Extreme Velocity
Date: Tue, 28 May 2002 14:41:51 -0700
Extreme Velocity - May 2002
Here's the latest issue of Extreme Velocity, the monthly e-mail newsletter that keeps you ahead of the hottest technologies and toughest product decisions facing today's enterprise networkers and service providers. Whether it's getting the goods on 10 Gigabit Ethernet; migrating from a legacy ATM infrastructure while protecting your original investment; or making the move to MPLS, Extreme Velocity gets you up to speed-fast.
Thank You,
The Extreme Velocity Editorial Staff
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Technical Update
10 Gigabit Ethernet: Bigger Pipes, Bigger Headaches?
A 10 Gbps connection may sound like a dream come true for enterprise networkers and metro providers, but it could turn out to be a nightmare-without comprehensive quality of service (QoS). What's the worry? Pumping up performance won't prevent bursty data from playing havoc with delay-sensitive traffic. In fact, it almost guarantees that apps requiring special treatment will wind up bruised and battered, if they run at all.
QoS is the only protection policy that can ensure every packet gets the processing it needs. But unless it's done at wire speed, it's also a sure way to slow switch performance.
extremenetworks.com
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Enterprise Solutions
Enterprise ATM: The Long Goodbye
Back in the mid-90s asynchronous transfer mode (ATM) looked like the technology of tomorrow. Hit the fast-forward, and it's the Age of Ethernet. That leaves ATM-invested IT managers in a double bind: they can't afford to walk away from their legacy infrastructure, and they can't afford to keep pouring cash into a dead-end transport. There's a third alternative: staged migrations that allow ATM and Ethernet to co-exist, preventing service disruptions and putting ATM spending on permanent hold. That should bring a smile to the CFO's face, since Gigabit Ethernet switches offer an 8:1 price/performance advantage over ATM. But which migration strategy makes the most sense for a particular company?
extremenetworks.com
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Service Provider Solutions
Ethernet and ATM: When Worlds Collide
Service providers run ATM. Their corporate customers run Ethernet. What's wrong with this picture? Worse, providers understand Ethernet's advantages all too well, starting with the significant savings it delivers. It also scales quickly and seamlessly, is much easier to manage, offers carrier-class quality of service (QoS) and eliminates inefficient, expensive protocol conversions. So what's the catch? Providers haven't had a failsafe way to protect customer traffic and their sizable ATM investments during the cutover to Ethernet. At least not until now.
extremenetworks.com
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Metropolitan Area Networks
Curing MPLS Migration Migraines
Most Multiprotocol Label Switching (MPLS) vendors insist that the technology should be implemented on every switch in a metro area network. That's good news for them, since it means lots of expensive upgrades. For metro providers, it means a long, complex, costly migration and makes troubleshooting nearly impossible. Looking for a smarter strategy? MPLS enabled only at the network core. That won't break metro providers' budgets or their backs.
extremenetworks.com
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Network Management
It's no secret that good things are supposed to come in small packages, but here's an Ethernet edge switch that really pushes the envelope. This mighty mite squeezes 48 10/100-Mbps ports into a chassis only 1.75 inches high, twice the port density of any other switch its size. Other world-class firsts include redundant routing at Layers 2 and 3, an innovative security mechanism that locks out intruders and dual fully redundant integrated power supplies-so there's no need to waste rack space on external supplies. Small is beautiful. Now it's also supercharged.
extremenetworks.com
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Calendar of Events
Interested in catching up with us at tradeshows or other industry gatherings? Check out our events calendar:
extremenetworks.com
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Oklahoma State University Says Happy Trails to ATM
It's a long trek from being a 19th century land-grant college to becoming a state's "university of choice," but Oklahoma State University (OSU) has made the journey. It blazed another trail in 2000, when it decided to dump its aging and inadequate ATM network for Gigabit Ethernet. With over 15,000 end-users, 191 distance learning classes, 46 multimedia classrooms and a campus network encompassing 184 buildings (as well as eight other schools), OSU's decision definitely earns it top grades in technology.
extremenetworks.com
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Company Information
Extreme Networks Cosponsors Light Reading Webinars
Extreme is proud to be a participating sponsor in a series of four webinars hosted by Light Reading, the global site for optical networking. The online events will serve as the definitive guide to metro networks, building on a combination of Light Reading research and input and analysis from Extreme and other vendors. The remaining two webinars will cover:
- Thursday, June 13, 2002: Metro Ethernet
- Thursday, August 1, 2002: Metro Resilient Packet Ring (RPR)
Attendees for these events must register in advance:
e-conference.com |
