1-2-1
– will complement the dynamic and “on-demand” nature of next generation, virtualised and cloud- enabled data centre operations. In the converged data centre fabric, this level of automation will exist at Layer 2 and enable the free creation, location and migration of virtual assets as and when needed, either under human or application control.
“At Layers 0/1, network automation becomes important when operations wish to free virtual machines from the bounds of a single static data centre and embrace the true power of virtual machine migration between data centre assets. In this case, the combination of intelligent WAN edge technology and dynamic intelligent core networks will be crucial, allowing the entire network fabric to respond, in real time, to the demands of the applications that drive the need for scalable and reactive computing resource.”
And then, of course, there is the combination of networks and virtualisation – network virtualisation. Just exactly what is it and what are the benefits it can bring to the enterprise? “Network virtualisation, in our understanding, is the adaptation of any
WAN technology into a form that can be used by any client application or protocol,” says Steve. “For example, an IP/MPLS VPN can handle TCP/IP traffic (e-mail, WWW traffic, etc.), but is unable to handle Fibre Channel, Ficon or private Ethernet networks. We offer solutions that enable an alien network technology, like an IP VPN, to support this variety of client protocols without client or application modification. We provide a “virtual” storage network, a “virtual” mainframe clustering network, and a “Virtual Ethernet LAN” – all at once, over the single IP MPLS network. And, we do this transparently.”
Steve adds: “In addition, the approach we take to optimising the bandwidth available through compressions and dynamic bandwidth allocation means that we are able to offer “virtual” bandwidth, i.e. higher and more flexible capacity than what the WAN technology natively supports.”
Despite the best efforts of vendors, end users and the technology developments they bring to market and use, there’s always going to be a bottleneck somewhere in the data centre. What’s Steve’s take on this? “As the network performance and the computing resource both improve, one
direction that the bottleneck can move is towards the OSS that drives the “operation” of the data centre. It will require considerable complexity to manage and operate a fully autonomous, on demand, distributed, cloud-enabled virtual data centre asset where human operational intervention is a thing of the past.”
Bandwidth and speed seem to be current obsessions within the data centre space, but is it dangerous to focus on these to the exclusion of other key issues? Steve is keen to point out other subjects worthy of attention: “There are certainly a few other obsessions to be had in data centre networking – one of them is security, especially in the era of virtualisation and the cloud. The protection of a company’s business data is obviously critical to its survival.
A comprehensive security approach will therefore encompass three key elements: server security, at-rest encryption and in-flight encryption. There is certainly a lot of hype around server security, but data is, in fact, most at risk when outside of the data centre.
“CIOs must recognise that due to Ciena builds 100G network with NYSE Euronext
New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) Euronext, the world’s most diverse exchange market group, is using the first-ever 100G network - based on Ciena technology - to build an advanced, high-performance data centre network capable of delivering a clear competitive advantage to NYSE Euronext’s customers.
Challenges Increasing opportunity to complete transactions before competitors,
even if only by milliseconds Supporting a business strategy to grow trading volumes globally Delivering marketleading financial networking services
Solution The world’s fastest financial information network Ciena’s single-wavelength 100G technology Ciena’s CN 4200® RS FlexSelect® Advanced Services Platform
38 | DATA CENTRE SOLUTIONS |
www.datacentresols.com
Benefits World’s first 100G, high- performance, low-latency data centre network Provides a competitive advantage: faster information exchange for NYSE Euronext and its customers New revenue streams and opportunities offer customers new and improved services Ten-fold reduction in data centre space and management time versus other solutions
February/March 2011
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