Intel is showing a new Ethernet switching chip designed for software defined networking. At this week’s Intel Developer Forum in San Francisco, the company is showing a top of rack switch reference design code named Seacliff Trail. Intel notes that one of the promises of SDN is that network orchestration can be achieved without vendor lock-in, allowing data center operators to pick the best networking equipment for each part of the network.
Intel also announced that the next update to its Xeon processor E5 family, formerly codenamed “Ivy Bridge-EP,” will be based on its 22nm manufacturing process that includes the world’s first production 3-D Tri-Gate transistors, and is expected to be in production in 2013. In addition, the Intel Xeon processor E7 family, formerly codenamed “Ivy Bridge-EX,” is expected to be in production in 2013. It also uses the 22nm technology. The additional benefits expected with this processor family include increased performance, new advanced reliability features as well as enhanced hardware-based security features such as Intel Secure Key and Intel OS Guard.
