White Paper
feature section:
Virtualization and flexible computing
DELL POWER SOLUTIONS | November 200854
T
he 10 Gigabit Ethernet (10GbE) networking
standard established in 2002 was, at that
time, primarily applicable as part of specific
solutions that demanded extremely high bandwidth.
Today, however, the broad adoption of server virtu-
alization is helping reshape networking in the data
center. Because multiple virtualized servers support
heavy workloads on a single physical server, they
compete for I/O capacity. This demand often exceeds
the multiple Gigabit Ethernet (GbE) connections
commonly used for servers today.
The shift toward rack-optimized servers in the
data center has changed network architecture. Today,
top-of-rack switches are deployed to aggregate net-
work connections from rack-mounted servers. Using
rack-mounted equipment has shortened the distance
between switch and servers to an ideal length of less
than 10 m—helping provide a corresponding decrease
in overall costs.
Dell, Intel, and Cisco have responded to the
demand for increased I/O bandwidth and cost effi-
ciency with a joint approach that combines virtualiza-
tion, reliability, and performance features with a
cost-effective 10 m cabling reach for connections
between rack-mounted servers and the top-of-rack
switch. Based on Intel® 10GbE small form-factor plug-
gable + (SFP+) direct attach network adapters and
Virtual Machine Device Queues (VMDq), Cisco Nexus
™
5000 Series Switches, and Intel architecture–based
Dell
™
PowerEdge
™
servers, this ecosystem is designed
to provide an outstanding platform for virtualization.
cabling intel adapters, cisco
switches, and dell serVers
Intel adapters and cabling can provide a simplified
alternative to multiple GbE server adapters in slot-
constrained environments. The Intel 10 Gigabit AF DA
dual-port server adapter is a cost-effective, energy-
efficient adapter that provides direct attach copper
twinaxial cable connection (compliant with the SFP+
MSA SFF-8431 specification) between a server and a
top-of-rack switch. The adapter offers two ports and a
low-profile PCI Express (PCIe) form factor to provide
cost efficiency and energy efficiency for slot-
constrained data centers. Designed in a low-profile
PCIe form factor, these adapters offer 10GbE network
performance with inexpensive SFP+ direct attach
copper connectors and cabling up to 10 m.
Intel 10 Gigabit XF SR server adapters, based on
the Intel 82598EB 10GbE controller, are also designed
to meet the throughput and latency requirements of
bandwidth-intensive applications. These adapters are
designed to provide a significantly reduced power
envelope for additional energy efficiency.
As virtualization becomes pervasive, increasing the
number of high-bandwidth network ports is not always
enough to meet the bandwidth needs of enterprise
data centers. To help support the I/O requirements
of multiple virtual machines in server consolidation
and virtualization scenarios, Dell, Intel, and Cisco have
teamed up to oer organizations a virtualization-tuned
10 Gigabit Ethernet SFP+ direct attach solution.
By Shefali Chinni
Omar Sultan
Nelson Stewart
BoostinG Data Center
throuGhput with
Virtualization-reaDy
10 GiGaBit ethernet
Related Categories:
Cisco Systems
Dell PowerEdge servers
Ethernet
Fibre Channel
Intel
Simplify IT
Virtualization
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Reprinted from
Dell Power Solutions,
November 2008. Copyright © 2008 Dell Inc. All rights reserved.