While performance is important to the success of any new product,
compatibility is the crucial attribute of an interconnect for
widespread adoption. Compatibility issues for data center
networks may be broken down into hardware and software issues
and mean that any new product must:
Software: 'The 98% Problem'
Run existing applications unchanged: Applications implement the end-user functionality that makes computers and data centers useful. Major applications will not be changed to suit new hardware requirements unless the entire market changes; existing standards such as sockets and TCP/IP are so widely deployed that requiring applications to be altered or even recompiled just to suit an emerging technology is unrealistic. EtherFabric allows all software to run exactly “as-is”, with full binary compatibility as described below.
Existing control plane software runs unchanged. This is the software inside the operating system that controls the network data flows between applications and the network. Although changing an operating system control plane is possible, there is an extremely lengthy period of development, testing, and validation. There are also large re-training costs associated with everyone in the IT industry having to become familiar with new protocols and tools; changing the control plane is therefore avoided if at all possible by most IT managers. Here again, ‘unchanged’, or binary compatibility is the requirement. EtherFabric control plane software runs on the EtherFabric kernel stack in the normal way.
Hardware: 'The 2% Problem'
Use Existing Ethernet Cables and Switches: Not using the installed base of Ethernet cabling and switching puts a major additional expense in the way of deployment. For example, a few years ago it was thought that Gigabit Ethernet would only ever be run over Fiber. Even though fiber has dropped dramatically in cost over the years, Gigabit Ethernet was not a success until it was possible to use the same cabling and switching gear as before. EtherFabric uses standard Cat 5E or Cat 6 cabling.
Impose no new physical constraints: Many newer products have high power consumption and consequent heat dissipation problems. EtherFabric’s power dissipation is typically 3W or less, and no heatsinks or special precautions are necessary.
Use standard busses and meet relevant physical standards: Because of heatsinks and power requirements, some products may not fully comply with PCI or PCI-e mechanical or electrical standards. EtherFabric is fully mechanically and electrically PCI low-profile compliant.
Meet all normal standards: such as FCC, CISPR, etc. for relevant locale. EtherFabric meets all relevant standards for your locale.
