Tuesday, June 24, 2014

Equinix Picks Ciena 6500 for Metro Connectivity and Cloud Exchange

Equinix is utilizing Ciena’s 6500 platform in its metropolitan networks in the United States, Europe, Middle East and Asia-Pacific.  The deployment supports 100G connectivity to Service Provider and enterprise customers today – with a path to 400G and beyond in the future.

In addition, Ciena’s V-WAN network resource broker and scheduling application, as well as its network management capabilities, lay the foundation for multi-layer SDN control.

Ciena’s coherent optical technology and software also supports the Equinix Cloud Exchange, a new service that combines the automated interconnection of cloud, network and managed service providers with advanced service orchestration, providing enterprises with simple, scalable, direct access to multiple cloud services.

Ciena said this deployment illustrates how its OPn architecture can facilitate network integration within and between the data center to transform connectivity, compute and store into a programmable platform for a variety of new services.

The Equinix Cloud Exchange gives customers the ability to create a private and secure 1Gb or 10Gb connection to transfer data between their own infrastructure and multiple cloud providers, such as Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Microsoft Azure.

“Many Equinix customers are looking for the ability to expand their networks globally and they require high speed connections within a metro, or globally, between our IBX data centers. Through our relationship with Ciena, we can offer customers a dynamic and automated interface to the hundreds of network and cloud service providers inside our data centers and meet their needs for next-generation connectivity solutions,” stated Ihab Tarazi, Chief Technology Officer at Equinix.

“Enterprises and service providers today require ‘on-demand’ network capabilities, and market leaders like Equinix are in an excellent position to capitalize on this industry shift. We’ve worked closely with Equinix to design an intelligent, open and programmable network architecture that delivers elastic, high-speed, high-performance for inter- and intra- data center connectivity. Equinix Cloud Exchange customers in major markets worldwide will have access to affordable, private connectivity on demand to support their cloud and network service requirements,” said Francois Locoh-Donou, Senior Vice President, Global Products Group, Ciena.

http://www.equinix.com
http://www.ciena.com

  • In April, Equinix launched its new Cloud Exchange, an advanced interconnection solution that enables seamless, on-demand and direct access to multiple clouds and multiple networks.  The goal is to give enterprises direct access to services for building sophisticated hybrid cloud solutions inside Equinix International Business Exchange (IBX) data centers.
    With the Equinix Cloud Exchange customers can connect to Microsoft Azure ExpressRoute in Silicon Valley, Washington, D.C. and London with planned expansions into 13 additional markets by the end of 2014.  Customers can also access Amazon Web Services via the Equinix Cloud Exchange in Silicon Valley, Washington, D.C. and London. In addition, Equinix is working with other key cloud and network service providers to provide access to their services via the Cloud Exchange. Equinix provides a Cloud Exchange Portal and APIs to simplify the process of managing connections to multiple cloud services. Businesses can use the Portal and APIs to allocate, monitor and provision virtual circuits in near real-time with the provisioning of those circuits automated end-to-end from the Cloud Exchange to the service provider.

    Equinix expects to be serving a total of 19 markets by the end of 2014 with its Cloud Exchange.

tw telecom to Launch Ethernet via Equinix Cloud Exchange

tw telecom is preparing to launch Business Ethernet connectivity directly to the new Equinix Cloud Exchange.  The carrier expects to be the first to provide Ethernet service in the Seattle SE3 International Business Exchange (IBX) data center facility. The service will enable seamless and direct access to multiple cloud services and providers on the Equinix Cloud Exchange

The presence in Seattle also enables tw telecom to offer SE3 tenants secure performance and optimized connectivity directly to the Amazon Web Services (AWS) cloud via a direct connection to the Western US and GovCloud regions.

"We are excited to have tw telecom connect to SE3 and look forward to supporting their present and future data center needs," said Jim Poole, vice president, global service providers, Equinix. "Seattle is a very strategic market for our customers as they implement robust networking and cloud solutions to facilitate business growth. This relationship with tw telecom demonstrates our ability to collaborate with one of the nation's top network service providers to offer a robust IT backbone to our customers."

"As our customers' business needs continue to evolve, security, capacity and access to the cloud are critical priorities for us to help solve their most pressing challenges," said David King, vice president and general manager, tw telecom Seattle. "Expanding our relationship with Equinix here in Seattle is a critical step in helping solve capacity challenges while offering more efficient access to the cloud for our customers. Working with Equinix and leveraging its Cloud Exchange ecosystem provides the speed to market, cost efficiency and return on investment that are paramount to our customers' success."

http://www.equinix.com
http://www.twtelecom.com



  • Earlier this month, Level 3 Communications agreed to acquire tw telecom in a deal that will combine its global fiber network and international data centers with tw telecom's extensive metro footprint in major U.S. markets. The stock-and-cash transaction is valued at $40.86 per TWTC share, or $5.7 billion in aggregate, based on market close as of June 13, 2014. tw telecom stockholders will receive $10 cash and 0.7 shares of Level 3 common stock for each share of tw telecom common stock that is owned at closing.



