Alcatel-Lucent enables enterprises to deliver applications as services with breakthrough data center switching solution
New blueprint provides complete switching fabric to deliver a high performance, secure network for the data center
Paris, April 5, 2011 — Alcatel-Lucent (Euronext Paris and NYSE: ALU) today announced its new data center switching solution blueprint for enterprises. This unique solution provides a complete data center switching fabric that extends the boundaries of the data center through virtualization of the network with an innovative “mesh” architecture design. This reduces costs and allows an enterprise to leverage its IT resources and optimize application delivery to employees across sites and devices.
Leveraging market leading scalability, low latency and low power consumption, enterprises can move beyond costly client server computing by managing applications as a service across a range of data center deployment models, including multi-site data centers, dedicated departmental or workgroup virtual data centers, and hybrid environments that can integrate service provider offerings. With its application services enabling approach, Alcatel-Lucent opens the door for enterprises to leverage cloud service offerings from service providers to further extend the business value of the solution.
“Network infrastructure is becoming more complicated as new applications, new devices, data center virtualization and cloud computing become requirements for the enterprise,” said Zeus Kerravala, VP and Distinguished Research Fellow, Yankee Group. “Enterprises need an infrastructure that is capable of monitoring and delivering these applications in real-time as if they were a service with low latency and a high quality user experience.”
Alcatel-Lucent’s data center switching solution delivers two architecture breakthroughs: the data center “mesh” and the “pod.” Virtualization in the data center requires enterprises to optimize server-to-server traffic while striving to reduce costs. Alcatel-Lucent’s “pod” architecture addresses this need with the new OmniSwitch 6900 by delivering a highly dense solution that allows enterprises to directly connect top-of-rack switches without relying on a core switch to carry server-to-server traffic.
Providing the ability to connect data center pods together across multiple sites, Alcatel-Lucent’s ground-breaking “mesh” architecture delivers a complete switching fabric that can bring together more than 14,000 server 10Gig ports with only two core switches, delivering end-to-end latency of less than five microseconds and unmatched resiliency.
Building on its Application Fluent Network vision and market leading OmniSwitch 10K Modular LAN Chassis, an enterprise core switch announced last October, Alcatel-Lucent’s data center switching solution blueprint also features the virtual network profile (vNP), which captures application prioritization, switch provisioning, quality of service (QoS), and security requirements. The vNP ensures the network fluently understands and dynamically controls what is needed for application performance, including automating the movement of virtual machines within the fabric. Enterprises benefit from streamlined operations and reduced costs.
“The rise of virtualization has made data center switching a critical piece of an IT strategy for the enterprise,” said Michel Emelianoff, Vice President and General Manager of Alcatel-Lucent Enterprise Networks. “As we build on our Application Fluent Network vision, our new data center switching solution is empowering enterprises to set up a virtualized network for their data centers, allowing users to easily take advantage of real-time applications from any location across any device.”
About the Alcatel-Lucent data center switching solution
Alcatel-Lucent’s data center switching solution delivers any-to-any 10 Gigabit Ethernet (GigE) connectivity, is 40/100 GigE and Fiber Channel over Ethernet (FCoE) ready and leverages Shortest Path Bridging (SPB) technology. The Alcatel-Lucent data center switching solution features the following products:
• The new OmniSwitch 6900 Stackable LAN Switch series as a top-of-rack 10Gig switch for 10GigE capable servers
• The new Alcatel-Lucent OmniVista 2500 Virtual Machine Manager which delivers virtual machine mobility automation and tracking, and integration with standard hypervisors
• The recently released OmniSwitch 6850E Stackable LAN Switch series as a top-of-rack switch for 1GigE capable servers
• The market leading OmniSwitch 10K Modular LAN Chassis, as the data center switching fabric core
• The Alcatel-Lucent Virtual Network Profile (vNP) for enabling the management of applications as services with automated controls
• The Alcatel-Lucent VitalSuite™ performance management suite which powers application and network performance visibility and provides end-to-end service level performance monitoring to ensure users experience quality standards are met
New Alcatel-Lucent OmniSwitch 6900 Stackable LAN Switch
The new Alcatel-Lucent OmniSwitch 6900 Stackable LAN Switch is a high density, 10GigE switch that can be positioned as a top-of-rack or end-of-row switch in a data center. It can also be deployed as either a small network core switch or as a traditional aggregation switch in a 1RU chassis. It provides non-blocking performance for up to 64 ports of 10GigE, a high level of hardware redundancy, front-to-back cooling, power consumption less than 3.5 watts per 10GigE port, and latency less than a microsecond for optimized performance. Its modular design provides readiness to support 40GigE uplinks and Fiber Channel interface modules. The OmniSwitch 6900 will be available in July.
New OmniVista 2500 Virtual Machine Manager
The new Alcatel-Lucent OmniVista 2500 Virtual Machine Manager (VMM), a part of the OmniVista Network Management System, addresses network management constraints related to application virtualization and virtual machine mobility in the data center as well as provides tracking and visibility. OmniVista 2500 VMM prepares, assists, and provides automation of all required network provisioning changes correlated to virtual machine changes without creating new complexities. This automation significantly reduces the overhead costs from time spent and staff support to manage adds/moves/changes of virtual machines in the data center. OmniVista 2500 VMM will be available in July.
Alcatel-Lucent will host a global webinar produced by Interop and in coordination with Interop Las Vegas, with further details on this solution on April 14 at 6 pm GMT/12 pm ET/9aPT.
Application Fluent Networks enable a high-quality end-user experience for delivery of real-time applications along with reduced complexity for IT and network managers. This is achieved through simplified, resilient and low-latency network architecture with built-in security. To improve end user productivity, an Application Fluent Network also features automatic controls for adjusting application delivery based upon profiles, policies and context. Application Fluent Networks also deliver streamlined operations through automated provisioning and low power consumption.
About Alcatel-Lucent (Euronext Paris and NYSE: ALU)
The long-trusted partner of service providers, enterprises, strategic industries and governments around the world, Alcatel-Lucent is a leader in mobile, fixed, IP and Optics technologies, and a pioneer in applications and services. Alcatel-Lucent includes Bell Labs, one of the world’s foremost centres of research and innovation in communications technology.
With operations in more than 130 countries and one of the most experienced global services organizations in the industry, Alcatel-Lucent is a local partner with global reach.
The Company achieved revenues of Euro 16 billion in 2010 and is incorporated in France and headquartered in Paris.
