News

New Brocade SDN Controller Targets Transition to the 'New IP'

• By David Ramel
• 09/18/2015

Brocade Communications Systems Inc. this week came out with a new software-defined networking (SDN) controller and associated applications based on the OpenDaylight Lithium release.

The company said the new Brocade SDN Controller 2 is designed to help providers and enterprises transition to modern, "New IP" networks.

New IP is the currently in-vogue term being used by Brocade and others to describe the next-gen networking transition commonly associated with SDN, network functions virtualization (NFV) and complementary technologies such as bare-metal (or white-box) hardware, programmable networking software and new virtualization techniques that decouple the traditional hardware/software layers.

The controller is the latest continuous build based on OpenDaylight code, with no proprietary extensions, Brocade said. According to the project's Web site, "OpenDaylight (ODL) is a highly available, modular, extensible, scalable and multi-protocol controller infrastructure built for SDN deployments on modern heterogeneous multi-vendor networks."

Brocade said its new controller provides "enhancements to the Open vSwitch Database (OVSDB) interface and the OpenStack Modular Layer 2 plug-in (certified in Red Hat's Juno distribution) enabling cloud providers to completely use an open software stack to manage their datacenter infrastructure." It also features a new UI for a more consistent and intuitive view of the network, the company said, along with OpenDaylight clustering said to provide better scalability and stability.

Along with the new controller, Brocade announced two new SDN applications called Brocade Topology Manager and Brocade Flow Manager. The former is a free application, while the flow manager is priced at $40 per attached node per year, with support. The controller itself is available as a free download with 60 days of technical support, while a production license costs $100 per attached node per year, including support.

"Brocade's approach to bringing open SDN solutions to its customers is unique," the company quoted ACG Research analyst Paul Parker-Johnson as saying. "By basing its controller on OpenDaylight software, and adding its own validation, professional support and educational services to streamline adoption, Brocade is delivering a well-curated SDN platform to its customers. The company is also adding visibility and intelligence to managing SDN deployments with value-added applications, like the Brocade Flow Manager, that are built using open software frameworks their customers are looking for."