Brocade unveils Open Networking Platform for service providers

Brocade has unveiled the Brocade® Vyatta® Platform, the first phase of a multiyear strategy that delivers an open and modular networking platform for cloud and telecommunications service providers. Supporting the build-out of both Application and Subscriber Clouds, the Brocade Vyatta Platform is the industry’s first articulation of this open strategy.

Embracing the requirements outlined within the ETSI NFV ISG, the Brocade Vyatta Platform encompasses proven Network Functions Virtualisation (NFV) and emerging Software-Defined Networking (SDN) technologies based on open standards and open source initiatives. The Brocade Vyatta Platform utilises established core components, such as the Brocade Vyatta vRouter and Brocade vADX™ products, along with the open source software projects such as OpenDaylight and OpenStack.

“Brocade’s approach to NFV leverages both the ETSI ISG work and industry-wide interest in virtual routing and switching to shorten time-to-benefit and build toward the open approach that operators all want,” said Tom Nolle, president and founder of CIMI Corporation. “Brocade’s platform offers an extensible way of creating network features and service value for operators, building on virtual routing and switching but providing ample support for feature extensions that can drive revenue and profit growth.”

The architecture of the Brocade Vyatta Platform is comprised of three core layers: NFV Connection Services, SDN Structural Services and Functional Orchestration. Each layer of this open architecture is modular and enables customers to select the products and/or solutions that fit their particular data center requirements:
- NFV Connection Services: Deploy Layer 3-7 network functionality with the Brocade Vyatta vRouter and the Brocade vADX products, along with service chains including third-party elements where needed.

- SDN Structural Services: Leverage the rapid advancements of the multivendor OpenDaylight Project to simplify management through centralised control.
- Functional Orchestration: Engage a vast range of capabilities from OpenStack and widely interoperable third-party provisioning and orchestration layers.

The open and modular nature of this platform enables interoperability and greater choice for customers. Communication between the layers utilises transparent standards-based protocols and methods, including REST APIs and the NETCONF/YANG model, to ensure configuration interoperability.

“The growing complexity of today’s virtualised networks has made it no longer feasible to rely on a single vendor to deliver an end-to-end solution that fits every customer’s requirements of service agility and scalability,” said Kelly Herrell, vice president and general manager of Software Networking at Brocade. “The Brocade Vyatta Platform is the industry’s first truly open platform to embrace a growing vendor ecosystem dedicated to open standards and open source projects for cloud and telco providers seeking software-based solutions to achieve new revenue streams and regain control over their networks.”

By adopting a software platform approach, such as the Brocade Vyatta Platform, customers gain control over each layer of their infrastructure to ensure they leverage the right components and adapt more quickly to changing business conditions, all while reducing CapEx and OpEx.

“Where individual SDN and NFV technologies will address specific problems, the platform approach will accelerate the full realisation of a modern network model,” Herrell said. “Furthermore, in working with industry partners we will continue to build out the Brocade Vyatta Platform to advance interoperability and ensure the platform is carrier-grade.”

Brocade is actively engaged with partners on broader industry initiatives, such as OpenDaylight and OpenStack, advancing their capabilities and ensuring seamless interoperability between platform layers. Additionally, Brocade is aggressively partnering with several vendor ecosystems that are delivering solutions that build upon various combinations of these platform capabilities. For example, the NFV Connection Services components of the Brocade Vyatta Platform are anchored through the Layer 3-7 capabilities of the Brocade Vyatta vRouter and Brocade vADX products, which are available today and deployed worldwide.