For decades the choke point for data center performance has been spinning disk storage. Now, as disk is replaced by order-of-magnitude faster flash, the data center network is becoming the new gating technology restricting performance, writes Wikibon CTO/Cofounder David Floyer. And as storage moves closer to compute in the new ServerSAN configuration that takes maximum advantage of flash’s rapid I/O, a higher percentage of network bandwidth will be used for server-to-server communication, with much larger and more consistent latency requirements.

Getting the most from the new flash architecture requires a redesign of the data center network, Floyer argues. Next-generation system networks will operate at very high bandwidths and low latency over shorter distances. They will be materially different and independent of the networks that connect the data center to end-user devices (PCs, tablets, smartphones, etc.) and from long-distance networks. Intra-and inter-system latencies will be measured in microseconds, which are 1,000 times faster than milliseconds, and the synchronous distance these networks cover will be measured in meters. Beyond that, asynchronous technologies will be required.

The full alert, available to Wikibon Premium subscribers, provides a close look at the guiding principles for the next generation data center network and briefly discusses specific new network technologies that fit those needs.

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