Application Management Discussions

There is considerable discussion in the trade press about the value of converging the data center LAN and SAN.  The typical argument that is raised is that it is notably more efficient to run one network than it is to run two networks.  That argument sounds very familiar.  That is the same argument that was made as part of the justification for converging voice and data networks.   So, one could conclude that since that argument worked for voice and data networks it will work for the LAN and SAN.  While that may be a valid conclusion, it took several years before a converged voice and data network became mainstream.  Will that be the case with the convergence of the LAN and SAN or is this situation different enough that adoption will occur more rapidly?

This month's discussion will focus on the convergence of the data center LAN and SAN.  We will explore some fundamental issues such as why exactly would an IT organization want to converge their LAN and SAN and if they do, how should they best go about doing it?

Driven largely by the changes brought on by the adoption of virtualization and cloud computing, the majority of IT organizations are currently re-thinking their data center LAN strategy.  To help IT organizations develop effective strategies, we will present a series of six monthly discussions that will involve six of the major data center LAN vendors.  Each discussion will begin with a somewhat high-level question on a topic that is relevant to the evolution of data center LANs.  During each month, we will ask one or two follow-on questions.

During each month, the sponsors will respond to the questions and will comment on the responses of the other sponsors.

Each vendor response and comment will focus on technology and design issues.  The vendors will not, for example, discuss products. We look forward to your participation in the discussions.

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