Cisco's ONE Controller Debuts; Targets SDN
February 04, 2013 14:46 PM
Cisco's SDN architecture gets its keystone with the launch of the Cisco ONE Controller, a software package that supports OpenFlow and its own onePK APIs. Cisco also announced support for hybrid clouds with its Nexus 1000V product and the Nexus 6000, a new data center switch.
VMware's SDN Dilemma: VXLAN or Nicira?
January 31, 2013 20:02 PM
VMware has invested in two overlay network approaches: the VXLAN standard originally conceived by Cisco and STT, drafted by SDN startup Nicira. VMware acquired Nicira for more than a billion dollars. Which will VMware choose? Here’s my take.
Cisco’s Spending Spree: An Analysis
December 06, 2012 07:07 AM
This November Cisco bought three companies in the space of about 10 days. I’ll examine whether these purchases are part of a larger strategic move, or simply the result of internal competition among Cisco’s business units.
SDN Is Business, OpenFlow Is Technology
November 15, 2012 18:14 PM
Software-defined networking (SDN) and OpenFlow aren’t the same thing. We’ll clarify the technical differences and discuss a more important distinction: SDN emphasizes applications that drive network usability and business requirements, while OpenFlow is a technology to link an SDN controller and network devices.
Packets Are the Past, Flows Are the Future
November 14, 2012 16:25 PM
Networking has focused for years on speeds and feeds: how many packets you can handle and how many ports per device. But hosts and applications work with flows, which will force the network to adapt. Here’s why.
Brocade Gets Virtual Networking with Vyatta Acquisition
November 05, 2012 19:59 PM
Brocade is buying Vyatta, which makes a software router. The move puts Brocade squarely into the virtual networking space, with implications for its SDN strategy, security and more.
Brocade Announces VDX 8770: Big, Fast and Fabric
September 12, 2012 10:07 AM
The VDX 8770 is available in a 4- or 8-slot chassis switch that has a backplane, is designed to handle at least 4 Tbs per slot, and offers a new feature called Multi-Gateway L3 Forwarding. Learn more about the latest from Brocade.
Using Cisco's OTV and LISP to Improve Application Availability
August 02, 2012 15:17 PM
Data center and server failures can lead to high-profile service outages. Two Cisco protocols-- OTV and LISP--seek to minimize the effect of failures.
VMware Finally Gets a Network Strategy
July 24, 2012 12:59 PM
After some ill-fated attempts, VMware has left private cloud networking to its partner Cisco. By purchasing Nicira, the company regains control of its virtual network strategy in a big way.
The No. 1 Threat to Private Cloud Deployment: IT Management and ITIL
July 11, 2012 09:00 AM
Private cloud deployments can run into any number of challenges--and IT management is at the top of the list, according to our contributor. Learn why he thinks ITIL and TOGAF can slow IT progress.
Open Compute Racks: Are We Going to Use Them in Our Data Centers?
June 25, 2012 11:13 AM
The Open Compute Project from Facebook may serve as a framework that could lead to cheaper, more efficient data center resources. But will we use Open Compute racks?
BGP Origin Authentication and RPKI
June 14, 2012 09:00 AM
The BGP Origin Authentication is a positive step, writes our blogger, but it has a downside. Learn more about IP address theft.
Networking Vendors Should Step Up With an SDN Strategy
June 07, 2012 12:31 PM
Sure, big-name networking vendors are declaring support for OpenFlow? But what about software-defined networking? Who has an SDN strategy?
BYOD Policies vs. the Realities of Corporate IT
May 24, 2012 10:23 AM
Users have high expectations, thanks to the IT capabilities of their consumer devices. BYOD policies are popular, but can corporate IT hope to offer the same level of service?
Technical Debt Will Have to Be Paid Back Eventually
May 22, 2012 15:15 PM
Is your VMware server a little long in the tooth? Are you reworking the quality-of-service configuration on the WAN link to delay an upgrade? Technical debt is alive and well--just be prepared to pay the price.
Cisco Acquires Data Analytics Company Truviso: Can It Execute?
May 14, 2012 12:09 PM
Cisco says it intends to acquire Truviso. Our blogger asks: Can the networking company execute on this dive into the data analytics trend?
Is Your Load Balancer A Firewall?
May 02, 2012 09:56 AM
If you've already set up a load balancer, do you really need a firewall, too? Our blogger says no.
The Dodgy World Of Vendors' Customer Case Studies
April 12, 2012 12:55 PM
This week I've had a couple of vendors that are heavily promoting their customer case studies. In the last 10 years, I've been on all three sides of the customer case study game, and it's worth pointing out the harsh realities. In my view, customer case studies are a deeply flawed metric for product evaluation because the process around them is highly distorted, if not plain dodgy.
I'm Your Customer, Not Your QA Department!
April 02, 2012 11:00 AM
Bugs are operational failures by vendors and that not only wastes company's time tracking down, but has the long term impact of stopping companies from adopting new products and features for the sake of reliability. Here are 4 misconceptions vendors tell themselves, and us, about software bugs.
The Security Profession Is A Mess
March 21, 2012 10:45 AM
I've been considering how to build a network security plan for a small data center with an online presence. To put the proposal together I needed to develop some sort of structure in the security space so that I could research products and vendors. What I found is that implementing firewalls and IDSes is simple. Finding competent security professionals is not.
Best of the Web
VXLAN termination on physical devices
VXLAN is an Experimental IETF draft of protocols to enable the creation of a large overlay, multi-tenant network.
ONF Deadly Serious About OpenFlow-Based SDNs
: OpenFlow is poised to reach over-hyped status, yet there are practical, useful reasons for keeping an eye on Openflow. The biggest cloud players are involved and driving the feature creation.
Practical Introduction to Applied OpenFlow
Get a primer on the Openflow protocol and what it can do for networking.
On Resilience of Spit-Architecture Networks
This research papers investigates the practical issues in split-architecture networks and the placement of the controllers, such as Openflow controllers, in the network.
