Enables efficient network configuration to improve performance and monitoring
Uses an standardized platform that provides centralized view of the network
Decouples the networking and forwarding functions
The networking functions are programmable
The underlying infrastructure is abstracted for clients and services

Data Plane

Also called the forwarding place
It is responsible for handling the packets and makes decisions based on protocols

Control Place

The brain of the network that decides where the traffic is send
It is centralized in SDN

Application Plane

The plane where all network applications interacting with the SDN controller reside