NETWORKS

MILPITAS, Calif.--Force10 Networks, Inc., announced today that the National Center for Supercomputing Applications (NCSA) at the University of Illinois has selected Force10 Networks E-Series E1200 high density Gigabit and 10 Gigabit Ethernet (GbE) switch/routers for Phase II of NCSA's portion of the TeraGrid project. Sponsored by the National Science Foundation (NSF), TeraGrid is a multi-institutional effort to build and deploy the world's most comprehensive computing infrastructure for open scientific research. IBM provided integration services for the Phase II deployment. Force10's E-Series switch/routers have already been deployed in Phase I of the project at NCSA as well as at the three other original TeraGrid sites: Argonne National Laboratory (ANL), the Center for Advanced Computing Research (CACR) at the California Institute of Technology, and the San Diego Supercomputer Center (SDSC). "NCSA selected Force10 Networks' E1200 platform for our TeraGrid cluster aggregation solution for two key reasons. First, the E1200 was, and continues to be, the highest density Gigabit Ethernet switch available in the marketplace. Second, the E1200 delivers upon its promise of line-rate performance across all ports," said Patrick Dorn, NCSA Technical Program Manager. "Since the time of NCSA's initial selection of the E1200, Force10 Networks has continued to impress me with their commitment. Their level of support has been very good throughout the deployment process. Additionally, Force10 has met their proposed timelines for all key hardware and software enhancements." "The National Center for Supercomputing Applications is one of a small group of institutions that will define the future of high performance computing," said Andrew Feldman, vice president of marketing at Force10 Networks. "The TeraGrid project is one of the largest and most demanding network environments in the world, and this deployment is testament to the massive scalability and reliability of the E-Series." Research centers such as NCSA are driving the expansion of cluster grid computing, the next IT revolution. Ultimately, computational grids will allow users to access enormous "virtual supercomputers" -- computers at different locations linked together to work as one -- that will provide CPU cycles on demand. The NSF TeraGrid project uses a dedicated 40 Gbps wide area backplane to connect computers, storage facilities, visualization systems and applications at NCSA and other TeraGrid sites to create the most comprehensive grid computing environment for open scientific research in the United States. Clusters connected over this grid are using 10 GbE interconnections between Gigabit Ethernet-attached Linux server clusters. The Force10 E-Series, the E1200 and E600, is a new generation of switch/routers providing resilient, reliable line-rate IP routing and switching at Gigabit and 10 Gigabit speeds. Built around the EtherScale ASICs, the E-Series offers the industry's first fully distributed hardware architecture. This, in combination with the fully modular FTOS software, enables the E-Series to provide best-in-class resiliency and redundancy at line rate 10 Gigabit speeds while enabling new levels of network-based security with unique protection against Denial of Service attacks.