Bill succinctly put BlueArc's technology in the proper context.
EMC actually has a very sophisticated FPGA (field programmable gate array) and PLD (programmable logic device) program based on Xilinx technology, I think, but my sense is that they're deploying it in co-processor mode. BlueArc is trying to replace the general processor in a conventional NAS device with FPGAs. Of possible interest to EMC is BlueArc's FPGA implementation of the TCP/IP protocol stack, but there are many vendors working on that solution so it remains to be seen if BlueArc's implementation will stand out.
As Bill indicated, there is no meaningful obstacle for EMC to develop an all-FPGA version of the DataMovers (currently Pentium-based) in the Celerra so long as it fits their overall system design objectives.
Of greater interest to EMC shareholders are the sketchy outlines of the next generation Symmetrix due later this year or early next year:
1) The next generation Symmetrix will have an internal crossbar switch instead of multiple backplanes.
Currently, Hitachi's internal crossbar switch (Hi-Star) is the internal bandwidth leader with 6.4 GB/s followed by EMC with 1.6 GB/s followed by IBM with 1.1 GB/s. Internal bandwidth is one of the keys to higher levels of parallelism.
The most difficult part of parallelism is the software that takes advantage of that horsepower. For example, Hitachi may have been first with the internal crossbar switch it introduced last year, but its ControlCenter clone won't even be ready until later this year by which time EMC will already be beta-testing its next generation Symmetrix with the accompanying software internally developed at EMC and at 70+ software developers participating in its open API program.
2) Forensic Data Security. Think of the high-end videotape recorder and its ability to roll forward and backward to any point in the tape to determine any changes made to the master or source copy. It appears that EMC is working with some startups on this novel application which will allow EMC to provide a robust auditing capability at the physical and logical levels. Again, the higher level of parallelism in the next generation Symmetrix will allow them to easily integrate this security application into their existing applications.
3) SAN version of PowerPath, one of EMC's most popular applications. PowerPath is dynamic load balancing software that creates multiple paths between the data and the application servers. Because of the latencies across the switches and cables of a SAN, this is sure to be a hit with the high-availability crowd.
4) SAN version of SRDF. SRDF is EMC's remote mirroring application. Other vendors are just beginning to replicate one copy between two sites at a time. There are some anecdotal reports that EMC has already developed the capability to replicate multiple copies between multiple sites at the same time. This will allow EMC to solidify their solid grip (~70% market share) of the replication market which they pioneered in 1994.
5) Symmetrix/IP. EMC has been actively recruiting TCP/IP experts to join a team developing this product. This is an internet job ad dated 11/15/2000, but we already know that they started working on their SRDF over IP product (introduced early 2000) with CNT in late 1997:
EMC Corporation, the world's leader in Enterprise Storage Software, Systems and Services, is currently seeking Senior Software Engineers with embedded programming experience in a High-Performance Networking environment. The purpose of this position is to develop a revolutionary software application that will provide a high bandwidth interface that connects TCP/IP stacks to EMC's Symmetrix, our RAID box/Storage Disk Array. The transfer of such huge amounts of information in the IP domain is extremely rare, which makes this a great opportunity to work on a cutting edge technology. This position is a great way to get exposure and develop expertise in one of the hottest areas in networking today: GIGABIT ETHERNET.
Requirements: expert programming experience in high-performance networking environments using C or PowerPC. Other areas of direct importance are Routers, IP Security Protocols, Terabit Router, Ethernet, TCP/IP, ATM, OSPF.
groups.google.com
There are probably more applications in the pipeline. EMC expects to spend over a $1B in R&D this year with around 75% devoted to software. |
