How do Ethernet switches evolve when the cloud computing era arrives?

Cloud computing must be at the top of the list if we are to make a selection of the hottest terms in the 2009 IT industry. It paints a blueprint of the future for all users: customers need only a laptop or a mobile phone to be able to use Web services to do what we need, even work like supercomputing. Cloud computing is an infinitely powerful computing power that provides us with unlimited space for storage and data management, as well as an infinite number of possibilities for our network usage. Such a beautiful and moving prospect, more is the need to have a strong enough network to support, so as the network load of important equipment-Ethernet switch, but also for the advent of the cloud computing era how to prepare?

Looking at the global Ethernet switch market, it is growing at a rate of 5% in annual compound growth rate, which will reach $24 billion by 2012. Ethernet switch technology from pure two layer of storage forward to three-tier exchange, and then to multi-level exchange, and constantly adapt to new development needs. With the advent of the cloud computing era, Ethernet switches are moving in the direction of high bandwidth, virtualization, multiple services, high security, and green energy.

High bandwidth

Bandwidth is an important criterion to measure the performance of the network, so it becomes an important direction for the development of the Ethernet switch and other equipments. From the initial hundred trillion to gigabit to million, Ethernet continues to meet people's fast growing needs. With the advent of the cloud computing era, enterprise-class applications and personal business gradually migrated to the network, people's demand for bandwidth is rapidly increasing, hundred trillion access, gigabit backbone of the network structure has been outdated, gigabit access, million trillion backbone will be universal. The important component of the cloud computing platform-the data center needs to transmit huge amounts of data, the bandwidth requirements are higher, the support of high-density gigabit interface has become the threshold of switching equipment. With the eventual standardization of 100G Ethernet interfaces, high-performance Ethernet switches that support the 100G interface will be the best choice for large data centers.

ZTE's high-end switches are based on the advanced modular concept of the design, and the use of a multiprocessor parallel processing mechanism and crossbar system architecture, backplane bandwidth up to 5.6Tbps, exchange capacity of 2880Gbps, support 144个万 Gigabit Interface, Smooth support for the future 100G interface, can fully meet the needs of large data center applications. At the same time ZTE can also provide gigabit access, gigabit top of the entire Gigabit Intelligent routing switch, fully meet the needs of gigabit to desktop applications.

Virtualization

The next generation of data centers in terms of transmission, not only does it require the switch to support Gigabit Ethernet and a unified Exchange architecture, it must also adapt to the changes in network architecture such as virtualization, Web2.0 applications and cloud computing, ensuring system availability and minimizing maintenance time (if not completely eliminated) for operational continuity.

To meet the next generation data center high reliability, high availability, virtualization requirements, ZTE's high-end switches using intelligent virtualization Architecture design, the entire virtual architecture to achieve control plane and data plane all the information redundant backup and non-stop forwarding, to avoid business interruption; Through the cross equipment link aggregation technology, Enables multiple uplink load sharing and redundant backups, greatly enhance the reliability of the virtual architecture and improve the utilization of link resources, and can be a number of high-end devices into a logical device, a shared IP management, simplifying network equipment management, simplifying network topology management, improve operational efficiency, reduce maintenance costs.

For medium-and low-end switches, ZTE uses the SES (Super extendable stacking) Hyper-scalable stacking technology to enable multiple switch devices to form a distributed switch (chassis) system, extending the overall exchange capacity and port density, and diversifying the portfolio on demand. Only by upgrading the software can the existing equipment stack with the original equipment, will not cause loss of business, but also to maximize the protection of the original network investment.