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IBM System Networking RackSwitch G8264 1
®
IBM System Networking RackSwitch G8264
IBM Redbooks Product Guide
IBM® System Networking RackSwitch™ G8264 leveraging 10Gb SFP+ and 40Gb QSFP+ Ethernet
technology is specifically designed for the data center. It is ideal for today's big data, cloud, and
optimized workload solutions. It is an enterprise class Layer 2 and layer 3 full featured switch that
delivers line-rate, high-bandwidth switching, filtering, and traffic queuing without delaying data. Large
data-center grade buffers help keep traffic moving, while the redundant power and fans along with
numerous high availability features help provide high availability for business sensitive traffic.
The RackSwitch G8264, shown in Figure 1, is ideal for latency sensitive applications such as high
performance computing clusters and financial applications. In addition to the 10-Gb Ethernet (GbE)
and 40-GbE connections, the G8264 also has the capability for legacy 1-GbE connections. The
G8264 supports the newest protocols including Data Center Bridging/Converged Enhanced Ethernet
(DCB/CEE) for support of Fibre Channel over Ethernet (FCoE) in addition to iSCSI and
network-attached storage (NAS).
Figure 1. IBM System Networking RackSwitch G8264
The G8264 also supports IBM Virtual Fabric, which helps clients significantly reduce cost and
complexity related to I/O requirements of many virtualization deployments. Virtual Fabric helps reduce
the number of multiple I/O adapters to a single dual-port 10 G adapter and reduces the number of
cables and required upstream switch ports. By using Virtual Fabric, you can carve a dual-port 10 G
server adapter into 8 virtual network interface cards (vNICs) and create dedicated virtual pipes
between the adapter and switch for optimal performance, higher availability, and improved security.
With Virtual Fabric IT, you can make dynamic changes and allocate bandwidth per vNIC so that you
can adjust it over time without downtime.
The RackSwitch G8264 is the first 10 GbE switch to offer benefits of OpenFlow. OpenFlow is the new
open application programming interface (API) that enables the network administrator to easily
configure and manage virtual networks that control traffic on a “per-flow” basis. It creates multiple
independent virtual networks and related policies without dealing with the complexities of the
underlying physical network and protocols. The G8264 is also the recommended switch to use with
the network controller that is compliant with OpenFlow, which is the IBM Programmable Network
Controller.
Did you know?
The RackSwitch G8264 supports several types of configurations: 1-Gb, 10-Gb, and 40-Gb, vNIC,
Converged Enhanced Ethernet (CEE/DCB), NAS, and iSCSI.
The RackSwitch G8264 with SFP+ technology is the ideal solution for clients who are looking for
low latency and low power consumption.
The IBM RackSwitch G8264 supports stacking for up to eight switches using a single switch
image and configuration file that shares one IP address and one management interface.
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IBM System Networking RackSwitch G8264 2
The RackSwitch supports Data Center Bridging (DCB), the group of protocols from IEEE that
provide lossless Ethernet and that allow clients to reduce the costs of implementing either:
NAS or iSCSI convergence and priority-based flow control
o
FCoE by aggregating switch ports before connecting to more costly upstream Fibre Channel
o
gateway devices.
IBM is a leader in network virtualization, offering the on-switch IBM VMready® software that
reduces the complexity of managing virtual machines (VMs) in the network. For more information,
see IBM VMready at:
http://www.ibm.com/systems/networking/software/vmready
The switch is OpenFlow enabled, which can make user-controlled virtual networks easy to create,
optimize performance dynamically, and minimize complexity when used with IBM Programmable
Network Controller. For more information, see IBM Programmable Network Controller at:
http://www.ibm.com/systems/networking/software/pnc/index.html
The G8264 plays a vital role with IBM Virtual Fabric, which reduces costs and complexity in
environments where four or more NICs are needed per server. An example is virtualization, where
clients often need up to eight NICs per server. For more information, see IBM Virtual Fabric at:
http://www.ibm.com/systems/networking/software/virtualfabric.html
Part number information
Table 1 lists the part numbers for ordering IBM System x® and IBM Power Systems™ modules and
options. Products are ordered through IBM System x and IBM Storage and Power ordering systems.
Note: Transceivers are not included in the purchase of the switch and all transceivers require using
the appropriate cables.
