Nuage Networks, an Alcatel-Lucent spin-in venture focused on software defined networking (SDN), made its debut with the introduction of a Virtualized Services Platform(VSP) software suite aimed at automating data center infrastructure.
The Nuage Virtualized Services Platform (VSP) software consists of three elements:
- Virtualized Services Directory (VSD) — it serves as a policy, business logic & analytics engine for the abstract definition of network services. Network administrators can define services using RESTful APIs to the VSD.
- Virtualized Services Controller (VSC) — an SDN controller for programming the network. It serves as the control plane of the data center network, maintaining a full per-tenant view of network and service topologies. Nuage is supporting OpenFlow.
- Virtual Routing & Switching (VRS) — provides event driven automation to connecting cloud services to VPNs. VRS serves as a virtual endpoint for network services, enabling changes in the compute environment to trigger instantaneous policy-based responses in network connectivity.
Nuage Networks said the unique capability of its SDN controller is an ability to program L2-L4 network virtualization across thousands of tenant slices in a heterogeneous environment. Nuage will use standard IETF protocols, such as BGP, to peer with existing networks, allowing it to discover full network topology and reachability. It will use Openflow to distribute switching and routing information to hypervisors within the virtualized datacenter network.
Nuage has trials underway with France’s SFR, Canada’s TELUS, the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, and UK cloud service provider Exponential-e.
Speaking at a launch event in Santa Clara, California, Alcatel-Lucent’s Basil Alwan said the opportunity for Nuage extends beyond transforming the cloud data center, as the “end game” is really about extending cloud bursting end-to-end across the WAN. He coined a new acronym — software defined virtual private networks (SDVPNs) — as the means connecting SDN controllers in the data center with MPLS VPNs.
- Nuage is headed by Sunil Khandekar, who previously was VP of business development for Europe, Middle East, and Africa (EMEA), as well as VP of global product management for Alcatel Lucent’s IP Division.