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techadvisor: DATA CENTERCome TogetherNext-generation data center networks converge data and storageto deliver new levels of performance and pave the way to the cloud.By Patricia SchnaidtVirtualization isn’t the only catalyst driving nextgenerationdata center network design. The rise ofSoftware-as-a-Service applications, cloud services,unified communications and user-generated contentfundamentally changes how people consume networkbandwidth as they work and play.Server virtualization has been the top IT priority forthe last three years, according to ESG’s annual IT spendingintentions survey. The widespread adoption of servervirtualization, coupled with powerful, multicore servers, isdriving change in the heart of the data center—and growingthe opportunity to build higher-performance, lower-latencynetworks to meet growing application demands.The New Data CenterWhether you are building data centers for customers or todeliver cloud services, there’s a big opportunity to embracenext-generation network architectures. The promise lies inachieving new levels of performance and scalability, as well asthe ability to dynamically provision resources to meet changingbusiness needs. Businesses are intrigued with the notionof turning on storage resources for a new business analyticsapplication in a day rather than waiting for weeks for the necessarysetup. The first step to realizing that vision begins withunifying the traditionally separate networks used for servers,storage and data in the data center.The key to a converged data and storage network is a fabric,which is a new breed of switches that is designed to deliververy high-performance, ultra-low latency and high availability.Cisco, Dell, Juniper Networks, HP and other vendors offerconverged infrastructure solutions today. Unlike traditionalhierarchical networks, Ethernet switch fabrics are designed fora flat architecture, so that any node can talk to any other node,Data Center Network Convergence PROS: Achieve new levels of performance. CONS: Must learn a new way of building networks. BOTTOM LINE: Ideal for large-scale data centers.reliably and predictably. Flattening the network in this waymakes it easier to pool virtual resources and dynamically moveVMs to balance workloads, which is essential for workloadmobility, business continuity and cloud services. Fabrics alsoeliminate the need for spanning tree protocol, which enablesa data center to scale more easily.Fabrics use Ethernet and Data Center Bridging technologiesto enable consolidation and to achieve the high performanceand reliability necessary for storage networking. With a unifiedfabric, customers can choose different protocols andstorage devices to meet the varying needs of their applications,and workloads.Lower CostsConverging networks can also deliver cost savings and simplifydata center operations, which is an always welcome benefitfor clients and solution providers alike. For instance, serversuse converged network adapters, which eliminate the need tooutfit servers with multiple adapters, and that simplifies theconfiguration of server racks and cabling. Using an Ethernetfabric also reduces the number of switches needed, which cutscapital costs, and reduces power and cooling requirements fora greener data center.About the author: Patricia Schnaidt is a business technologywriter in San Francisco.8 CHANNEL ADVISOR SPRING 2013