Table 1. IBM part numbers and feature codes for ordering (part 1)
Description System x part number Power Systems
feature code
IBM System Networking RackSwitch G8264
(Rear-to-Front)
7309G64 1455-64C
IBM System Networking RackSwitch G8264
(Front-to-Rear)
730964F
1 Gb options
IBM SFP RJ45 Transceiver 81Y1618 EB29
IBM SFP SX Transceiver 81Y1622 EB2A
IBM SFP LX Transceiver 90Y9424 ECB8
0.6 m Blue Cat5e Cable 40K5679 ECB0
1.5 m Blue Cat5e Cable 40K8785 ECB2
3 m Blue Cat5e Cable 40K5581 1111
10 m Blue Cat5e Cable 40K8927 1112
25 m Blue Cat5e Cable 40K8930 1113
Table 1. IBM part numbers and feature codes for ordering (part 2)
Description IBM System x part number Power Systems feature code
10 Gb options
IBM SFP+ SR Transceiver 46C3447 EB28
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IBM System Networking RackSwitch G8264 3
IBM SFP+ LR Transceiver 90Y9412 ECB9
IBM SFP+ ER Transceiver
90Y9415 ECBA
1m LC-LC Fiber Cable
(networking) - Optical
88Y6851 ECBC
5m LC-LC Fiber Cable
(networking) - Optical
88Y6854 ECBD
25m LC-LC Fiber Cable
(networking) - Optical
88Y6857 ECBE
0.5 IBM Passive DAC SFP+ Cable* 00D6288 ECBG
1 m IBM Passive DAC SFP+
Cable*
90Y9427 ECB4
3 m IBM Passive DAC SFP+
Cable*
90Y9430 ECB5
5 m IBM Passive DAC SFP+
Cable*
90Y9433 ECB6
7 m IBM Passive DAC SFP+
Cable*
00D6151 ECBH
1 m IBM Active DAC SFP+ Cable 95Y0323
3 m IBM Active DAC SFP+ Cable 95Y0326
5 m IBM Active DAC SFP+ Cable 95Y0329
1m 10GbE Cable SFP+ Active
Twinax
EN01
3m 10GbE Cable SFP+ Active
Twinax
EN02
5m 10GbE Cable SFP+ Active
Twinax
EN03
*Passive cables not supported for Power Systems 10Gb NICs. Used for switch to switch connectivity
only.
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IBM System Networking RackSwitch G8264 4
Table 1. IBM part numbers and feature codes for ordering (part 3)
40 Gb options
IBM QSFP+ SR Transceiver 49Y7884 EB27
10 m IBM QSFP+ MTP Optical
Cable
90Y3519 EB2J
30 m IBM QSPF+ MTP Optical
Cable
90Y3521 EB2K
1 m IBM QSFP+ DAC Break Out
Cable*
49Y7886 EB24
3 m IBM QSFP+ DAC Break Out
Cable*
49Y7887 EB25
5 m IBM QSFP+ DAC Break Out
Cable*
49Y7888 EB26
1 m IBM QSFP+-to-QSFP+ Cable* 49Y7890 EB2B
3 m IBM QSFP+-to-QSFP+ Cable* 49Y7891 EB2H
5 m IBM QSFP+-to-QSFP+ Cable* 00D5810 ECBN
7 m IBM QSFP+-to-QSFP+ Cable* 00D5813 ECBP
* QSFP+ to QSFP+ cables and QSFP+ DAC Break out cables ok, coonot supported for Power
Systems 10Gb NICs. Used for switch to switch connectivity only.
Table 1. IBM part numbers and feature codes for ordering (part 4)
Miscellaneous options System x part number Power Systems feature code
IBM System Networking Adjustable
19" 4 Post Rail Kit
00D6185 EU27
Front-to-rear, hot-swappable power
supply spare
49Y7938
Rear-to-front, not swappable power
supply spare
49Y7937
Front-to-rear, hot-swappable fan
assembly spare
49Y7939
Rear-to-front, hot-swappable fan
assembly spare
88Y6026
Console cable kit spare 90Y9462 EUC4
With the flexibility of the IBM switch, you can take advantage of the following technologies required for
multiple environments:
For 1 Gb links, you can use SFP transceivers plus LC-to-LC fiber cables.
For 10 Gb, you can use the following items:
IBM Passive/Active Direct Attach Copper SFP+ Cable
o
SFP+ transceivers (SR, LR, or ER) plus LC-to-LC fiber cables for longer distances
o
For 40 Gb links, you can use QSFP to QSFP cables up to 7m, or QSFP transceivers and MTP
cables for longer distances.
