Broadcom Reports FCoE Certification

Broadcom Corporation announced that its converged network adapters have earned FCoE certification on VMware vSphere 5.

The company noted following other recent certifications EMC E-Lab and NetApp validation VMware vSphere 5 marks an industry certification milestone in Broadcom’s 10GbE storage and networking ecosystem.

Demand for server virtualization continues to rise as IT managers strive to maximize efficiency of servers, increase security, and ensure higher levels of automated performance. IDC forecasts more than 70 percent of all server workloads installed on new shipments in 2014 will reside in a virtual machine.

vSphere 5 is the latest version of VMware’s virtualization platform for SMBs, as well as enterprise-class users. VMware vSphere 5 delivers better application performance and availability for business-critical applications while automating the management of an increasingly broad pool of data center resources. VMware’s certification confirms Broadcom’s CNAs offer interoperability within vSphere 5 environments.

Broadcom CNAs deliver FCoE performance speeds of up to 1.7 million input/output operations per second more than 80 percent faster than the nearest competitor, optimizing virtualization by uniting data and storage networks on a common 10GbE fabric. By taking advantage of switch-independent NIC partitioning, Broadcom’s FCoE solution allows the server to adapt to a range of bandwidth configurations and reduce power and cooling costs while minimizing overall system complexity. In addition to FCoE offload, it features multiprotocol support including Level 2 networking, NAS, and Internet Small Computer System Interface.

Parag Patel, Vice President, Alliances, VMware, said: "Broadcom’s converged network adapters meet VMware’s certification requirements for running business-critical applications. This certification underscores the long-standing relationship between Broadcom and VMware, bringing significant value to our mutual customers. VMware vSphere accelerates the journey to the cloud for existing data centers while underpinning compatible public cloud offerings that pave the way to the hybrid cloud."

Vinod Lakhani, General Manager, High Speed Controllers, Broadcom, said: "Server virtualization, cloud computing, and the need to contain costs and complexity are all major factors driving the need for 10GbE converged network adapters. Broadcom is meeting that demand with the world’s fastest CNAs and is proud that its fully offloaded FCoE solutions have earned VMware’s vSphere 5 certification. This validation underscores Broadcom’s growing ecosystem of solution partners."