Data centre managers are under increasing pressure to seek new ways to optimise costs while improving business agility and operational flexibility
p>Data centre managers are under increasing pressure to seek new ways to optimise costs while improving business agility and operational flexibility
Widespread adoption of x86 based server virtualisation has placed new demands on the data centre fabric. Cisco’s Unified Computing System (UCS) was designed from the ground up to address the needs of today’s dynamic data centre.
Fabric Interconnect 6248UP: Unified Port (UP) capability allows IT managers to designate any port to be 1 Gigabit Ethernet, 10 Gigabit Ethernet, Fibre Channel (2/4/8 gigabits) or Fibre Channel over Ethernet. This simplifies configuration, provides optimal flexibility, and support the transition to converged fabrics in the data centre.
• 2X UCS system switching capacity to 1Tb/s and 48 Unified Ports
• 40 per cent end-to-end latency reduction
• Read more about the Cisco 6200 Fabric Interconnects
• Read more about the Cisco Fabric Interconnect 6248UP
Fabric Extender 2208XP Chassis IO Module
• 2X bandwidth: now 160 Gb/s to the blade chassis
Virtual Interface Card – VIC 1280
• Quadruples bandwidth to the server
• Read more about the Cisco Virtual Interface Card
UCS Manager 2.0
UCS Manager, which manages all system configuration and operations for both UCS blade servers and rack-mount servers, provides a robust and open Application Programming Interface (API) for integration with other management software. Cisco is now introducing VMware vcentre for the Unified Computing System and UCS Express, a unified virtualisation management platform which enables IT organisations to organize, rapidly provision and configure the entire virtualised IT environment across branch offices and the data centre. This will help customers reduce operating costs, improve operational automation, and deliver higher levels of security. UCS Manager also now provides:
• Red Hat KVM integration for Cisco VIC
• Increased network design flexibility: Customers who prefer running the UCS Fabric in End Host Mode (EHM) rather than switch mode can now do so and can now connect their management, backup, production, and test networks to the Fabric Interconnect in End Host Mode.