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IBM System Networking RackSwitch G8264 5
For the options and their supported distances, see Figure 2.
Figure 2. Options and their supported distances
The module part numbers include the following items:
One IBM
System Networking
RackSwitch G8264
Generic Rail Mount Kit (2-post)
IBM serial cable
Power cords, listed in Table 2, are shipped separately at an additional charge.
Table 2. Power cords and descriptions: IBM System x
Power cord Description
39Y7917 Power Cord Europe AC plug 10A/250 V; OPT
39Y7918 Power Cord Europe (Denmark) AC plug 10A/250 V; OPT
39Y7919 Power Cord Europe (Switzerland) AC plug 10A/250 V; OPT
39Y7920 Power Cord Israel AC plug 10A/250 V; OPT
39Y7922 Power Cord South Africa AC plug 10A/250 V; OPT
39Y7923 Power Cord UK AC plug 13A/250 V; OPT
39Y7924 Power Cord Australia AC plug 10A/250 V; OPT
39Y7925 Power Cord Korea AC plug 10A/250 V; OPT
46M2593 Power Cord Japan AC plug 10A/125 V; OPT
39Y7927 Power Cord India AC plug 10A/250 V; OPT
39Y7928 Power Cord China AC plug 16A/250 V; OPT
39Y7929 Power Cord Brazil AC plug 16A/250 V; OPT
39Y7930 Power Cord Uruguay/Argentina AC plug 16A/250 V; OPT
46M2592 Power Cord US/Canada AC plug 10A/125 V; OPT
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IBM System Networking RackSwitch G8264 6
Line cords, descriptions, and feature codes are listed in Table 3.
Table 3. Line cords description and IBM Power Systems and Storage feature codes
Description Feature code
Power Cord 4.3m (14-ft), Drawer to Wall/IBM PDU (250V/10A) 6458
Power Cord 4.3m (14-ft), Drawer to Wall/OEM PDU (250V/15A) U. S. 6469
Power Cord 1.8m (6-ft), Drawer to Wall (125V/15A) 6470
Power Cord 2.7m (9-ft), Drawer to Wall/OEM PDU (125V/15A) 6471
Power Cord 2.7m (9-ft), Drawer to Wall/OEM PDU (250V/16A) 6472
Power Cord 2.7m (9-ft), Drawer to Wall/OEM PDU (250V/10A) 6473
Power Cord 2.7m (9-ft), Drawer to Wall/OEM PDU, (250V/13A) 6474
Power Cord 2.7m (9-ft), Drawer to Wall/OEM PDU, (250V/16A) 6475
Power Cord 2.7m (9-ft), Drawer to Wall/OEM PDU, (250V/10A) 6476
Power Cord 2.7m (9-ft), Drawer to Wall/OEM PDU, (250V/16A) 6477
Power Cord 2.7m (9-ft), Drawer to Wall/OEM PDU, (125V/15A or 250V/10A) 6488
Power Cord 2.7m (9-ft), Drawer to Wall/OEM PDU, (250V/10A) 6493
Power Cord 2.7m (9-ft), Drawer to Wall/OEM PDU, (250V/10A) 6494
Power Cord 4.3m (14-ft), Drawer to Wall/OEM PDU (125V/15A) 6660
Power Cord 2.8m (9.2-ft), Drawer to Wall/IBM PDU, (250V/ 10A) 6665
Power Cord 2.7m (9-ft), Dawer to Wall/OEM PDU, (250V/10A) 6680
Power Cord 2.7m (9-ft), Drawer to Wall/OEM PDU, (250V/10A) 6671
Power Cord 1.5m (5-ft), Drawer to Wall/OEM PDU, (250V/10A) 6672
Benefits
The IBM System Networking RackSwitch G8264 offers the following benefits:
High performance
The 10 Gb/40 Gb switch provides the best combination of low latency, non-blocking line-rate
switching, and ease of management. It has a throughput of 1.28 Tbps.
Lower power and better cooling
The IBM RackSwitch G8264 uses as little as 330 W of power, which is a fraction of the power
consumption of most competitive offerings. Unlike side-cooled switches, which can cause
heat recirculation and reliability concerns, the front-to-rear or rear-to-front cooling design of
the G8264 reduces data center air conditioning costs by having airflow match the servers in
the rack. In addition, variable speed fans help to automatically reduce power consumption.
