EMC Introduces High Performance Connectrix DCX Backbone for Data Center Fabrics

HOPKINTON, Mass. - March 19, 2008 -

EMC Corporation, the world leader in information infrastructure solutions, today introduced the EMC® Connectrix® ED-DCX-B, the industry’s first 8 Gb/s (gigabit-per-second) Fibre Channel director.  With 8 Gb/s line rates – double that of existing directors – and four times the aggregate bandwidth, the newest member of the Connectrix family enables large-scale consolidation of virtual and physical servers and storage pools, multi-protocol integration, and simplified management that can dramatically reduce operational and capital costs. 

Based on OEM technology from Brocade, the Connectrix ED-DCX-B combines unprecedented scalability and bandwidth with leading innovations in power, energy efficiency and port density. The Brocade DCX is a new class of network infrastructure and serves as the core platform for Data Center Fabric (DCF) architectures.  The DCF architecture encompasses multiple storage protocols between applications and storage, connects virtual server and storage pools, supports networking over extended distances, and provides mainframe connectivity.  The DCX will be a platform for future networking capabilities, providing 8 Gb/s Fibre Channel services at the core of the data center as well as additional specialized fabric and data center application services.

The Connectrix ED-DCX-B is designed to provide the highest levels of scalability and performance with low energy consumption. With 6.5 Tb/s (terabits-per-second) of total bandwidth, it can be configured to support 2, 4, and 8 Gb/s Fibre Channel to connect hundreds of applications, consolidate large scale VMware environments, and serve as the core backbone of enterprise storage area networks (SANs).  The Connectrix ED-DCX-B also provides integrated multi-protocol support, enabling further consolidation over extended distances and in heterogeneous server environments.  

The Connectrix ED-DCX-B offers multiple blade options for server-to-storage connectivity. The 8 Gb/s Fibre Channel blades are available in 16, 32, and 48 ports for a maximum configuration of up to 384 ports in a single domain. In addition, new inter-chassis links (ICLs) can be configured to connect two Connectrix ED-DCX-B chassis together, while preserving front-end ports. These connections utilize copper cables to link the director’s core blades without combining domains.

“The EMC Connectrix family of switches and directors provides customers with extensive choices, proven interoperability, centralized management and the industry’s best customer service,” said Barbara Robidoux, EMC Vice President, Storage Product Marketing.  “The new Connectrix ED-DCX-B backbone is ideal for enterprise customers looking for the highest levels of performance, availability and reliability.  It’s a platform that is designed to meet current needs and be easily expanded to meet future SAN requirements.”

In addition to higher levels of performance and scalability, the Connectrix ED-DCX-B delivers several major new features to improve consolidation, fabric management, and security.  These features include Adaptive Networking Services for optimized fabric behavior and ensuring ample bandwidth for mission critical applications, native interoperability with Connectrix M-series switches and directors, and Admin Domains to segregate and limit access to shared fabric resources. 

The EMC Connectrix family offers the industry’s most extensive selection of networked storage connectivity products, ranging from highly available enterprise-class directors to edge switches and management tools.  All Connectrix systems concurrently support multiple hosts and operating systems, enabling multiple servers to connect to multiple storage systems from EMC as well as other vendors.  This flexible family of platforms helps facilitate the consolidation of information onto fewer storage systems for improved management, protection and availability.

Availability

            The Connectrix ED-DCX-B director is generally available from EMC.