Data Center-Class Family of Switches Built to Meet the Needs of the Next-Generation Data Center
Figure 1. Cisco Nexus 7000 Series Switches Were Designed Specifically for the Next-Generation Data Center
Introduction
Business Benefits
• Improved productivity: With specific features embedded in the hardware, operating system, and network management facilities, the Cisco Nexus family provides component- and system-level operational continuity. Increased network stability and fewer service disruptions mean that your employees have access to the resources they need, when they need them.
• Lower total cost of ownership (TCO): IT can significantly reduce capital costs through consolidation and increased utilization of previously separate resources, reduce operational expenses through simplification and automation of administrative tasks, and reduce cooling and power costs through improved utilization and an inherently more efficient system design. By delivering a unified fabric, the Cisco Nexus 5000 Series can eliminate redundant infrastructure (interfaces, cables, switches, etc.) and simplify operations.
• Increased business agility: IT can dynamically respond to changing business demands by the rapid provisioning of application and infrastructure services from shared pools of consolidated computing, storage, and network resources. Data center consolidation helps streamline operational procedures and enable policy-based control.
• Enhanced business resilience: IT can respond to disruptions or attacks by protecting infrastructure, applications, and data with the highest levels of availability, pervasive security, and business continuance. The Cisco Nexus 7000 Series is designed with a zero-service-loss architecture, so capacity and capability can be added without any downtime.
• Optimized service levels: IT can optimize business service levels by providing secure, accelerated access to data center-hosted applications and information from anywhere, at any time, across the organization.
• Increased investment protection: The Cisco Nexus family is designed to support the entire lifecycle of the next-generation data center. The platform allows enterprises to take advantage of classical Ethernet today, and take advantage of 40 Gigabit Ethernet, 100 Gigabit Ethernet, Data Center Ethernet, and unified fabric in the future without the need for major upgrades, reducing future capital and operational expenditures.
Figure 2. Cisco Nexus 5000 Series Switches Deliver a Unified Data Center Fabric
Why Cisco?
• Most comprehensive solution: The Cisco Nexus family does not just offer world-class data center hardware and software. As part of a holistic approach, Cisco Nexus 7000 and Nexus 5000 Series solutions also include Cisco Advanced Services, Cisco Capital™, the Cisco Data Center Assurance Program, and an outstanding system of partners. Even the unified fabric solution is delivered with a broad system of industry leaders, so customers can implement a complete unified fabric solution on day one.
• Exceptional technological innovation: A comprehensive solution to next-generation data center challenges can be delivered only by a company with the expertise and resources that Cisco has to offer. The Cisco Nexus family is the result of more than US$1 billion dollars spent researching and developing data center-related products and technologies. The Cisco Nexus 7000 Series architecture alone has over 100 patents pending. The Cisco Nexus 5000 Series are the first switches to deliver innovations such as Data Center Ethernet and FCoE.
• Industry-leading experience: Only Cisco has the proven hardware and software expertise necessary to successfully address current enterprise data center challenges resulting from new business pressures and operational limitations. The expertise Cisco gained while developing other market-leading platforms, such as the Cisco® Catalyst 6500 Series Switches and Cisco MDS 9000 family switches were incorporated into the Cisco Nexus family. As a result, the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series was not simply designed to be bigger or faster, but to operate efficiently and effectively under real-world conditions, with features that have real-world value, such as graceful operations and integrated management and operations tools. Similarly, the Cisco Nexus 5000 Series delivers the server access innovation that is most relevant to today's customer needs.
• Outstanding scalability: Although data centers have traditionally been the purview of large organizations, nearly all companies can benefit from consolidation, virtualization, and automation. The Cisco Nexus 7000 Series is designed for forward investment protection, so capacity and capability can be added in a granular manner as needed without the need for a major upgrade or downtime. The Cisco Nexus 5000 Series offers similar investment protection, with significant switching capacity and upgradeable network interfaces.
• Best practices: Cisco provides a set of best-practice guidelines covering architectural principles and technical design, and blueprints that provide a map for the evolution of the data center. These principles and guidelines have been derived from thousands of real-world deployments by world-class professionals, allowing companies to benefit from this expertise and experience. The result is a world-class data center architecture that has been tested in real-world deployments, removing the risk and uncertainty of a do-it-yourself or piecemeal approach.
• Global presence: One reason why companies need to upgrade their data center infrastructures is increasing globalization and business conducted worldwide. In the past, regional subsidiaries handled business internationally, but now corporate data is consolidated from around the world. No matter where your data center is located, Cisco can offer world-class support and consulting expertise.
Address Today's Concerns and Prepare for the Future