In-depth analysis of edge switch intelligence and performance considerations

Source: Internet
Author: User

Edge switches are quite common. So I have studied the smart and performance considerations of edge switches. Here I will share with you, hoping to help you. If the edge switch device of the network integrates QoS, rate limit, ACL, PBR, and sFlow into the hardware chip, the Intelligence will not affect the line rate forwarding performance of the basic layer 2 and Layer 3, therefore, the end-to-end smart network can be carried out on a large scale, so that the entire network not only has global connection capabilities, but also has global network intelligence.

From the past to the present, there have been several different ideas in the network design philosophy. Based on the two key points of tpassthrough and intelligence, the different degree of emphasis affects the Network Design: tpassthrough emphasizes connection capabilities, simple management, and low costs; intelligent emphasizes control and value-added capabilities, therefore, most of them are complex and cost-effective. In fact, the design is not competitive, only depends on the actual needs of users and budget.

Therefore, the network architecture can be a layer-2 architecture with poor scalability, or a layer-3 architecture with high prices; most of the plans will strike a certain balance between the two, which leads to two different architectures-fold backbone network architecture and distributed backbone network architecture. The folding backbone intelligently shrinks to the upper-layer aggregation device, while the access device on the lower layer only emphasizes passthrough and wire speed. From the perspective of intelligent control, this is a centralized design.

The two architectures have significant differences on the network edge. The folding backbone uses layer-2 switching as the edge, while the distributed backbone uses layer-3 switching as the edge. If the intelligence of the network is determined simply by switching or routing, of course, layer-3 switching is better than layer-2 switching. However, as more and more businesses are activated on the same network, the intelligent problem of the network is no longer simply determined by Layer 2/Layer 3. More often, support for QoS, security shielding, network traffic statistics and monitoring, and Policy Routing PBR, can more effectively determine the intelligence of the network. Therefore, with this concept, no matter the edge switch device in the folding backbone is a layer-3 edge switch device in the distributed backbone. Among the layer-2 and layer-3 switch devices of many manufacturers, users can make clearer choices based on their actual business needs.

QoS execution capability

In multimedia services, data, voice, and images have different requirements for latency, jitter, and packet loss. In order to better execute multimedia services, it is best for users to add QoS tags to the data packets, edge switches, read QoS and execute them, or for untrusted sources, this method is used to classify duplicate rows, Mark QoS with duplicate rows, and execute them. QoS has a layer-2 CoS service level in the past) or a layer-3 IPPrecedenceIP priority level. However, the difference service DiffSew is now supported. Therefore, edge switches play a critical role in end-to-end QoS support as QoS inbound or outbound sites. Hardware Support for DiffSew is one of the key functions of the switch.

Capability of specified access rate

Although the popularization of Gigabit Ethernet makes backbone networks have ample bandwidth, such resources are not inexhaustible. In addition, it is the most feasible method to control the effective use of edge bandwidth. Therefore, the edge switch interface should not only provide the setting capability of 10 Mbit/s, it is also necessary to provide speed limits based on port, priority, VLAN, and ACL classification, and it is best to enable inbound or outbound speed limits, ranging from kb to Gbit/s, the granularity is suitable for hardware chips, generally around K.

It must be emphasized that the hardware processing requires that edge devices do not affect their ability to forward data packets at the wire speed due to the startup speed limit, which is an important performance indicator for edge devices. With the complete speed limit function without affecting network performance indicators, You can effectively manage network bandwidth resources.

Security shielding capability of ACL

In the network, the ACL not only allows network administrators to set network policies, but also allows or denies the control of individual users or specific data streams. It can also be used to enhance network security shielding. From simple PingtoDeath attacks and TCPSync attacks to more complex hacker attacks, ACL can be blocked. Two types of ACLs are available: Standard ACL and extended ACLExtendedACL. Whether the edge is a layer-2 switch or edge switch, it is best to support standard ACL and extended ACL, in order to distribute the security shield and policy execution capabilities of the network to the edge of the network.

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