Stacking
With the G8264, a single switch image and configuration file can be used for up to eight
switches, sharing only one IP address and one management interface.
Virtual Fabric
The G8264 can help customers address I/O requirements for multiple NICs while reducing
cost and complexity. Virtual Fabric for IBM allows you to carve a physical NIC into multiple
virtual NICs (between 2 - 8 vNIC) and to create a virtual pipe between the adapter and the
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IBM System Networking RackSwitch G8264 7
switch for improved performance, availability, and security.
VM-Aware Networking
VMready software on the switch simplifies configuration and improves security in virtualized
environments. VMready automatically detects virtual machine movement between physical
servers and instantly reconfigures each VM’s network policies across VLANs to keep the
network up and running without interrupting traffic or impacting performance. VMready works
with all leading VM providers, such as VMware, Citrix, Xen, IBM PowerVM®, and Microsoft.
Layer 3 functionality
The G8264 includes Layer 3 functionality, which provides security and performance benefits,
as inter-VLAN traffic stays within the switch. This switch also provides the full range of Layer 3
protocols from static routes for technologies such as Open Shortest Path First (OSPF) and
Border Gateway Protocol (BGP) for enterprise customers.
Seamless interoperability
IBM switches perform seamlessly with other vendors' upstream switches.
Fault tolerance
These IBM switches learn alternate routes automatically and perform faster convergence in
the unlikely case of a link, switch, or power failure. The switch uses proven technologies like
L2 trunk failover, advanced VLAN-based failover, VRRP, and HotLink.
Multicast
The G8264 supports IGMP Snooping v1, v2, and v3 with 2 K IGMP groups. It also supports
Protocol Independent Multicast (PIM), such as PIM Sparse Mode or PIM Dense Mode.
Converged fabric
The IBM switch supports CEE and connectivity to FCoE gateways. CEE helps enable clients
to combine storage, messaging traffic, VoIP, video, and other data on a common data center
Ethernet infrastructure. FCoE helps enable highly efficient block storage over Ethernet for
consolidating server network connectivity. As a result, clients can deploy a single server
interface for multiple data types, which can simplify both deployment and management of
server network connectivity, while maintaining the high availability and robustness required for
storage transactions.
OpenFlow enabled
The RackSwitch G8264 is the first 10 GbE switch to offer benefits of OpenFlow. OpenFlow is
the new open API that enables the network administrator to easily configure and manage
virtual networks that control traffic on a “per-flow” basis. It creates multiple independent virtual
networks and related policies without dealing with the complexities of the underlying physical
network and protocols. The G8264 is also the ideal switch to use with our OpenFlow
compliant network controller, the IBM Programmable Network Controller.
Transparent networking capability
With a simple configuration change to Easy Connect Mode, the RackSwitch G8264 becomes
a transparent network device, invisible to the core, eliminating network administration
concerns of Spanning Tree Protocol configuration/interoperability, VLAN assignments and
avoids any possible loops.
By emulating a host NIC to the data center core, it accelerates the provisioning of VMs by
eliminating the need to configure the typical access switch parameters.
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IBM System Networking RackSwitch G8264 8
Table 4 compares the features of the IBM RackSwitch G8264 with the IBM RackSwitch G8264T.
Table 4. Comparison of the IBM RackSwitch G8264 and IBM RackSwitch G8264T features
IBM RackSwitch G8264 IBM RackSwitch G8264T
Port types Based on SFP+ Based on 10GBase-T
Latency Lower latency - 880 nanosecond 3.2 microseconds
Stacking Yes No
Typical power Lower power - 330 watts Competitive versus other 10GBase-T - 385W
Copper cable length Up to 7m Up to 100m
Total distance Up to 40KM with Transceiver Limited to 100m
TCO Less than other SFP+
Lower TCO – for 100m and less
(based on adapter, cables and switch)
Warranty information
The IBM RackSwitch G8264 includes an IBM standard 3-year hardware warranty with Next Business
Day (NBD), 9x5, Customer Replaceable Unit (CRU) warranty service. IBM also includes a 3-year
software warranty. IBM also reserves the right to provide new features as part of future software
releases. Software Upgrade Entitlement is based on the switch’s warranty or post warranty extension
and service contracts.
Features and specifications
Performance, hardware, and software features are described in the following lists.
