Arista has announced the 7150S device. It’s low latency, 10 Gigabit and VXLAN terminating. What’s interesting to me is that Brocade and Arista are solving the same problem in different ways. Ivan has determined that Arista have decided to use the Intel chipset (I’m guessing the SM6000?) and then enable the tunnel termination features in the software.
◎ Brocade’s Data Centre Ethernet Strategy
18th September 2012 by Leave a Comment
I attended the Brocade Analyst and Tech Day last week as a guest of Brocade where I got to learn more about product, technology and strategy. In particular, the event was led by the launch of the Brocade VDX 8770.
TL:DR version: I have a better understanding of Brocade’s market strategy, insight into the technology and believe that Brocade has a a good product here. The proof will be in the delivery, and whether Brocade can let go of it’s storage legacy (FibreChannel) and properly commit to Ethernet. They will need to convince networking professionals that their product managers understand the market and requirements to get them to switch to Brocade. At this time, I think Brocade has a chance of making that happen based on the emphasis of VCS Fabric and Automation.
Where I’m less comfortable is that Brocade will rely on external parties to deliver the software automation – that’s a strategy that has NOT worked in the last 20 years. There is no reason to believe this anything has changed.
Contains pictures and words.
Northbound API, Southbound API, East/North – LAN Navigation in an OpenFlow World and an SDN Compass
21st August 2012 by 11 Comments
Have been receiving email with questions on OpenFlow/SDN and looking for a definition blog post that explains how East/West and North/South LAN design can work with Northbound/Southbound APIs
10 Safety Tips on Electrocution for the Network Engineer
30th July 2012 by 13 Comments
Short version – I’d like you to read just these if nothing else.
- A data centre uses a lot of electricity. It’s dangerous.
- Just in case you didn’t pay attention – Electricity is really dangerous. Right, can we move on ?
- You should be scared of being electrocuted. That will keep you safe.
- When electrocution happens, the muscles in your limbs contract. This causes arms and hands to wrap around or clench objects.
- Someone who is being electrocuted can’t let go because of this
- If you touch a person being electrocuted, you will get an electric shock too, and may also be injured.
- The BEST thing to do is to turn the power off.
- Know where the power kill switch is for Data Centre. Or at least the breaker for the area that you are in.
- Don’t work in the Data Centre alone.
- Learn resuscitation. People who have been electrocuted are likely to have breathing problems and heart failure.
People shouldn’t die at work. Think seriously about going home everyday and what you can do to make that happen.
Rant: Our Vendor Partners Dont Have an SDN Vision
19th June 2012 by 14 Comments
There is an old saying “A man with his eyes fixed on Heaven doesn’t see where he is going”. It’s an almost perfect description of how the major vendors are bringing Software Defined Networking to the market.
The consistent message from all the vendors and especially the Cisco, Juniper and Brocade is that there are “no use cases for SDN”. In the last three months, this has been a constantly repeated statement both publicly and privately. This beggars belief that vendors can’t see immediate needs that deliver long term gains.
I suspect that the root of this problem is the big companies want to solve big problems. And by solving big problems they figure that they can make big revenue. Alright, I get that. It’s understandable that large organisations need a constant revenue stream to feed the insatiable maws of their shareholders. However, the vendors re also missing the most real and immediate problem of networking today. Simply, Networking is too hard.
Vendors haven’t developed tools that keep the complexity of networking under control. Complexity can be reduced to this: “I don’t have big problems, I have lots of small problems.” You can have debates about addressing complexity and how to attack it, but it nearly always boils down to this: start small.
More on 10GBase USR Optics
24th May 2012 by 2 Comments
In November 2011, I posted “What Are 10 Gigabit Ultra Short Reach (USR) Optics ?” where I tried to what is the actual difference between these Ultra Short Reach (USR) optics and the certified 10Gbase-SR products. I recently received the following from an anonymous source. I’ve made some small edits to protect identity and improve the text.
How TRILL (and SPB) Can Reduce STP Risk and Mitigate Impact
13th May 2012 by 3 Comments
In this post, I’m looking at network designs with ECMP cores using TRILL or SPB, I’m realising that STP is equally improved in terms of risk and performance by reducing the STP domain size which leads to better stability, reduced risk and impact mitigation
OpenFlow Might Lower CapEx While SDN Will Increase OpEx
13th April 2012 by 20 Comments
A lot of people have talked extensively about OpenFlow making significant changes to the networking business. In particular, many writers have focussed on the possibility that OpenFlow enables a choice of using low cost network equipment instead of the expensive networking equipment that we use today.
Well, that’s highly unlikely.
ConsultoBabble Deployment Analysis Report for Cloud Deployment of EtherealMind.Com
5th April 2012 by 11 Comments
I don’t use a Cloud for any of my blogs or email services. I’ve looked at three different cloud providers including Amazon, Rackspace and others. I guessed that they all would work, more or less. Except they cost between four to ten times the solution from a managed service provider. Here is my exit report for the fictitious consulting engagement with myself.
My Knowledge Management Process With PDF Files – Part 2
13th March 2012 by 7 Comments
I’ve been asked a few times about how I organise my PDF files and keep track of documents. This post looks at my workflow for capturing, storing, tagging and organising my Knowledge Management system. This is Part 2