Nutanix Lands OEM Deal with Dell for Data Center Appliances

Dell will offer a new family of converged infrastructure appliances based on Nutanix web-scale technology under an OEM deal announced by the firms.

The companies said the combination of Nutanix’s software running on Dell’s servers delivers a flexible, scale-out platform that brings IT simplicity to modern data centers.

Specifically, the new Dell XC Series of Web-scale Converged Appliances will be built with Nutanix software running on Dell PowerEdge servers, and will be available in multiple variants to meet a wide range of price and performance options. The appliances will deliver high-performance converged infrastructure ideal for powering a broad spectrum of popular enterprise use cases, including virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI), virtualized business applications, multi-hypervisor environments and more.

Nutanix’s web-scale software runs on all popular virtualization hypervisors, including VMware vSphere, Microsoft Hyper-V and open source KVM, and is uniquely able to span multiple hypervisors in the same environment. The Dell XC Series appliances are scheduled for availability in the fourth quarter of this year and will be sold by Dell sales teams and channel partners worldwide.

The agreement also includes joint sales, marketing, support and service investments, as well as alignment of product roadmaps.

“Nutanix is a recognized leader in the converged infrastructure market with a software-driven offering that fits with Dell’s efforts to redefine datac enter economics and simplify IT for our customers,” said Alan Atkinson, vice president and general manager, Dell Storage. “By combining market-leading infrastructure and software technologies from both companies with Dell’s world-class go-to-market capabilities, we believe our new solutions will be positioned to be a significant player in the growing, multi-billion dollar converged infrastructure market.”

http://www.nutanix.com/2014/06/24/nutanix-announces-global-agreement-with-dell/


Puppet Labs Extends Automation from Servers to Networking/Storage

Puppet Labs is extending its software automation tools across networking and storage platforms for data centers.  The company's Enterprise product already is the leading server automation solution.

The newly launched Puppet Supported certification program now aims to ensure interoperability of the Puppet automation tools across an entire data center.  Launch partners for this program include Arista Networks, Brocade, Cisco, Cumulus Networks, Dell, EMC, F5, Huawei and NetApp. Puppet Labs is certifying Puppet Enterprise for platforms and devices.

Puppet Labs said this collaboration will allow organizations to deploy software faster and with fewer errors, iterate more quickly, and rapidly adapt to fast-changing business needs.
“With the Puppet Supported Program, we're extending our software automation leadership into networking and storage, allowing organizations to break down the barriers between IT silos that have traditionally created bottlenecks and delays," said Luke Kanies, founder and CEO of Puppet Labs. "Our goal is to extend the reach of automation to every device in the data center, making it easier than ever for organizations to deliver great software quickly and reliably. That's a big competitive advantage in today's technology-driven business environment."

http://puppetlabs.com/about/press-releases/puppet-labs-partners-leading-vendors-deliver-automation-networking-and-storage
  • Earlier this month, Puppet Labs announced $40 million in new funding from existing investors Cisco, Google Ventures, Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, Triangle Peak Partners, True Ventures and VMware.  Puppet Labs, which develops IT automation software, said it now has over 18,000 enterprises using its software to accelerate operations. The software can automate repetitive tasks, deploy applications across multiple machines, proactively manage infrastructure where on-premise or in the cloud.
    Puppet Labs is based in Portland, Oregon, and has about 300 employees. The company will use the new funding to expand internationally.

    Puppet's has now raised a total of $86 million since June 2009.

Violin Memory's All Flash Array Scales to 280TB per Rack

Violin Memory unveiled its Concerto 7000 All Flash Array along with new software that adds synchronous and asynchronous replication and metro cluster capabilities.

Violin's Concerto 7000 All Flash Array scales to 280TB in a fully configured, super-dense 18RU, low power footprint. The platform delivers micro-second latency for up to 20x faster application response times.  Flash also uses 90 percent less floor space, power and cooling.

Violin's Concerto enterprise data services software also offers continuous data protection, WAN optimized replication and in-flight encryption that can be configured on a LUN-by-LUN basis. The advanced software capabilities ensure long flash life with array-wide flash management, wear leveling and vRAID.

