QLogic CNA Powers IBM FCoE-Enabled Blade Servers

QLogic Corp. announced IBM is the first tier-one system vendor to integrate QLogic’s new single chip 8100 Series converged network adapters (CNAs) for native Fibre Channel over Ethernet (FCoE) connectivity in IBM’s mainstream server portfolio.
 
Specifically, IBM will offer native FCoE connectivity on all IBM rack and tower series servers, including the new Intel Xeon 5500 “Nehalem”-powered BladeCenter and System x offerings, providing the latest in enterprise data center connectivity options to its customers while significantly lowering power consumption and heat dissipation across the enterprise. Optimized for blade servers and high-density storage systems, the QLogic 8100 Series CNAs support simultaneous storage and data networking traffic at full 10GbE line speeds, consume only one third the power of existing CNA chip sets and are the only CNAs on the market to completely eliminate the need for a heat sink. With today’s announcement, IBM is enabling customers to leverage the ubiquity and economics of Ethernet while preserving the investment and strengths of Fibre Channel.
 
“In a period of less than 60 days, QLogic announced the availability of a next generation, single chip CNA and announced a tier one server design win, further capitalizing on its first mover advantage in delivering production-ready FCoE technology,” said Bob Laliberte, analyst, Enterprise Strategy Group. “As the FCoE market develops, securing key vendor design wins and go-to-market channels will be critical to establishing market leadership and accelerating adoption of FCoE technology. As evidenced by this announcement, QLogic is setting the pace.”

According to Dell’Oro Group, FCoE adapter revenue is expected to increase, on average, by over 200 percent annually from 2008 to 2013 reaching nearly $400M. “FCoE port shipments are expected to increase by an average of 300 percent annually, reaching nearly 2 million ports shipped during the same timeframe,” said Seamus Crehan, vice president, Dell’Oro Group.
 
“The new IBM BladeCenter HS22 servers represent the confluence of multiple emerging technologies driving advances in the data center,” said Alex Yost, vice president, IBM Systems & Technology Group. “The QLogic 8100 Series CNAs complement the new generation technology by offloading all FCoE protocol processing to the adapter, freeing up CPU cycles for even faster application performance and increased server Virtual Machine (VM) support. With this generation of no compromise IBM BladeCenter servers, customers can benefit from highly virtualized systems with record levels of performance and scalability and more flexible provisioning of enterprise resources through a single 10GbE network.”
 
As part of today’s news, QLogic also announced the new QLogic 10Gb Converged Enhanced Ethernet (CEE) high-speed Pass-thru Module, which provides 14 non-blocking connections between CNAs installed on IBM BladeCenter servers and external 10GbE or 10G CEE switches and devices. The QLogic 8100 Series CNAs provide the foundation for network convergence and work in concert with the new QLogic 10Gb CEE Pass-thru Module to provide a complete, integrated connectivity solution for IBM BladeCenter systems.
 
The QLogic 10Gb CEE Pass-thru Module is the most cost-effective way to introduce CEE outside an IBM BladeCenter server. The module translates internal 10 Gigabit Media Independent Interface (XAUI) connections on up to 14 CNA-enabled servers to external SFP+ optical media ports, suitable for direct attachment to new CEE and FCoE devices as well as to existing 10GbE LANs. Line rate connectivity is provided without the expense or management requirements of other approaches, enabling customers to begin their network convergence at the server level with minimal infrastructure investment elsewhere.
 
“With today’s announcement coming so closely on the heels of the introduction of its breakthrough Network Plus Architecture, QLogic has just delivered a one-two punch to its competitors,” said Tom Trainer, president and founder of storage research consultancy Analytico, Inc. “Owning your own silicon has its distinct advantages, such as getting a product to market first and gaining market traction much more rapidly than others trying to integrate components from multiple suppliers.”
 
“When it comes to delivering converged networks and advances in computing, IBM is elevating the stature of its servers to an entirely new stratum in the data center,” said Scott Genereux, senior vice president, Worldwide Sales and Marketing, QLogic. “The company’s ability to integrate single chip FCoE technology so rapidly across its server portfolio is an example of its seamless product adaptability and business model flexibility. We look forward to continuing to collaborate with IBM on converged networking solutions for its blade servers and high-density storage systems.”
 
“Support of native FCoE connectivity by a leading server supplier is another key step in the adoption of converged networks,” said David Vellante, co-founder and principal contributor to Wikibon.org, a professional community of IT practitioners. “The business case for FCoE is compelling as it utilizes the network more efficiently and provides any-to-any connectivity by leveraging existing SAN infrastructure and lowering network management costs.”
 
Both the QLogic 8100 Series CNAs and Pass-Thru Modules can be used with other products in the IBM FCoE and CEE product portfolio, including other pass-thru modules and CNAs, respectively, to provide customers with complete flexibility and interoperability – and products based entirely on open standards.