Performance
100% Line rate performance
1280 Gbps non-blocking switching throughput (full duplex)
Latency: 880 ns
960 Mpps
Hardware features
IBM RackSwitch G8264 has the following hardware features:
Models
IBM System Networking RackSwitch G8264 Rear-to-Front Versions
o
For ports located in the rear of the rack matching System x, IBM BladeCenter® and Power
Systems designs
IBM System Networking RackSwitch G8264 Front-to-Rear Versions
o
For ports located in the front of the rack matching airflow of IBM iDataPlex®
Interface options
Forty-eight SFP/SFP+ ports (1/10 GbE)
o
Four QSFP+ ports (40 GbE)
o
Up to 64 10 Gb SFP+ connections with optional breakout cable
o
One 10/100/1000 Ethernet RJ45 port for out-of-band management
o
One USB port for mass storage device connection
o
One mini-USB Console port for serial access
o
Server-like port orientations, enabling short and simple cabling
o
Dimensions:
17.3 inches wide, 19 inches deep, 1 RU high
o
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IBM System Networking RackSwitch G8264 9
Weight:
10.5 kg (23 lb)
o
Rack Installation Kit
Generic Rack Mount Kit (2-post)
o
Can be mounted vertically or horizontally
o
LEDs
System LEDs to indicate link status, fan, power, and stacking
o
Airflow
Front-to-rear or rear-to-front cooling
o
Redundant variable hot-swap speed fans for reduced power draw
o
Figure 3 shows the rear view of the IBM RackSwitch G8264.
Figure 3. Rear view of IBM RackSwitch G8264
Power
Dual hot swap power modules, 50 - 60Hz, 100 - 240 VAC auto-switching per module
o
Typical power consumption of 330 Watts
o
Environmental specifications
Temperature: Ambient operating: 0º C to + 40º C
o
Relative humidity: Non-condensing, operating 10 to 90%
o
Altitude: Operating 1,800 m (6,000 feet)
o
Typical heat dissipation: 1127 BTU/hour
o
Mean time between failures (MTBF):
o
165,990 hours at 40 °C
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IBM System Networking RackSwitch G8264 10
Software features
IBM RackSwitch G8264 has the following software features, as of 7.6:
Security
RADIUS
o
TACACS+
o
SCP
o
Wire Speed Filtering: Allow and Deny
o
SSH v1, v2
o
HTTPS Secure BBI
o
Secure interface login and password
o
MAC address move notification
o
Shift B Boot menu (Password Recovery/ Factory Default)
o
VLANs
Port-based VLANs
o
4096 VLAN ids supported
o
2048 Active VLANs (802.1Q)
o
802.1x with Guest VLAN
o
Private VLAN Edge
o
Stacking
o
FCoE/Lossless Ethernet
802.1 Data Center Bridging
o
Priority Based Flow Control (PFC)
o
Enhanced Transmission Selection (ETS)
o
Data Center Bridge Exchange protocol (DCBX)
o
FIP Snooping
o
Fibre Channel over Ethernet
o
Converged Enhanced Ethernet
o
Trunking
LACP
o
Static Trunks (EtherChannel)
o
Configurable Trunk Hash algorithm
o
Spanning Tree
Multiple Spanning Tree (802.1 s)
o
Rapid Spanning Tree (802.1 w)
o
PVRST+
o
Fast Uplink Convergence
o
BPDU guard
o
Quality of Service
QoS 802.1p (priority queues)
o
DSCP remarking
o
Metering
o
Routing protocols
RIP v1/v2
o
OSPF
o
BGP
o
IPv6 OSPF v3 (RFC 5340)
o
High availability
Layer 2 failover
o
HotLinks™
o
Virtual Router Redundancy support (VRRP)
o
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IBM System Networking RackSwitch G8264 11
Multicast
IGMP Snooping v1, v2, and v3 with 2 K IGMP groups
o
Protocol Independent Multicast (PIM) Sparse Mode/Dense Mode
o
Monitoring
Port mirroring
o
ACL-based mirroring
o
sFlow Version 5
o
Management
Stacking
o
Virtualization
VMready with VI API support
o
vNIC MIB support for SNMP
o
OpenFlow
OpenFlow v1.0
o
OpenFlow hybrid mode
o
Clients
IBM System Networking Switch Center (SNSC)
o
ISCLI (Cisco-like)
o
Scriptable CLI
o
Browser-based client or Telnet
o
Standard protocols
IPv4, IPv6
o
SNMP v1, v2c, and v3
o
RMON
o
Secondary NTP Support
o
DHCP Client
o
DHCP Relay
o
LLDP
o
128 K MAC Table
o
9 K Jumbo Frames
o
802.3X Flow Control
o
Upgrades
Upgrade firmware via serial or TFTP
o
Dual software images
o
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IBM System Networking RackSwitch G8264 12
Popular configurations
The following configurations are the most popular for using IBM RackSwitch G8264:
Rack-optimized server aggregation 10-GbE attached rack servers
Rack-optimized server aggregation logical design
2560 node gigabit network: Using next-generation 64 port 1U switches
Virtual Fabric configuration with IBM System x servers using the Emulex Virtual Fabric Adapter
IP Storage over 10 GbE: Changing the economics of storage
Rack-optimized server aggregation 10-GbE attached rack servers
The IBM RackSwitch G8264 is an ideal networking device for port aggregation, allowing the
consolidation of one to three racks full of servers before connecting to an upstream switch.
