This is an interesting development; a network switch with FPGA technology for custom routing of network data (or financial trading data)
http://www.aristanetworks.com/en/news/pressrelease/447-pr-20120327-01
Arista Unveils Application Switch
The Next Phase of Software Defined Cloud Networking Provides Network-Integrated Applications
SANTA CLARA, Calif. - March 27, 2012 - Arista Networks, Inc. announced today the Arista Application Switch, the first in a new category of switches, enabling customers to run their own applications directly inside the network. With latency improvements up to 10x compared to traditional server based implementations, the Arista Application Switch enables increased profitability and boosts competitive advantage. Initial use cases for the Arista Application Switch include equity trading systems, inline risk analysis, market data feed normalization, deep packet inspection, intelligence, and advanced security.
“An order of magnitude improvement in latency is a game changer for our financial customers and is the result of allowing transparent insertion of custom applications into the data stream,” said Andreas Bechtolsheim, Arista’s Chairman and Chief Development Officer. “We achieved this amazing acceleration by combining our award-winning ultra-low latency switching technology with a fully user programmable data and control plane based on the latest FPGA technology, resulting in sub-microsecond latency application processing at a speed of up to 240 million packets per second.”
Application Switching: A New Ethernet Switch Category
The Arista 7124FX Application Switch is the first 10GbE data center class Ethernet switch that supports both application acceleration and a full suite of standard network protocols via Arista EOS. It is based on the award-winning Arista 7124SX, the industry’s leading ultra low-latency switching platform. The combination of low latency switching and the FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array) exponentially accelerates application processing while simplifying deployment of latency sensitive applications in real-world networks.
Collaborative Efforts with Key partners
Customers can easily integrate their custom applications into the Arista Application Switch by working with Arista partners, embedded system developers Enyx and Impulse C. Arista partners delivering off-the-shelf applications in the financial services environment include NovaSparks, a leader in the delivery of pure FPGA market data solutions, and Exegy, providing complete market data systems.
“This is the most cogent application integration into a network architecture I've ever seen,” said Nick Lippis industry analyst and publisher of the Lippis Report. “Arista's Application Switch is an impressive example of integration with purpose and a clear focus on customers who value application acceleration within the data path.”
Comprehensive Lifecycle Services and Support
To accelerate successful Application Switch deployments, Arista and its technology partners will provide a lifecycle portfolio of professional services that align customers' business and technical requirements through all six phases of the deployment lifecycle – prepare, plan, design, implement, operate, and optimize – specifically designed for this new platform.
Evolving the Cloud Network
In 2008, Arista began articulating a five year vision for developing cloud networking by increasing network automation to create simple, profitable, and performing frameworks for networked communications. The first phase was about achieving the performance levels to support a highly virtualized, real-time cloud infrastructure. The second phase was enabling the automation and extensibility for customers and providers to integrate the network into their existing application frameworks and enable automated service deployments through Arista EOS. The third phase is the integration of specific components of the application into the network to allow customers to achieve competitive advantage and service-level differentiation with the Arista Application Switch.
Pricing and Availability
The Arista Application Switch is currently being trialed by over a dozen firms and agencies worldwide. It will be generally available in Q2 2012 and U.S. list price starts at $49,995.
About Arista Networks
Arista Networks was founded to deliver Cloud Networking Solutions for large data center and computing environments. Arista’s award-winning best-of-breed 10 Gigabit Ethernet switches redefine scalability, robustness, and price–performance. At the core of Arista's platform is EOS, the world’s most advanced network operating system. Arista Networks products are available worldwide through distribution partners, systems integrators and resellers.
Additional information and resources on today's announcement can be found at:http://www.aristanetworks.com
Press Contact:
Amanda Jaramillo
Arista Networks
amanda@aristanetworks.com
(408) 547-5798
NOTE TO EDITORS: For additional information visit Arista’s website or call Arista’s Media Helpline at (408) 547-5000.
