Force10 Networks has announced the extension of its S-Series family with the new S55 1/10 Gigabit Ethernet (GbE) top-of-rack (ToR) access switch. Optimized for data center environments, the new S55 provides a resilient and energy-efficient hardware design that delivers non-blocking, line-rate switching performance as well as support for the Force10 Open Automation Framework to make virtualized data center environments more responsive and manageable.

"The ToR switch plays an increasingly vital role in data center networks as they continue to rapidly grow and evolve," says Steve Garrison, vice president, marketing, Force10 Networks. "As bandwidth scaling and virtual network management challenges increase at the server edge, network managers require greater performance and intelligence in the ToR switch.  Force10's new S55 delivers on that requirement while rounding out the company's line of high-performance 1/10 GbE ToR switches and paves the way for an expanded set of 10/40 GbE offerings in the future."

The S55 complements Force10's other S-Series 1/10 GbE ToR products, including the recently announced S60 high performance access switch with ultra-deep packet buffering and the price/performance-optimized S50 and S25. The S-Series 1/10 GbE ToR switches provide line-rate, low-latency switching, with configuration flexibility as well as high reliability, and are ideally deployed with the Force10 ExaScale virtualized core switch/router to create a flat, two-tier, fully non-blocking GbE and 10 GbE data center solution.

Bringing Horsepower, Efficiency and Automation to the Network Edge

The compact, high-density S55 ToR switch provides 48 GbE access ports and up to four optional 10 GbE uplinks in just 1-RU. The S55 provides non-blocking, line-rate switching to meet the performance requirements of the most demanding data center network, while including architectural features that optimize efficiency. Purpose-built for data center environments, the S55 design includes optional front-to-back or back-to-front airflow, redundant, hot-swappable AC or DC power supplies, four SFP ports and support for the stacking of up to 8 units.

Like the S60 1/10 GbE switch, the S55 also provides support for Force10's Open Automation Framework and advanced network virtualization capabilities.  Delivering a suite of inter-related network management and architectural tools, the Open Automation Framework brings network automation to virtual data center environments, providing a network that is more flexible, available and manageable while reducing operational expenses.

Pricing and Availability

The S55 1/10 GbE ToR access switch will begin shipping to customers at the end of October.