The Transition to 10 Gigabit Ethernet Unified Networking: Cisco and Intel Lead the Way

e Transition to 10 Gigabit Ethernet Unied Networking: Cisco and Intel Lead the Way
5
• Ease of use. Because the Open FCoE
approach uses standard DCB-capable 10
Gigabit Ethernet adapters that comply
with broad, well-known Ethernet
standards, IT can use existing knowledge
to congure and manage these adapters
for FCoE deployments. In fact, IT
can standardize on a single product or
product family for all LAN and SAN
connectivity. FCoE initiator integration
into the OS also means common OS-
based tool support across a product
family, or even the use of adapters from
multiple vendors, as they become available.
Native Initiator Success: iSCSI
iSCSI provides an excellent example of
the success of native storage initiators
integrated into the OS. Today, all major
OSs include native iSCSI support,
delivering the same benets as already
discussed. Native iSCSI initiators have
continued to mature and now support
advanced adapter features and platform
advancements that help deliver excellent
performance. In fact, Intel recently
demonstrated a standard Intel® Ethernet
10 Gigabit Server Adapter supporting
1.25 million I/O operations per second
(IOPS) using the native iSCSI initiator
in Microsoft Windows Server* 2008
Release 2.
6
IT departments standardizing on Intel®
Ethernet Server Adapters for iSCSI
connectivity can use a single initiator, TCP/
IP stack, and set of management tools and
IT policies. Easier server provisioning,
lower likelihood of human error, and
simpler management help enable lower
capital and operational expenditures. is
standardization also allows IT to gain the
benets of simplied management and
integrated tools. Intel expects the same
benets for Open FCoE–based solutions.
INTEL AND CISCO:
LEADING THE WAY TO
A UNIFIED FABRIC
As established leaders in Ethernet, Intel
and Cisco are uniquely positioned to lead
the industry transition to a unied 10
Gigabit Ethernet fabric. Together these
companies led the DCB standards eort,
and they were the rst companies to
include DCB and FCoE support in their
products: Cisco in switches, and Intel in
server adapters. Unied fabric support is
a critical feature in products from each
company, and these solutions enable
infrastructure simplication, oer industry-
leading virtualization support, and lay the
foundation for dynamic, on-demand cloud
computing models.
Intel
®
Ethernet Unified
Networking
Ethernet is the foundation of unied
networking, and Intel has 30 years of
experience delivering high-quality Ethernet
products. Intel is the volume leader in
Ethernet adapter shipments and has led
the industry through speed transitions and
enhancements to the Ethernet standard.
Broad Support Commitment
Intel® Ethernet products have the broadest
OS support in the industry, and Intel’s
long-term product plans align future
products with new server platform
capabilities and upcoming data center
trends, including cloud computing. Intel
is expanding the capabilities of its trusted
Ethernet product line to incorporate FCoE
for true unied networking. Qualication
by leading storage vendors means that
customers can be condent that servers
with the Intel Ethernet Server Adapter
X520 installed will interoperate with their
storage systems.
Cost-Effective Efficiency
Standardizing on Intel Ethernet 10 Gigabit
Server Adapters uses Ethernet economics
for cost-eective, broad-based unied
networking deployment. A single Intel
Ethernet Server Adapter X520 supports
FCoE, iSCSI, NAS, and LAN trac for
true unied networking without the need
for expensive upgrades.
In terms of performance, the Intel Ethernet
Server Adapter X520 combines high
throughput, intelligent hardware-based
ooads with native OS initiators, and
stable hardware, while leaving processor
cycles available for application processing.
ese adapters ooad the main data paths
to improve FCoE throughput. e net
result is excellent FCoE performance for
real-world workloads.
In real-world implementations, SAN
performance is determined by a number of
factors, including application threading and
storage target processor and disk speeds. At
typical IOPS levels, processor utilization is
typically quite low, in part because of recent
increases in processor performance.
Ease of Use
By using the native storage initiators
integrated into the OS, the Intel
Ethernet Server Adapter X520 makes it
easy to connect any server to the SAN.
Standardizing on the Intel Ethernet Server
Adapter X520 product line delivers a
number of benets to enterprise IT:
• TrustedOS-basedinitiators
• Sameinterfacetocongureanadapter
for LAN or SAN trac (Figure 5)
• PlugandPlaywithexisting
management tools
• Noproprietarysoftwaretoinstall