“The Concerto 7000 All Flash Array helps our customers deliver ‘Business in a Flash’, by transforming IT resources into competitive assets that create new possibilities based on the performance, data protection, and transactional capabilities we design into our all-flash solutions,” said Violin Memory CEO Kevin DeNuccio.

http://www.violin-memory.com/

IEEE Forms Study Group to Address Automotive Ethernet

A new IEEE 802.3 Single Twisted Pair 100 Mb/s Ethernet Study Group has been formed to explore the market opportunities and needs for a 100 Mbps speed for Ethernet in automotive networking.

The IEEE said that many vehicle manufacturers, and their suppliers, desire IEEE 802.3 standards-based interoperable solutions in order to enable and extend a multi-vendor eco-system for the automotive industry.

“A 100 Mb/s single twisted pair solution provides another option for Ethernet used in networking automotive technology systems. The new study group expects to lay the groundwork for another single twisted pair technology standard and ‘future proof’ these systems, while maintaining traditional Ethernet compatibility with higher-performance 1000BASE-T1 links that may also be used in the car,” said Thomas Hogenmüller, chair of the IEEE 802.3 Single Twisted Pair 100 Mb/s Ethernet Study Group and team manager, E/E-Architecture Engineering Communication Technologies, with Robert Bosch GmbH. “The 100 Mb/s option will also allow for a more rapid adoption of driver assist and other vehicle safety systems into low to mid-range vehicles.”

“Automotive manufacturers and suppliers require standards-based networking to enable and extend the industry’s multi-vendor eco-system,” said David Law, chair of the IEEE 802.3 Ethernet Working Group and distinguished engineer with HP Networking. “This study group will provide the opportunity to explore the possible development of a single twisted pair 100 Mb/s Ethernet standard supporting automotive applications, as well as broader transportation and distributed applications.”

http://www.ieee.org

NTT Com Opens 4th Data Center in Malaysia

NTT Communications opened its Malaysia Cyberjaya 4 data center in Cyberjaya, Selangor.

The new data center, which is NTT Communications’ 146th data center worldwide. is a self-owned, self-built and self-operated facility that measures 87,000 square feet -- twice the size of Cyberjaya 3.  The data center is connected via NTT Com's Asia Submarine-cable Express (ASE) to its data centers in Singapore.  The Malaysia Cyberjaya 4 Data Center is certified to the latest global standards, including TIA-942 Tier 3 equivalence, ISO27001:2005, GBI, LEED and PCIDSS.

http://www.ntt.com/aboutus_e/news/data/20140423.html

Mellanox to Acquire Israel's Integrity Project

Mellanox Technologies announced its intent to acquire privately-held Integrity Project, which includes an accomplished team of software technology veterans.

Based in Ramat-Gan, Israel, Integrity Project was formed out of an elite military technology unit, specializing in the fields of connectivity, low-level development, real-time applications, and security.

Mellanox said the acquisition will broaden its customer base by adding software solutions designed to enable customers to achieve optimal performance from all interconnect components.

“The new and emerging Web 2.0 and cloud applications that influence our daily lives depend on the rapid handling of data,” said Eyal Waldman, president and CEO of Mellanox Technologies. “We expect that the Integrity Project acquisition will further enhance our software team’s capabilities to provide the best compute and storage platforms, such as CloudX™, to enable our customers to best meet the growing demands of applications and the usage of the data within high-performance, Web 2.0, cloud, and storage environments. We welcome the talented team from Integrity Project and look forward to their contribution to Mellanox’s continued growth.”

http://www.mellanox.com
https://he-il.facebook.com/IntegrityProject

Agilent Collaborates with China Mobile on 5G

Agilent Technologies agreed to collaborate with China Mobile Communications on the next–generation 5G wireless communication systems.

Agilent will actively support the research and development programs on 5G, led by China Mobile, and provide test and measurement solutions for next-generation 5G wireless communication systems.

As the deployment and commercial operation of 4G systems are speeding up, technologists worldwide have begun searching for next-generation wireless solutions to meet the anticipated demands in the 2020 era given the explosive growth of mobile Internet, and this will lead us to the fifth generation 5G.

The 5G research areas of CMRI will focus on the major technical aspects of 5G, including large-scale antenna systems (LSAS), full-duplex radio, energy efficiency and spectral efficiency co-design, and new signaling/control mechanisms to achieve the main theme of "green and soft."

"Our strong collaboration with CMRI on the 5G research will allow us to lead the technology exploration of next-generation wireless communication systems," said Andy Botka, Agilent vice president and general manager of the Microwave and Communications Division. “We will provide the CMRI research teams with the measurement expertise required to design, develop and validate their new 5G systems and set up the 5G prototype test-bed."

http://www.agilent.com/find/5G