CISCO Data Center Studies for the student of professordkinney.com

1. www.professordkinney.com
08/08/13
Instructional Design-Computer Networking -
Bridges Educational Group

2. CISCO DATA CENTER
08/08/13
Instructional Design-Computer Networking -
Bridges Educational Group

3. CISCO DATA CENTER
Cisco UCS Architecture
The Cisco Unified Computing System (UCS), when inserted into the data center, actually consolidates
many of these separate elements into a single environment. In the next section, all of the various
threads presented thus far blend together into a new architecture with substantial benefits for all
aspects of a business enterprise
08/08/13
Instructional Design-Computer Networking -
Bridges Educational Group
Cisco UCS Data Center Topology

4. Unified Fabric
Comparing the diagram above (Figure 9) with the previous data center diagram (Figure 8), you can see
several components combined in the UCS environment. One of the first points of consolidation is
the elimination of a separate Fiber Channel network, through the use of Converged Network
Adapters (CNAs) that replace the HBA in the server platform. In addition, the Cisco 6120/40-XP
Fabric Interconnects effectively transport Fiber Channel traffic using Fiber Channel over Ethernet
(FCOE), eliminating the need for a separate infrastructure. While the important technical details are
beyond the scope of this particular discussion, it does allow for transport over a single network, in a
manner similar to voice and data not long ago.
Unified Management (UCS Manager)
Embedded into the 6120/40-XP Fabric Interconnects is the UCS Manager, a web-based management
software that allows for all management functions of the physical UCS infrastructure as well as
interconnection with V-Center (the VMware virtualization management software). In addition, a
separate management network is also eliminated, further consolidating the infrastructure.
Service Profiles (Stateless Computing)
The specific hardware configuration elements of the blades in the server are defined in a construct
termed a service profile. This profile, defined in the UCS Manager GUI, is pushed to the individual
blades at run time. In addition, templates can be created to populate service profiles of differing
types. Various configurations can be changed on the blades, allowing for rapid reconfiguration
08/08/13
Instructional Design-Computer Networking -
Bridges Educational Group
CISCO DATA CENTER

5. Role-Based Access
Many IT organizations maintain separate personnel management structures, which may
include the following.
• Network: Switches, Routers, and Infrastructure
• Storage: SAN device administration
• Server: Deployment of physical servers and associated applications
In many ways the consolidation of disparate network elements simplifies operational
matters, but it can have the unfortunate side effect of creating proverbial “turf wars”
with no simple solutions. One of the features built into the UCS Manager software is the
concept of roles, or role-based access. In addition, a number of predefined roles already
exist that can help manage access to the various aspects of the computing environment.
Some of these include:
• Administrator (super user access)
• Network Administrator (network asset access)
• Server Administrator (server access)
• Storage Administrator (storage access)
Additional roles can be defined as needed to meet business needs.
08/08/13
Instructional Design-Computer Networking -
Bridges Educational Group
CISCO DATA CENTER

6. THE CISCO DATA CENTER NETWORK ARCHITECTURE
The Cisco Data Center Network Architecture provides a scalable foundation that allows
data center host a variety of legacy and emerging systems and technologies. Among
these technologies are the following:
• N-tier Applications—Secure network zones support two, three, or n-tier application
environments with techniques that optimize application availability and server and
storage utilization.
• Web Applications—Application Acceleration and Server Optimization technologies
including HTML provide improved scalability and delivery of web applications to end-
users, wherever they are.
• Blade Servers—The Data Center Network Architecture helps reduce risks associated with
blade server deployment by providing an intelligent network foundation, integrated
Ethernet and Infinite band switching technology, and deployment guidance that help
optimize their availability, security, and performance.
• Clustering, High-Performance Computing and Grid—Cisco’s high-performance data,
server, and storage switching solutions, whether Ethernet, Infinite band or Fibre
Channel based enable the deployment of data and I/O intensive applications that make
use of these distributed compute and storage architectures.
• SOA and Web Services—Cisco’s Data Center Network Architecture facilitates the reliable,
secure and rapid deployment of a SOA, by enabling dynamic deployment and scaling of
secure infrastructures and by enhancing application integration with message-based
services.
08/08/13
Instructional Design-Computer Networking -
Bridges Educational Group
CISCO DATA CENTER

7. ELEMENTS OF THE CISCO DATA CENTER NETWORK ARCHITECTURE
Based on SONA, the Cisco Data Center Network Architecture (Figure 2) comprises the
following layers:
• Networked Infrastructure Layer—Meets all the bandwidth, latency and protocol
requirements for user to server, server to server and server to storage connectivity and
communications.
• Interactive Services Layer—Provides the Infrastructure Enhancing Services which
ensure the fast and secure alignment of resources with application requirements and
Application Networking Services that optimize application integration and the delivery
of applications to end users. These services are integrated into the Cisco networking
platforms that comprise the Networked Infrastructure Layer for enhanced, scalability,
manageability and transparency
08/08/13
Instructional Design-Computer Networking -
Bridges Educational Group
CISCO DATA CENTER

8. 08/08/13
Instructional Design-Computer Networking -
Bridges Educational Group
CISCO DATA CENTER