Like cloud two or three years ago, SDN and OpenFlow is dominating the
discussions. During a show that’s (in theory at least) dedicated to
networking, this should be no surprise.
Is it making networking sexy again? Yes, insomuch as we’re at least talking
about networking again, which is about it considering that the network is an
integral component of all the other technology and models that took the
spotlight from it in the first place.
Considering recent commentary on SDN* and OpenFlow, it seems folks are still
divided on OpenFlow and SDN and are trying to figure out where it fits – or
if it fits – in modern data center architectures.
Prediction: OpenFlow Is Dead by 2014; SDN Reborn in Network Management
Of course, many of the problems that the SDN vendors state – VM mobility,
the limited range of VLAN IDs, the inability to move L2/L3 networking among
data centers a... (more)
“Big data” focuses almost entirely on data at rest. But before it was at
rest – it was transmitted over the network. That ultimately means trouble
for application performance.
The problem of “big data” is highly dependent upon to whom you are
speaking. It could be an issue of security, of scale, of processing, of
transferring from one place to another.
What’s rarely discussed as a problem is that all that data got where it is
in the same way: over a network and via an application. What’s also rarely
discussed is how it was generated: by users.
If the amount of data at rest is mi... (more)
There are three core vendors and protocols supporting VDI today. Microsoft
with RDP, Citrix with ICA, and VMware with PCoIP. For most organizations a
single vendor approach has been necessary, primarily because the costs
associated with the supporting network and application delivery network
infrastructure required to deliver VDI with the appropriate levels of
security while meeting performance expectations of users and the need to
maintain high availability.
It’s a tall order that’s getting taller with every mobile client
introduced, especially when you toss in a liberal dose o... (more)
What happens when technology converges? When old meets new?
A fine example of what might happen is what has happened in the carrier space
as voice and data services increasingly meet on the same network, each
carrying unique characteristics forward from the older technology from which
they sprung. In the carrier space having moved away from older communications
technology does not mean having left behind core technology concepts. Though
voice may be moving to IP with the advent of LTE/4G, it still carries with it
the notion of signaling as a means to manage communication and users... (more)
I’m a huge fan of context-aware networking. You know, the ability to
interpret requests in the context they were made – examining user identity,
location, client device along with network condition and server/application
status. It’s what imbues the application delivery tier with the agility
necessary to make decisions that mitigate operational risk (security,
availability, performance) in real-time.
In the past, almost all context was able to be deduced from the transport
(connection) and application layer. The application delivery tier couldn’t
necessarily “reach out” and take... (more)
Lori MacVittie is responsible for education and evangelism of application services available across F5’s entire product suite. Her role includes authorship of technical materials and participation in a number of community-based forums and industry standards organizations, among other efforts. MacVittie has extensive programming experience as an application architect, as well as network and systems development and administration expertise. Prior to joining F5, MacVittie was an award-winning Senior Technology Editor at Network Computing Magazine, where she conducted product research and evaluation focused on integration with application and network architectures, and authored articles on a variety of topics aimed at IT professionals. Her most recent area of focus included SOA-related products and architectures. She holds a B.S. in Information and Computing Science from the University of Wisconsin at Green Bay, and an M.S. in Computer Science from Nova Southeastern University.
Sue Poremba
Scott Sellers
Anthony Franco
Daniel Morris
Wayne Walls
Niki Acosta
Jereme Hancock
Oren Michels
Marvin Wheeler
Douglas Kim
