Nortel Debuts New "IT-Thin" Branch Office Architecture

Nortel Networks has launched a consolidated data networking management platform designed to allow enterprise customers to migrate to an "IT-Thin" branch office architecture, reduce costs and increase network efficiency.

The Business Continuity System 3000 provides server-based wide-area data sharing, Windows File System acceleration and local RAID disk caching at branch offices in a modular, 3-slot chassis. The unit features hot-swappable expansion modules that allow for rapid integration of new technologies and services, and an embedded Information Fabric Operating System (IFOS) to provide application hosting and local or remote hardware management capabilities.

Installed at branch offices or the data center, the BCS 3000 eliminates the need to maintain a collection of disparate devices at different sites. According to Nortel Enterprise Solutions CTO Phil Edholm, this will allow companies to both reduce costs and more effectively manage change.

"Many of today's enterprises have unwillingly been forced to accept higher IT costs to support remote branch office computing due to lack of viable alternatives," Edholm said in a statement. "Nortel's BCS 3000 is designed to enable Enterprises to reduce the cost associated with branch computing while consolidating remote data into a secure data center to help achieve regulatory compliance and data recovery goals."

According to Nortel, by adopting the "IT-Thin" infrastructure enabled by the BCS-3000, enterprises can realize infrastructure costs savings of up to 55%. The company also says that its own use of the system has helped reduce wide-area network (WAN) file sharing traffic by up to 90%, and improve end user responsiveness from 68% to 99%.