The document outlines the key concepts of conventional networking and SDN. It discusses the limitations of conventional networking where control and data planes are tightly coupled within network devices. SDN is presented as a new networking paradigm that separates the control and data planes, allowing the network to be centrally controlled by a software-based controller. The SDN architecture has three layers - the application, control and infrastructure layers. Several network applications of SDN and issues related to data centers and SDN deployment are also highlighted. Potential research problems in SDN scalability, load balancing and controller performance are identified for future work.