HP is introducing its E-Series zl modules, which take advantage of the recently adopted IEEE 802.3az energy efficiency standard, which enables the modules to go into a sleep mode and wake up immediately.
Hewlett-Packard is rolling out what officials say are the first
energy-efficient network switch modules from a major vendor that adopt the new
EEE (Energy Efficient Ethernet) standard and take advantage of new HP software
to further drive efficiency and performance.
The
10 new E-Series zl modules also are another key differentiator for HP as it
ramps up the competition against top networking vendor Cisco Systems, according
to HP officials.
The
IEEE Energy Efficient Ethernet standard, or IEEE 802.3az, is designed to
automatically adjust the power consumption of IT devices based on the actual
network traffic running between switches and other networked devices, a
capability designed to reduce the overall power usage, according to HP.
The
vendor's new E-Series zl modules, for HP's E8200 zl and E5400 zl networking
platforms, can enter into a sleep mode when there is no traffic being sent. The
sleep mode not only lets EEE-enable devices consume less power while idling
than they would idling at full power, but it also enables instant power-up when
network traffic starts flowing. Combined with HP's use of new ASICs, the
modules can help cut the power consumption of the Ethernet ports by more than
half.
It's
a capability available to any vendor of Ethernet devices, but one that HP is
first in coming out with, Mark Hilton, director of product marketing for HP
Networking, said in an interview with eWEEK.
"We're
the first to market with this kind of capability," Hilton said.
In
the highly competitive and volatile networking space, where rivals not only
include Cisco but the likes of Juniper Networks, Extreme Networks and Brocade
Communications Systems, being first to market with such technology is
important, he said. Many of these vendors, as well as others
like Broadcom, are working on IEEE 802.3az-capable products.
HP
significantly bulked up its networking capability when it bought
3Com for $2.7 billion earlier this year, a move that gave the company
stronger enterprise-level products. HP sees an opportunity-with the rapidly
evolving nature of data centers and the tight economic times-to take business
away from Cisco, which has dominated the networking space for more than a
decade.
"This
basically single-vendor-dominated environment is not conducive to choice, and
that is an opportunity for HP," Marius Haas, senior vice president and
general manager of HP's networking business, said in an interview with eWEEK.
HP
saw networking revenue in its fiscal fourth quarter grow 50 percent, and said
that revenue growth tied to 3Com is ahead of schedule.
Continuing
to differentiate its products, in both price and capabilities, will be
important for HP going forward. The new energy-efficient Ethernet networking
modules, introduced Dec. 7, are examples, HP officials said. HP's ability to
take advantage of the new standard comes from the use of Broadcom's PHY product
as well as the new ASIC network node switch, which has its own energy-efficient
features, including giving businesses the ability to increase port density and
the ability to turn off various network components when they're not being used.
Regarding density, HP can now grow the number of ports in a 10 Gigabit Ethernet
chassis from 48 to 96, while improving performance by 62 percent, Hilton said.
"We're
not just talking energy efficiency, but also density, performance and [total
cost of ownership]," he said.
A
big part of the TCO story comes from that
fact the businesses can put these modules into existing chassis, need only a
firmware update to start working and can work side-by-side with other modules,
Hilton said.
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