High-concentration of rack-optimized servers, for example:
IBM System x 1U servers with a 10 Gb adapter installed
o
Easily supports 40 servers per rack.
Easily supports up to 48 servers or more, depending on uplink bandwidth required across
two racks, including storage or UPS.
IBM System x 2U servers with a 10 Gb adapter installed
o
Most clients will have up to twenty 2U servers per rack.
With the G8264 switch being able to support up to 64 SFP+ ports, a client can easily use
a switch across three racks of severs, and more likely two for redundancy.
IBM BladeCenter using any of the following modules in the chassis:
o
IBM BladeCenter 1/10 Gb Uplink Ethernet Switch Module
With only two 10 Gb SFP+ ports per chassis, clients with larger data centers can easily
support 24 chassis or more per RackSwitch G8264.
IBM BladeCenter Virtual Fabric 10 Gb Switch Module
With support of up to ten 10 Gb SFP+ ports per switch, clients can easily support 4 - 6
chassis per RackSwitch, and if they are not concerned about oversubscription, they can
support up to 24 or more per RackSwitch G8264.
10 Gb Ethernet Pass-Thru Module for IBM BladeCenter
For many clients looking to use a pass-through module, upstream costs can be
expensive, especially if you are connecting to a core switch and are looking at up to
fourteen 10 Gb ports per chassis. The G8264 provides a much more cost-effective
alternative and can support up to four fully populated IBM BladeCenter H chassis per
RackSwitch. This alternative is also much better for larger BladeCenter H environments
compared to a smaller 24-port switch.
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IBM System Networking RackSwitch G8264 13
Low-profile, high-performance, 48/64-port 10-GbE switch needed to perform aggregation function
per rack. Figure 4 shows port aggregation, and Table 5 lists the features and benefits.
Figure 4. Port aggregation
Table 5. Features and benefits
Features Benefits
Line-rate, non-blocking, all 64-ports Supports massive compute and virtualization workloads
Deterministically low latency Faster application response times
Support for IGMP Snooping and L3 forwarding Enables high-bandwidth, low-latency multicast
applications
Standards-based Layer 2/3 protocols; industry standard
CLI
Interoperates with existing network; no learning curve
Rack-optimized server aggregation logical design
The design goal is to have the IBM RackSwitch G8264 (10 GbE) switch at the distribution layer and
the IBM RackSwitch G8000/G8052 (1 GbE) at Edge/Access.
The G8264 is also ideal at the distribution layer when you are looking to aggregate connections for
access layer switches like the G8000 or G8052 which support forty-eight 1-Gb ports to the servers
and four 10-Gb uplinks. In either scenario, the G8264 provides exceptional value by providing the
following support:
Up to 12 G8000/G8052 switches (576 servers) when using the four 10 Gb uplinks per
G8000/G8052, while still having the four 40 Gb uplinks from the G8264 to the core
Up to 16 G8000/G8052 switches (768 servers) when using the four 10 Gb uplinks per
G8000/G8052 and using 10 Gb SFP+ break-out cables in the four 40 Gb ports with no uplinks to
a core
Keep in mind the following additional details:
Logical configuration: Configure G8000/G8052 for Layer 2 and apply static routes for L3
forwarding
Full Layer 2/3 Feature Set: STP, MSTP, RSTP, PVRST+; RIP v1/2, static routes, OSPF
Security: 802.1X; RADIUS/TACACS+; Wire Speed ACLs, SSH v1, v2; HTTPS Secure BBI
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IBM System Networking RackSwitch G8264 14
QoS: Up to eight queues per port, IEEE 802.1p and DiffServ prioritization
Figure 5 shows aggregation option 2.
