New software simplifies data centre networks

University of California San Diego students and professors have developed software that may allow data centres to function as a single network with a two layer data centre network fabric instead of the typical three layer fabric system.

The new software is titled Portland and will work with any hardware that is currently in existence when it comes to supporting large data centre networks without sacrificing support or performance.

At the same time, the introduction of the software would help companies cut administrative overhead significantly.

Senior author of the Portland paper and professor at the University, Amin Vahdat, stated that Portland allows data centres to experience the best from layer two and three network fabrics without having to front the large price of both networks.

Instead, the software is a combination of both with a clear set of protocols and algorithms that allow the best of both layers to be used within a data centre.

The software may improve data centre networking which is currently facing the challenge of holding the largest amount of the world’s computing and storage needs without sacrificing quality for a smaller price tag.

This is due to the fact that layer three networks provide stronger support but require a much larger labour force to set up and maintain.

Tags: data centres single network, two layer data centre network fabric

Category: Datacenters