Tsunami Alert

I’m writing this blog post on my flight, which unfortunately has no Internet connection. How is it possible to fly without network connectivity? Services and tools that only years ago seemed impossible are now the standard (like star wars laser beams).

As I am talking with customers in order to understand their strategic business initiative and solution needs, it is clear to me that we are on the edge a revolutionary change in the way that data centers are being built and used.

Data centers are built with servers, storage and networking gear to serve applications. During the recent few years we have witnessed several revolutions:

• Servers are being virtualized in a way that a single server no longer serves a single application. From a 1:1 ratio between servers and applications, the rate now is more like 1:x10, getting close to 1:100.

• Storage systems grow to support the growing demand and the new virtualized architecture and Fiber Channel as a stand alone technology is being mashed into the network fabric now (FCoE)

While network capacity grows nicely from 1G to 10G, IT leaders need to make a decision whether they support existing demand with 40G technologies or leapfrog to 100G in order to buy some time before 1T technologies will be required.

I didn’t mention aspects of power consumption, area and location considerations (those servers need a place to live), access to the apps and security.

It feels like a giant tsunami wave is about to wash the data centers: beyond the need for more speed (that comes with the necessary equipment refreshment), there’s a need to redesign the way that the networks are being built. SAN is virtually part of the LAN and soon the network will be a unified fabric.

Times of great change require recalibrating the way we are thinking and create a great opportunity to innovate. Stay tuned; the fun part is just about to start.

--Sharon