"New Year's Eve Shopping": VMware acquired PLNgrid SDN startup
VMware made a pre-New Year purchase. It has become known that the virtualization giant has acquired a PLUMgrid startup that deals with software-defined networking technologies.
PLUMgrid was founded in 2011 by people from Cisco Systems to help companies cope with the growing amount of traffic passing through the infrastructure. The development team has created a management system that automates network operations while simplifying the process of hardware expansion.
/ Flickr / Bruno Cordioli / CC
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One of the components of the PLUMgrid platform is the IO Visor technology, which the startup donated to the Linux Foundation last year. It provides the ability to switch packets and perform other network tasks using regular servers instead of expensive equipment. Moreover, the introduction of a new function does not require a server reboot, which allows clients to reprogram hardware in a dynamic mode as the requirements of the environment change.
IO Visor solves the issue with the virtualization of the Linux kernel. Because it “communicates” directly with hardware, such as memory and CPUs, the kernel is able to provide greater performance than user space. The term non-virtualized as applied to the kernel means that it can process only one request at a time. To process a new request — a new IO module — you have to recompile the kernel.
IO Visor allows you to simplify the process of adding virtual machines. This is possible through the use of Berkeley Packet Filter (BPF), which filters packet data. Now the concept of network function virtualization (NFV) allows you to run multiple virtual network functions (VNF) on a single core.
Source: TechCrunch
IO Visor is also a good platform for building distributed monitoring systems and tracking applications. It allows you to track the status of interfaces and traffic in real time. Then, developers will be able to build applications based on this data, turning the numbers into graphs that reflect the "health of the infrastructure."
The solution also provides security features. Imagine virtual firewalls and intrusion prevention systems automatically loading into the kernel without having to reassemble it. “The solution allows engineers and administrators to work with the system in real time and forget about the start-stop-reset paradigm,” said Lauren Cooney, senior director of software strategy implementation at Cisco.
Thus, IO Visor allows you to build a complete virtual network distributed across several compute nodes, where the kernel performs all data processing. You can find and independently study the IO Visor Project solution in the repository on GitHub.
It should be noted that VMware will not receive the rights to IO Visor, since it is distributed under an open license. However, the company acquires other PLUMgrid platforms. The Open Networking Suite solution promises to simplify the management of environments on OpenStack, while the other system, Container Networking Suite, offers similar capabilities for containerized applications.
Finally, PLUMgrid has been developing a CloudApex monitoring tool that will give organizations the ability to monitor network status in real time. The graphical shell of the solution displays the resources used and allows you to quickly identify problems using the built-in analytical functions. With PLUMgrid solutions, VMware hopes to improve its NSX SDN platform. At the same time, the virtualization giant notes that PLUMgrid employees will continue to work on their offspring.
Issues of our IaaS-digest on Habré:
PLUMgrid was founded in 2011 by people from Cisco Systems to help companies cope with the growing amount of traffic passing through the infrastructure. The development team has created a management system that automates network operations while simplifying the process of hardware expansion.
/ Flickr / Bruno Cordioli / CC
')
One of the components of the PLUMgrid platform is the IO Visor technology, which the startup donated to the Linux Foundation last year. It provides the ability to switch packets and perform other network tasks using regular servers instead of expensive equipment. Moreover, the introduction of a new function does not require a server reboot, which allows clients to reprogram hardware in a dynamic mode as the requirements of the environment change.
“Programmability is the key to adding new features and increasing the transparency of networking,” says Martin Izzard, CEO of Barefoot Networks.
IO Visor solves the issue with the virtualization of the Linux kernel. Because it “communicates” directly with hardware, such as memory and CPUs, the kernel is able to provide greater performance than user space. The term non-virtualized as applied to the kernel means that it can process only one request at a time. To process a new request — a new IO module — you have to recompile the kernel.
IO Visor allows you to simplify the process of adding virtual machines. This is possible through the use of Berkeley Packet Filter (BPF), which filters packet data. Now the concept of network function virtualization (NFV) allows you to run multiple virtual network functions (VNF) on a single core.
Source: TechCrunch
IO Visor is also a good platform for building distributed monitoring systems and tracking applications. It allows you to track the status of interfaces and traffic in real time. Then, developers will be able to build applications based on this data, turning the numbers into graphs that reflect the "health of the infrastructure."
The solution also provides security features. Imagine virtual firewalls and intrusion prevention systems automatically loading into the kernel without having to reassemble it. “The solution allows engineers and administrators to work with the system in real time and forget about the start-stop-reset paradigm,” said Lauren Cooney, senior director of software strategy implementation at Cisco.
Thus, IO Visor allows you to build a complete virtual network distributed across several compute nodes, where the kernel performs all data processing. You can find and independently study the IO Visor Project solution in the repository on GitHub.
It should be noted that VMware will not receive the rights to IO Visor, since it is distributed under an open license. However, the company acquires other PLUMgrid platforms. The Open Networking Suite solution promises to simplify the management of environments on OpenStack, while the other system, Container Networking Suite, offers similar capabilities for containerized applications.
Finally, PLUMgrid has been developing a CloudApex monitoring tool that will give organizations the ability to monitor network status in real time. The graphical shell of the solution displays the resources used and allows you to quickly identify problems using the built-in analytical functions. With PLUMgrid solutions, VMware hopes to improve its NSX SDN platform. At the same time, the virtualization giant notes that PLUMgrid employees will continue to work on their offspring.
Issues of our IaaS-digest on Habré:
Source: https://habr.com/ru/post/316290/
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