The enterprise data center has evolved dramatically in recent years. It has moved from a model that placed multiple data centers closer to users to a more centralized dynamic model. The factors influencing this evolution are varied but can mostly be attributed to regulatory, service level improvement, cost savings, and manageability. Multiple legal issues regarding the security of data housed in the data center have placed security requirements at the forefront of data center architecture. As the cost to operate data centers has increased, architectures have moved towards consolidation of servers and applications in order to better utilize assets and reduce "server sprawl." The more diverse and distributed the data center environment becomes, the more manageability becomes an issue. These factors have led to a trend of data center consolidation and resources on demand using technologies such as virtualization, higher WAN bandwidth technologies, and newer management technologies. The intended audience of this book is network architects and network administrators. In this IBM® Redbooks® publication we discuss the following topics: The current state of the data center network The business drivers making the case for change The unique capabilities and network requirements of system platforms The impact of server and storage consolidation on the data center network The functional overview of the main data center network virtualization and consolidation technologies The new data center network design landscape

This IBM® Redbooks® publication is an IBM and Cisco collaboration that articulates how IBM and Cisco can bring the benefits of their respective companies to the modern data center. It documents the architectures, solutions, and benefits that can be achieved by implementing a data center based on IBM server, storage, and integrated systems, with the broader Cisco network. We describe how to design a state-of-the art data center and networking infrastructure combining Cisco and IBM solutions. The objective is to provide a reference guide for customers looking to build an infrastructure that is optimized for virtualization, is highly available, is interoperable, and is efficient in terms of power and space consumption. It will explain the technologies used to build the infrastructure, provide use cases, and give guidance on deployments.

This IBM® Redbooks® publication is an IBM and Cisco collaboration that articulates how IBM and Cisco can bring the benefits of their respective companies to the modern data center. It documents the architectures, solutions, and benefits that can be achieved by implementing a data center based on IBM server, storage, and integrated systems, with the broader Cisco network. We describe how to design a state-of-the art data center and networking infrastructure combining Cisco and IBM solutions. The objective is to provide a reference guide for customers looking to build an infrastructure that is optimized for virtualization, is highly available, is interoperable, and is efficient in terms of power and space consumption. It will explain the technologies used to build the infrastructure, provide use cases, and give guidance on deployments.