Datasheet

Unique VCS Fabric Features for
High-Performance Data Centers
TheBrocadeVDX6730withBrocadeVCS
Fabrictechnologyprovidesthefollowing
uniquefeaturesforbuildingaccess-layer
fabricsoptimizedfortheneedsof
modernworkloads:
•Elastic, self-healing fabrics: Brocade
VCS fabrics are self-forming and self-
healing,providingahighlyresilient,
operationallyscalablefoundationforvery
largeordynamicclouddeployments.
Multi-nodefabricscanbemanagedas
asinglelogicalelement,andfabricscan
bedeployedandeasilyre-deployedina
varietyofcongurationsoptimizedtothe
needsofparticularworkloads.
•Efcient multipathing across Layers 1-3:
WithNetworkOS3.0,BrocadeVCSFabric
technologydeliversefcientlyload-
balancedmultipathingatLayers1-3,with
multipleLayer3gateways.Theresultis
veryelasticLayer2andLayer3domains
withmoreeffectivelinkutilizationand,
ultimately,amoreexible,agilenetwork
thathelpsorganizationsrapidlyadaptto
changingbusinessconditions.
•Lowest power consumption: The
Brocade VDX 6730 provides the
industry’slowestpowerconsumption
inaport-dense,2Uformfactor—
imperativeintoday’sdatacenters.
•Scale-out solution for virtualized data
centers: VCSfabricsenabledynamic,
large-scaleservervirtualization
deploymentsinprivateandpublicclouds
withprovenzero-touchVMdiscovery,
networkconguration,andVMmobility.
•Local switching: The Brocade VDX 6730
delivers high performance for intra-
racktrafcinvirtualizedenvironments,
providingultra-lowlatencyof600
nanoseconds for the same ASIC on the
switch.Thishelpsorganizationsdesign
anetworkwithnooversubscriptionfor
deterministicnetworkperformanceand
improvedapplicationresponsetimes,
makingtheBrocadeVDX6730idealfor
performance-demanding environments.
ETHERNET STORAGE CONNECTIVITY
TheBrocadeVDX6730connectstoFCoE,
iSCSI,andNASstorage,andincludesFibre
ChannelportsforconnectivitytoBrocade
Fibre Channel SAN fabrics. The Brocade
VDX6730helpsprotectexistingSAN
investmentsbybridgingSANfabricsand
Ethernet fabrics. The native Fibre channel
portsandFCoEcanbeturnedonwithan
add-onsoftwarelicense.
Server and Storage Virtualization
Automation Support
BrocadeVCSFabrictechnologyoffersunique
featurestosupportvirtualizedserverand
storageenvironments.BrocadeVM-aware
networkautomation,forexample,provides
secureconnectivityandfullvisibilityto
virtualizedserverresourceswithdynamic
learningandactivationofportproles.By
communicatingdirectlywithVMwarevCenter,
iteliminatesmanualcongurationofport
prolesandsupportsVMmobilityacross
VCSfabricswithinadatacenter.
DuringaVMmigration,networkswitchports
mustbedynamicallyconguredtoensurethat
theVMtrafcexperiencesconsistentpolicies
andcongurations(seeFigure2).The
BrocadeAutomaticMigrationofPortProles
(AMPP)featureenablesaseamlessmigration.
PortprolesandMACaddressmapping
arecreatedonanyswitchinthefabric.
Thismappingprovidesthelogicalowfor
trafcfromthesourceporttothedestination
port.AsaVMmigrates,thedestination
portinthefabriclearnsoftheMACmove
andautomaticallyactivatestheport
proleconguration.
InadditiontoprovidingprotectionagainstVM
MACspoong,VM-awarenetworkautomation
andAMPPenableorganizationstofullyalign
virtualserverandnetworkinfrastructure
resources,andrealizethefullbenetsof
servervirtualization.
PROACTIVE MONITORING
Brocade Fabric Watch is an innovative
switchhealthmonitoringfeatureavailable
on the Brocade VDX 6730. Fabric Watch
monitorsthehealthofcertainswitch
componentsand,basedonthethreshold
set,declareseachcomponentasmarginal
ordown.
EASE OF USE AUGMENTED BY
BROCADE NETWORK ADVISOR
BrocadeNetworkAdvisorisaneasy-to-
usenetworkmanagementplatformfor
advanced management of Brocade VCS
fabricsandBrocadeVDXswitchesacross
theentirenetworklifecycle.Organizations
canuseBrocadeNetworkAdvisorto
manageaVCSfabricasasingleentityor
todrilldowntoindividualBrocadeVDX
switchesforfault,inventory,orperformance
management—andtomanagemultipleVCS
fabricsinparallel.Moreimportant,Brocade
NetworkAdvisormanagesbothSANand
IPnetworks,andcanbeusedtodozoning
acrossBrocadeVDXswitchesandFibre
Channel SANs.
BrocadeNetworkAdvisoralsoprovides
simpliedmanagementofAMPP
congurations,andintegritycheckscanbe
performedacrossphysicalBrocadeVDX
congurations,eitherinthesamefabric
oracrossdifferentVCSfabrics.Inaddition,
BrocadeNetworkAdvisorenablesVM-level
monitoringandcanhelpidentifytop-talker
applicationsleveragingsFlowacrossthe
fabric.Finally,BrocadeNetworkAdvisor
providesVCSfabricdiagnostics,including
visualizationofVCSfabrictrafcpathsand
networklatencymonitoringthatenables
faultisolationviahop-by-hopinspection.
Fordetails,visitwww.brocade.com/
management.
BROCADE GLOBAL SERVICES
BrocadeGlobalServiceshastheexpertise
tohelporganizationsbuildscalable,
efcientcloudinfrastructures.Leveraging
15yearsofexpertiseinstorage,networking,
andvirtualization,BrocadeGlobalServices
deliversworld-classprofessionalservices,
technicalsupport,andeducationservices,
enablingorganizationstomaximizetheir
Brocadeinvestments,acceleratenew
technologydeployments,andoptimizethe
performanceofnetworkinginfrastructures.
CLOUD-OPTIMIZED NETWORK
ACQUISITION
Brocadehelpsorganizationseasilyaddress
theirinformationtechnologyrequirements
byofferingexiblenetworkacquisitionand
supportalternativestomeettheirnancial
needs.Organizationscanselectfrom
purchase,lease,andBrocadeNetwork
Subscriptionoptionstoalignnetwork
acquisitionwiththeiruniquecapital
requirementsandriskproles.To
learnmore,visitwww.Brocade.com/
CapitalSolutions.
MAXIMIZING INVESTMENTS
Tohelpoptimizetechnologyinvestments,
Brocade and its partners offer complete
solutionsthatincludeprofessionalservices,
technicalsupport,andeducation.Formore
information,contactaBrocadesales
partner or visit www.brocade.com.