40 Gigabit Ethernet: The Migration Begins
As data traffic is always on the rise, it’s important
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40 Gigabit Ethernet: The Migration Begins
for network architects to plan for the future. And though most enterprises are still operating with 10 Gigabit Ethernet (GbE), those that want to stay ahead of the curve are testing and implementing the first generation of 40 GbE. This expert E-Guide deep dives into the future of Ethernet and why migrating to 40 GbE is necessary. 40 Gigabit Ethernet: The Migration Begins
The need for more speed and capacity never goes away. Most enterprises are still rolling out 10 Gigabit Ethernet links in their networks, but already network architects and engineers are preparing for the future because data traffic never stops growing. Early adopters are testing and deploying the first generation of 40 Gigabit Ethernet (GbE) switches and routers to get a step ahead of this continuous onslaught of traffic. ―We are seeing incidental peaks of traffic nearing 10 Gbps,‖ said Jeroen van Ingen, a network engineer at the University of Twente in the Dutch city of Enschede. ―Given the traffic growth over the years, we expect to need more capacity within 12 to 24 months. That’s why we decided that new core equipment should support 40 GbE.‖ Van Ingen is not alone in predicting the need for 40 GbE and beyond. Research from the Dell’Oro Group forecasts the overall Layer 2 and Layer 3 Ethernet switch market will reach $25 billion in 2016, with 40 and 100 GbE technology approaching $3 billion in sales. Meanwhile, Infonetics Research shows sales of 40 GbE technology grew 50% in both Q1 and Q2 of this year. The expansion is largely driven by bigger data centers and the move to the cloud, according to researchers. The university recently upgraded the core of the residential portion of its campus network with two of Cisco Systems’ Catalyst 6500-E switches. Today, those core switches are interconnected