rather than weeks. Automation turns compliance from a reactive scramble into a proactive process.
To future-proof environments, Bykov advises starting with the network state as the only authoritative source of truth. As design and documentation systems change, the network itself remains the actual communication fabric. Building a complete, accurate view of the network serves as the foundation for automation, analytics, and collaboration. Operations, security, and compliance goals are converging, and teams and tools must too.
