SCIENCE

Force10 Networks announced that it has entered into an agreement designed to integrate cloud single sign-on (SSO) with Force10 top-of-rack (ToR) switches utilizing cloud access control software from Intel Corporation.

This agreement is the latest element of Force10's Open Cloud Networking(SM) (OCN) framework, a new vision for cloud and conventional data centers that is built on open architectures, open automation, and open ecosystems.

The agreement enables Force10 to incorporate Intel Expressway Access 360 software into its top-of-rack switching solutions to extend the functionality of its Open Automation Framework.

The Force10/Intel solution provides small and medium enterprises with a cost-effective option to overlay quality of service networking and SSO on to SaaS provider applications. For medium and large enterprises, the solution enables cloud-bursting for compute-intensive applications from private to public cloud infrastructure while enabling ready-SSO access.

"Force10 has been at the forefront of developing practical virtualization and orchestration solutions that solve pressing problems in today's data center relating to performance, manageability and operational costs," says Michael O'Brien, vice president, global alliances and channels, Force10 Networks. "Working with Intel enables us to extend our network automation capabilities for Enterprises to leverage public clouds and/or deploy SaaS applications so that our customers can easily and quickly deploy secure cloud solutions."

Under terms of the agreement, Intel Expressway Cloud Access 360 technology will be initially integrated into top-of-rack (ToR) solutions including the Force10 S-Series S7000 Open Cloud Switch and virtual appliance modules. By incorporating SSO and account provisioning functionality close to the compute resources at the ToR, data center managers will have the ability to automatically transfer user policies to the cloud.  For example, compute intensive applications, such as graphics animation, could cloud-burst from the private data center to multiple public cloud environments, enabling instant federation and SSO control.  This allows Enterprise user accounts and policy-based access without placing additional burden on the data center or network.  

"Single sign on, account provisioning, and strong, second factor authentication are foundation cloud-enablement capabilities demanded by enterprises before fully embracing the cloud. As Force10 embeds Intel Expressway Cloud Access 360 into their cloud-bursting infrastructure, the market will benefit from a new level of enterprise-class security applied to cloud bursting scenarios where applications and access are enabled on-demand," said Girish Juneja, director, application security and identity products at Intel. "We expect the combined solution will help move the Enterprise beyond tightly controlled private clouds to more scalable, open public cloud deployments."

Extending the Capabilities of the Force10 Open Automation Framework

Incorporating the ability to accelerate single sign-on and security provisioning for access to cloud-based services adds an important capability to Force10's Open Automation Framework. Open Automation is a suite of inter-related automation and orchestration tools that provides data center managers with the software functionality required in today's dynamic, virtual data center environments

Force10 ToR switching solutions incorporating Intel Expressway Cloud Access 360 are expected to be available in the second half of 2011.