Edgecore Networks Open Networking data center switches – AS4610-54T 1GbE and AS5712-54X 10GbE switches – are installed in National Chiao Tung University (NCTU), serving as Layer 2 management plane switches and OpenFlow data plane switches respectively. Edgecore and its software partner successfully enabled the deployment of an OpenFlow-based global Software Defined Network (SDN), ONOS SDN-IP, in May 2016.

Background

The Open Network Operating System (ONOS) is a software defined networking (SDN) OS for service providers that has scalability, high availability, high performance and abstractions to make it easy to create apps and services. The platform is based on a solid architecture and has quickly matured to be feature rich and production ready. The community has grown to include over 50 partners and collaborators that contribute to all aspects of the projects.

The organization has a vision that, through the promise of SDN, separating the control plane and data plane will free software innovation cycles from hardware innovation cycles. The first ONOS SDN-IP deployment was in 2015 in three continents; US, Europe, Australia, and South America. KREONET also deployed ONOS SDN-IP as the first in Asia in Q4/2015, while NCTU is the fifth to deploy in Asia and realize the first SDN-IP network in Taiwan.

Application Diagram/Topology

The design goal of the ONOS SDN-IP network is to make sure that:

  1. There is compatibility with interworking of BGP (Border Gateway Protocol)
  2. There is high flexibility for fast deployment of various BGP networks with multiple ONOS
  3. There is high availability via multiple ONOS and Quagga instances and interconnections of OpenFlow switches

The Edgecore 1G switches serve as L2 management plane switches, and the 10G data center switches are designed to serve as OpenFlow data plane switches (OF1, OF2, OF3, OF4), linking different existing BGP AS networks. In this case, Amlight in South Africa and KREONET in Korea.

Why Edgecore Networks

Through such ONOS SDN-IP network deployment, Edgecore proves the high-convergence time and flexibility of effective network routing management by leveraging SDN concepts. With white-box data center switches from Edgecore Networks, the promise of the Open Network Operating System is evident. SDN accelerates Internet and Cloud innovation, while significantly reducing the costs of building and operating networks. With the open hardware support from Edgecore, the ONOS SDN-IP project can be completed within schedule and demonstrated in National Chiao Tung University (NCTU).

Models used in the case
  • 2 units AS4610-54T 1GbE Data Center Switch with 48 GE RJ-45 ports, 4x10G SFP+ ports, and 2 QSFP ports, serving as L2 management switches to link and serve the control plane with PicOS (L2/L3 mode)
  • 4 units AS5712-54X 10GbE Data Center Switch with 48 10G SFP+ ports, and 6 x 40G QSFP+ uplink ports, serving as OpenFlow data plane switches to link and serve the data plane with PicOS (OVS mode)
Related Products
  • AS5712-54X has 48-Port 10G SFP+ with 6x40G QSFP+ uplinks with ONIE software installer. AS5712-54X embedded Broadcom Trident II 720Gbps and Intel Atom C2538 CPU as well as PHY-Less/Re-timer-Less, dual -48VDC 400W PSUs included and port-to-power airflow.

    AS5712-54X has 48-Port 10G SFP+ with 6x40G QSFP+ uplinks with ONIE software installer. AS5712-54X embedded Broadcom Trident II 720Gbps and Intel Atom C2538 CPU as well as PHY-Less/Re-timer-Less, dual -48VDC 400W PSUs included and port-to-power airflow.

  • 128G ENTERPRISE SWITCH AS4610-54T 48 x 1G RJ45, 4 x 10G, 2 x 20G switch ports with Helix 4. Open network switch for enterprise, campus and data center fabric

    128G ENTERPRISE SWITCH AS4610-54T 48 x 1G RJ45, 4 x 10G, 2 x 20G switch ports with Helix 4. Open network switch for enterprise, campus and data center fabric