HP introduced a series of software-defined network (SDN) data center switches that deliver advanced automation capabilities and scalability for bandwidth-intensive applications such as Hadoop. The new offerings the HP FlexFabric 12900, an OpenFlow-enabled core switch capable of scaling to meet the demands of increasing virtualized workloads.
HP said its FlexNetwork architecture, powered by the new switches, deliver two times greater scalability and 75 percent less complexity over current network fabrics while reducing network provisioning time from months to minutes.
“For the past 20 years, data center networks have lagged in supporting new enterprise demands for cloud, virtualization and big data,” said Bethany Mayer, senior vice president and general manager, Networking, HP. “Only HP is positioned to deliver the industry’s most complete software-defined data center network fabric with innovations that enable our customers to create a network foundation that will meet their needs today and well into the future.”
The HP FlexFabric 12900 Switch Series is OpenFlow 1.3-capable and offers Layer 2 and Layer 3 features. It boasts 36 Tbps switching capacity in a 23 Rack Units (RU) chassis. The switch delivers 19.2 billion packets per second forwarding for wire-speed performance with no packet loss. Advanced features include MPLS, VPLS and full QoS capabilities. It also supports DCB and FCoE convergence.
Interface options include:
- 480 10GbE ports
- 160 40GbE ports
- 32 100GbE ports
HP FlexFabric 12900 switches are expected to be available worldwide in October 2013.
HP is also introducing FlexFabric Virtual Switch 5900v software, which, in conjunction with the HP FlexFabric 5900 physical switch, enables policies and quality of service to a VMware environment. Integrated Virtual Ethernet Port Aggregator (VEPA) technology provides clear separation between server and network administrations to deliver operational simplicity. The HP FlexFabric Virtual Switch 5900v is expected to be available worldwide in October 2013
The rollout also includes an HP Virtualized Services Router (VSR), which allows services to be delivered on a virtual machine (VM), eliminating unnecessary hardware, by carrier-class software-based Network Function Virtualization (NFV). This product will launch in the second half of the year.
