Then there's Cisco itself, which is bringing Ethernet-like performance monitoring tools, such as ping and traceroute, to Fibre Channel with its MDS 9500-series family of FC switches. The switches also include an embedded FC protocol analyzer that monitors the fabric in real time. Cisco has also developed what it calls Virtual SAN (VSAN) technology, which is able to logically segregate multiple SANs running over the same physical infrastructure, similar to VPNs or Virtual LANs in the Ethernet world (see Cisco Knocks 'Nerd Knobs' and Cisco's VSANs: Hype or Innovation?).
"When we talk to IT managers about things that have been in existence in the Ethernet world like ping and traceroute, their eyes really light up and say, 'That will really help me,' " says Jackie Ross, VP of marketing at Andiamo Systems Inc., the Cisco spin-in that is developing the MDS switches. Note, however, that many of these sexy management features will work in a Cisco-only SAN (see Cisco Buys Andiamo).
While companies like CA and Cisco see data networking and SAN operations functions converging, some say these constituencies are culturally far apart. "Those groups don't generally want to share stuff," says Dave Signori, director of advanced storage networking services at Inrange Technologies Corp. (Nasdaq: INRG). "The attitude is, 'Hey, don't touch the SAN.' " [Ed. note: Or else!]
NetScout, meanwhile, has introduced a Fibre Channel version of its well-established Ethernet performance monitoring system. The NetScout FC product is based on hardware "probes" that attach to a SAN to provide an array of protocol analysis (see NetScout Probes Into SANs).
Eileen Haggerty, senior product marketing manager at NetScout, says the Fibre Channel monitoring system is especially well suited for environments with switches from multiple vendors.
Bob Friday, Chief AI Officer for Juniper Networks, explains how the advanced technology is transforming operations.
Contact center leaders from 8x8, Awaken Intelligence, and 360insight discuss the importance of agent experience.
AI may force enterprises to rewire parts of their data centers so they are fully optimized to run such workloads. The question is do you use Ethernet or InfiniBand?
