QLogic Teams with Avaya, Fires Another Bullet Across the FCoE Switching Landscape

Provides flexible allocation of Fibre Channel, 10GbE, iSCSI and FCoE ports without top-of-rack switches

By Deni Connor
Senior Analyst, Storage Strategies NOW
November 2010

QLogic recently announced a new partnership with Avaya to provide its ‘Bullet’ 10GbE converged network switching technology for Avaya’s Virtual Enterprise Network Architecture (VENA).

The company will introduce an eight-port Converged Network Switching Module for Avaya that provides Fibre Channel, 10Gb Ethernet, iSCSI or Fibre Channel over Ethernet (FCoE) connectivity. The module, which incorporates QLogic’s ‘Bullet’ FCoE switching ASIC, allows any port to be dynamically allocated to any storage or Ethernet networking protocol. This flex port technology provides flexibility and the ability to switch protocol support on-the-fly to accommodate virtual and physical servers in today’s converged enterprise and cloud computing environments. Flex port technology also eases network re-configuration, provisioning, policy changes and management – meaning users can choose the right mix of Ethernet or Fibre Channel connectivity to support their business-critical applications and change those configurations as business and network needs change.

When configured for Fibre Channel, the module lets servers outfitted with QLogic converged network adapters (CNAs) to be attached to Avaya Ethernet switches to access Fibre Channel storage area networks (SAN) without the need to purchase and install top-of-the-rack FCoE switches.

Specifically, Avaya will partner with QLogic for converged networking, with VMware for virtualization and cloud infrastructure, with Coraid for converged Ethernet SAN storage and with Silver Peak Systems for WAN optimization and acceleration. The company’s VENA is built on open industry standards and features a fabric that spans the entire network. The VENA Virtual Services Fabric is built on enhanced IEEE Shortest Path Bridging and supports co-existing services.

Avaya’s Virtual Services Platform incorporates the Avaya VSP 9000 and the Ethernet Routing Switch 8600 and 8800 products. The company is also developing top-of-the-rack switches to support 10Gbe to 40/100GbE and FCoE. The VSP 9000 offers Layer 2 and 3 network virtualization.

QLogic’s new switch module uses the ‘Bullet’ ASIC to pool and abstract SAN and LAN connections between physical and virtual machines and storage. It allocates bandwidth dynamically across eight connections, replacing switching products that must be manually configured. The Bullet is based on a scalable, non-blocking, standards-based crossbar switch architecture that allows server, network or storage administrators to add, move and change network connections in minutes rather than the hours required of manually configured switches and adapters.

SSG-NOW Assessment
The QLogic-Avaya partnership signals further penetration for QLogic into converged network switching infrastructures. In addition to Avaya, the company now provides FCoE switching technology for HP’s A5820 data center Ethernet switch and for HP’s Virtual Connect Flex Fabric module for HP BladeSystem servers. We expect to see the Bullet gain further traction among Ethernet switch vendors who view Brocade as a competitive threat—vendors who are looking for converged network switching technology to compliment their existing Ethernet offerings and enable them to address the broader, emerging converged networking market opportunity.

Note: The information and recommendations made by Storage Strategies NOW are based upon public information and sources and may also include personal opinions both of Storage Strategies NOW and others, all of which we believe to be accurate and reliable. As market conditions change however, and not within our control, the information and recommendations are made without warranty of any kind. All product names used and mentioned herein are the trademarks of their respective owners. Storage Strategies NOW, Inc. assumes no responsibility or liability for any damages whatsoever (including incidental, consequential or otherwise), caused by your use of, or reliance upon, the information and recommendations presented herein, nor for any inadvertent errors which may appear in this document.