Intelligent Data Centres Issue 01 | Page 14

LATEST INTELLIGENCE DATA CENTER HIGH SPEED MIGRATION: INFRASTRUCTURE ISSUES, TRENDS, DRIVERS AND RECOMMENDATIONS PRESENTED BY I n the data center, speed is everything. The challenge is to look ahead and know what you have to be prepared to deliver – in the immediate future and later on – and chart the most expedient and flexible course forward. Dell’Oro predicts Ethernet switch revenue will continue to grow through the end of the decade, with a large share allocated to 25G and 100G ports. The faster that available technologies and applicable standards evolve, the harder that job becomes. The growing affordability of 100G switch links – multimode and singlemode – is enabling many companies to update their switch networks from 10G directly to 100G, skipping 40G altogether. Recent data center trends continue to predict 25 to 35% annual growth in data center traffic and bandwidth requirements. DOWNLOAD WHITEPAPERS AT: WWW.INTELLIGENTDATACENTRES. COM/WHITEPAPERS 14 Issue 01 This demand for more network capacity can only be supported by a shift to higher switching speeds, which is precisely what is now happening in the market. According to Dell’Oro Group, shipments of 25 Gbps and 100 Gbps ports increased to more than one million in the first quarter of 2017. Migration strategies are evolving as well. The shift to 25G lanes is well underway as well, with 25G-lane switches becoming more commonplace. Meanwhile, the entrance of proprietary and standards-based PAM-4 modulation has ushered in the introduction of 50G lane rates. The increasing popularity of 25G and 50G ports continues to affect uptake of 40G server attachments. ◊ www.intelligentdatacentres.com