Microsemi Enhances Switchtec PCIe Switch for Fabric Connectivity and Composability of Multi-Host GPU and NVMe SSD Systems
Switchtec PAX PCIe Advanced Fabric Switch Being Showcased During OCP Summit March 20-21 Demonstrating Dynamic Multi-Host GPU and NVMe SSD Composability
ALISO VIEJO, Calif.—March 15, 2018—Microsemi Corporation (Nasdaq: MSCC), a leading provider of semiconductor solutions differentiated by power, security, reliability and performance, today announced enhancements to its Switchtec PCIe advanced Fabric Switch (PAX), which now provides high-performance fabric connectivity and composability for multi-host graphics processing unit (GPU) and NVMe solid state drive (SSD) systems. Microsemi will be showcasing a demonstration of the new device during the Open Compute Project (OCP) Summit March 20-21, 2018 in San Jose, California.
As the use of GPUs for deep learning, artificial intelligence and machine learning make groundbreaking improvements in areas of image classification, speech recognition, autonomous driving, bioinformatics and video analytics, the need for efficient parallel GPU computing continues to grow. Microsemi’s Switchtec PCIe advanced fabric switches provide a scalable, low-latency and cost-effective multi-host interconnect for a network of GPUs, NVMe SSDs and other PCIe endpoints. The Switchtec PAX product can be used to create a flexible fabric interconnect to a shared pool of GPUs and/or NVMe SSDs using standard operating system drivers. System management is simplified through a fabric application programming interface (API), significantly reducing time to market and development cost for multi-host systems.
“Our Switchtec PAX switch enables GPU resources to be allocated to match workload requirements and maximize efficiency,” said Andrew Dieckmann, vice president of marketing for data center solutions at Microsemi. “Using the dynamic partitioning and multi-host SR-IOV sharing features available on our Switchtec PAX switches, GPU resources can be ‘composed’ or dynamically allocated to a specific host or set of hosts in real-time using standard host drivers.”
According to market research firm IndustryARC, the GPU machine learning market is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of nearly 38 percent till 2024. The firm also notes advanced technologies such as low power consumption, high throughput and flexibility will drastically increase the adoption of machine learning applications across the globe.
Product Demonstrations During OCP Summit March 20-21
Microsemi’s PAX advanced fabric PCIe switch will be showcased during the OCP Summit March 20-21, 2018 at the Hilton San Jose. Dynamic allocation from a pool of GPUs and NVMe SSDs over a PCIe fabric to multiple hosts will be demonstrated. To schedule a meeting with Microsemi, contact Dimitry Melts, senior director of Microsemi’s data center vertical, at Dimitry.Melts@microsemi.com.
Switchtec PAX Family Features
Microsemi’s Switchtec PAX family comprises switches from 96 lanes to 24 lanes, providing:
- High-performance PCIe fabric connectivity overcoming the limitations of the PCIe Specification for multi-host systems
- Multi-host sharing of SR-IOV NVMe SSDs, GPUs and other PCIe endpoints
- Virtualization of host PCIe domains and SR-IOV endpoints
- Software development kit (SDK) for virtualization of SR-IOV endpoints, and for enclosure management
- One of the industry’s most flexible port bifurcation, from x2 to x16 lanes per port
- High port density, with up to 48 ports
- Advanced error reporting
- Error containment for surprise-plug and unplug to prevent system crashes
- Advanced diagnostics and debug features to identify, diagnose and fix problems
- Separate Refclk Independent SSC (SRIS) for cabled PCIe and lower cost system designs
Product Availability
Microsemi’s Switchtec PAX advanced fabric PCIe switches are sampling now to lead customers. For more information, visit https://www.microsemi.com/products/storage/switchtec-pcie-storage-switches/switchtec-pcie-advanced-fabric-switches or contact sales.support@microsemi.com.
About Microsemi’s PCI Express Product Portfolio
Microsemi is a premier supplier of high value-add PCIe products including the scalable, low power, high-reliability PFX family of PCIe Gen3 fanout switches, the programmable PSX family of PCIe Gen3 storage switches, the advanced PAX family of PCIe Gen3 fabric Switches and the low power, multi-protocol, adaptive EQNOX™ family of signal conditioners with FlexEQ™ equalization technology supporting PCIe Gen3 and PCIe Gen2. Microsemi’s PCIe family is key to building low power and high-reliability data center, communications, defense and industrial servers; workstations; switches; routers; cellular infrastructure and test equipment. For more information about Microsemi’s PCIe portfolio, visit http://www.microsemi.com/products/drivers-interfaces-and-pcie-switches/pcie-switches/pcie-switches.
About Microsemi’s Product Portfolio for Data Center
Microsemi is a premier supplier of innovative semiconductor, board, system, software and services for enterprise and hyperscale data centers, enabling high performance, secure, low power and reliable infrastructure for scalable deployments. Microsemi technologies drive innovation in applications including storage systems, server storage, NVMe solutions, Ethernet switching, rack scale architecture, data center interconnect, board management, network timing and power subsystems. Building on a track record of technology leadership, Microsemi’s data center infrastructure portfolio is transforming networks that connect, store and move big data, while lowering the total cost of ownership of deploying next generation services.
The portfolio includes high performance NVMe storage controllers, NVRAM drives, SAS/SATA host bus adapters and RAID controllers enabling high capacity storage architectures, high density PCIe switching and firmware for rack scale architectures, PCIe re-drivers, and Ethernet PHYs for intra-rack connectivity. Microsemi’s product portfolio also includes clock and power management, IEEE1588 integrated circuits (ICs) and NTP servers for synchronization across the data center, as well as field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs) and system-on-chip (SoC) FPGAs to perform secure system management of servers and storage. For more information, visit http://www.microsemi.com/applications/data-center.
About Microsemi
Microsemi Corporation (Nasdaq: MSCC) offers a comprehensive portfolio of semiconductor and system solutions for aerospace & defense, communications, data center and industrial markets. Products include high-performance and radiation-hardened analog mixed-signal integrated circuits, FPGAs, SoCs and ASICs; power management products; timing and synchronization devices and precise time solutions, setting the world’s standard for time; voice processing devices; RF solutions; discrete components; enterprise storage and communication solutions, security technologies and scalable anti-tamper products; Ethernet solutions; Power-over-Ethernet ICs and midspans; as well as custom design capabilities and services. Microsemi is headquartered in Aliso Viejo, California, and has approximately 4,800 employees globally. Learn more at www.microsemi.com.
