Emulex Corporation has announced that it is working closely with Oracle to provide converged network support and investment protection for end users who deploy Emulex LightPulse 10Gb/s fibre channel over Ethernet (FCoE) converged network adapters (CNAs) in Oracle Enterprise Linux and Oracle VM environments. Emulex's common LightPulse drivers supporting CNAs and Host Bus Adapters (HBAs) have been certified with Oracle Enterprise Linux 4.8.
Data centers have traditionally used specialized networks to meet individual I/O connectivity requirements, but with increasing deployments of blades and server virtualization, data centers are facing network sprawl, primarily driven by deployments of multiple 1Gb/s Ethernet links and the need for external storage connectivity. Network convergence, or the ability to unify multiple traffic types-networking, storage and clustering-over a single network, solves that problem according to Emulex.
Emulex LightPulse CNAs leverage eight generations of field-proven fibre channel technology to provide host local area network (LAN) and fibre channel storage area network (SAN) connectivity over 10Gb/s Ethernet using FCoE and Enhanced Ethernet functionality. Additionally, Emulex LightPulse CNAs provide investment protection by sharing common LightPulse fibre channel drivers and leveraging existing storage management tools and processes and feature streamlined installation and management for both fibre channel and FCoE attached devices.
Consolidation has happened in three major phases in the data center, observes Shawn Walsh, vice president of corporate marketing, Emulex, to 5 Minute Briefing. Storage was the first phase with storage area networks and NAS coming on to play. Virtualization with Oracle VM is starting to do that on the server side and now on the networking side there is also a growing desire to consolidate with a single fabric so that there is one set of switching, one set of HBAs inside the host system. In doing so, Walsh explains, "You are able to reduce not only the number of physical units but cabling and optics and all the other things that draw down power and cooling requirements inside the data center."
Additionally, Walsh notes, "The other real driver of this is what is happening with blade servers. As people move more and more toward blade-type architectures there is very limited I/O connectivity on the back of those and network convergence across 10 gigabit allows people to have the maximum bandwidth out the back of their systems with the minimum amount of physical connectivity."
Now Emulex's entire family of LightPulse fibre channel HBAs and FCoE CNAs is supported for use with Oracle Enterprise Linux. As a member of the Oracle PartnerNetwork and one of the first vendors to support the Oracle Unbreakable Linux Program, Emulex is a leading I/O connectivity provider for Oracle environments. In addition, the companies are working to deliver an enhanced end-to-end data integrity protection solution as part of the Data Integrity Initiative.
For more information on Emulex LightPulse FCoE CNAs, go here.