Figure 5. Aggregation option 2
2560 node gigabit network : Using next -generation 64 port 1U switches
The following high-level configuration is an example of how a configuration might look if the G8052 is
used as leaf switches and the G8264 is used as a spine switch.
All active links
Traffic load balanced across all links using Layer 3 ECMP
o
64 RackSwitch G8052 Leaf Switches for 2560 non-blocking 1 GbE ports
48x 10/100/1000 server-facing ports each
o
4x 10 GBASE-SR fiber uplinks each
o
Four RackSwitch G8264
spine
switches for non-blocking core
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IBM System Networking RackSwitch G8264 15
Figure 6 shows the 2560 node.
Figure 6. The 2560 node
Virtual Fabric configuration with IBM System x servers using the Emulex Virtual Fabric Adapter
The following example describes an IBM Virtual Fabric implementation:
IBM Virtual Fabric for IBM System x is built using industry standards and is the ideal solution for
customers that require more than two NICs per server. Over the past couple of years many clients
have seen their I/O requirements per server increase anywhere from 4 to 6 to 8 or even more
NICs per server, especially with the adoption of virtualization. What IBM Virtual Fabric does is
provide clients with the ability to leverage a virtual NIC approach leveraging 10 Gb Ethernet
technology to help reduce cost and complexity while also achieving better performance and more
flexibility. It provides the following benefits:
Reduced costs
o
Acquisition and operating by using fewer adapters, cables, and upstream switch ports.
Reduced complexity
o
Fewer items to manage, based standards, making management easier with the addition of
high availability and better security.
Better performance
o
A significant amount more I/O bandwidth per server and lower latency than traditional 1-Gb
Ethernet.
Flexibility
o
The ability to carve up a dual-port 10 Gb adapter into 4 - 8 virtual NICs and create virtual
pipes between the adapter and switch for higher availability and security. Not only can
customers dynamically allocate I/O bandwidth to each virtual NIC, Virtual Fabric also provides
the ability to change those allocations as needed. For example, a customer might have one
configuration for workload during the day and another during the evenings. Virtual Fabric has
the ability to make those changes on the fly without downtime.
IBM Virtual Fabric is designed in partnership with Emulex. This solution requires the following
components:
Emulex 10 Gb Virtual Fabric Adapter for IBM System x
o
For more details, see
Emulex 10Gb Virtual Fabric Adapter for IBM System x
, TIPS0762 at:
http://www.redbooks.ibm.com/Redbooks.nsf/RedbookAbstracts/tips0762.html?Open
IBM System Networking RackSwitch G8264
o
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IBM System Networking RackSwitch G8264 16
Figure 7 shows the vNIC.
Figure 7. vNIC
IP Storage over 10 GbE: Changing the economics of storage
G8264 benefits for IP Storage applications are as follows:
Lossless Ethernet Fabric
Low latency ideal for HPC clusters, cloud, and financial applications
Line-rate, high-bandwidth performance
Low-power consumption with fewer components
Low-cost, pay-as-you-grow 10 Gb/40 Gb storage network
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Figure 8 shows the iSCSI.
Figure 8. iSCSI
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Related publications
For more information, see the following references:
IBM Offering Information page (to search on announcement letters, sales manuals, or both):
http://www.ibm.com/common/ssi/index.wss?request_locale=en
On this page, enter
G8264 for System x and iDataPlex
, select the information type, and
then click Search. On the next page, narrow your search results by geography and language.
IBM System Networking RackSwitch G8264 product publications
http://ibm.com/support/entry/portal/documentation
Application Guide
o
Industry-Standard CLI Reference
o
Browser-Based Interface (BBI) Quick Guide
o
Menu-based CLI Command Reference
o
IBM VMready
http://www.ibm.com/systems/networking/software/vmready
IBM Programmable Network Controller
http://www.ibm.com/systems/networking/software/pnc/index.html
IBM Virtual Fabric
http://www.ibm.com/systems/networking/software/virtualfabric.html
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IBM System Networking RackSwitch G8264 20
This document was created or updated on May 10, 2013.
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