Editor: Linley
Gwennap In This Issue
A Guide to Storage Networking Silicon provides the information you need to get up-to-speed on the intricacies of chips and HBAs for storage networking, including SAN, NAS, and IP storage. Order by April 15 and get a $300 discount. For more information, visit our web site. Broadcom Brings 2.5Gbps Ethernet to Blade Servers This week, Broadcom announced sampling of the industry's first Ethernet controller to support a 2.5Gbps data rate. Intended for blade-server applications, the new BCM5708S integrates a 3.125GHz serdes to enable 2.5Gbps throughput over a backplane; the chip does not support 2.5Gbps operation over UTP (Cat5) media. Although 2.5Gbps Ethernet is proprietary, the Broadcom chip simply uses one-quarter of a XAUI port at the physical layer. This approach provides a stepping-stone to 10GbE backplanes using XAUI. The BCM5708S also supports auto-negotiation between standard 1Gbps (1000BASE-X) operation and the proprietary 2.5Gbps rate. Like the previously announced BCM5708C, which supports GbE over copper, the new BCM5708S is part of Broadcom's converged-NIC (CNIC) line. By supporting TCP offload (TOE), iSCSI, and iWARP (RDMA), the CNIC chips enable a converged fabric for networking, storage, and clustering. This is especially important in blade servers, where multiple fabrics require wider backplanes, more power, and more slots. The BCM5708C/S chips implement a x4 PCI Express system interface, while the earlier BCM5706 offers a 64-bit PCI-X bus. Last week, HP announced PCI-X adapters (NICs) based on the BCM5706. HP also said that converged NIC capabilities would be made available in its BladeSystem servers over the next 12 months. Given that HP also supported an effort to standardize 2.5Gbps Ethernet in late 2003, we expect the company to utilize the 2.5Gbps feature of the BCM5708S in future BladeSystems. Broadcom has not yet announced a switch with 2.5Gbps Ethernet ports to complete its blade-server solution. We expect a future StrataXGS product to integrate 2.5Gbps ports, complete with serdes. Broadcom has not yet released any performance data to show how the CNIC architecture scales from 1Gbps to 2.5Gbps line rates. At GbE rates, Broadcom has demonstrated large reductions in CPU utilization using beta versions of Microsoft's TCP Chimney technology. For blade servers, 2.5Gbps operation further differentiates the BCM5708S from Intel's forthcoming server chip set that implements I/O Acceleration Technology at GbE speeds. Broadcom must now complete its 2.5Gbps solution with a switch and demonstrate a real-world performance advantage. —BW Complete
coverage of Broadcom's GbE products appears in our new report
A Guide to Gigabit and 10G Ethernet Silicon.
This week, Vativ Technologies announced samples of its 10Gbps transceiver for Cat5e and Cat6 unshielded twisted-pair (UTP) cable. The V10LAN, the company's first 10G-over-copper product, targets short reach links in the data center as an alternative to optics or 10GBase-CX4. It provides the physical-layer connecting a XAUI port to Cat5e/6 wiring through an RJ-45 connector. For the line interface, the V10LAN transfers 10Gbps at 2.5Gbps over four pairs. The startup has demonstrated 10Gbps performance for distance of up to 15 meters and claims to deliver a bit error rate (BER) of better than 10-14. The key technologies that enable this performance include forward error correction (FEC) coding in the transmitter as well as adaptive equalization and echo and NEXT/FEXT cancellation in the receiver. Initially, the V10LAN will be used in Xenpak modules and network interface cards (NIC) in data centers. Because the V10LAN uses UTP cabling and RJ45 connectors, it should reduce costs compared with using optics or CX4. Vativ's challenge, however, will be to convince OEMs to use a nonstandard transceiver from a startup. —JB More
coverage of 10Gbps transceivers appears in our recent report
A Guide to High-Speed Interconnects.
This week, Broadcom announced the sampling of a new high-performance security processor, the BCM5825, that supports both IPSec and SSL protocols, providing over 1Gbps of large-packet throughput for AES encryption. The 5825 also accelerates public-key handshakes, achieving 12,000 SSL handshakes or 9,000 IKE handshakes per second. The Linley Group estimates that the 5825, which is currently sampling to lead customers, will be priced at around $270 in 1,000-unit quantities. The 0.13-micron 5825 extends the performance range of Broadcom's dual-protocol security processors such as the 0.18-micron 5823. Although Broadcom offers a line of IPSec-only security processors (the 5841 series) that achieve significantly higher bulk throughput than the 5825, the real impetus for the development of the 5825 is emerging VPN applications that must support both IPSec and SSL. In these applications, the 5825 delivers a thirty-fold improvement in public-key handshake speed compared with the 5823 (or a threefold improvement compared with the 5821). This improvement delivers more value to users than an increase in bulk crypto throughput, especially for SSL VPNs. The 5825 features other incremental improvements over the 5823, such as the use of a PCI-X interface; architecturally, however, the 5825 is based on the same coprocessing model as the 5823, requiring an external processor to perform most of the packet-processing tasks. Security processors from Hifn, Cavium, and SafeNet provide more complete packet-processing offload than the 5825; for instance, Cavium's CN1010, which lists for less than $100 in 1,000-unit volumes, provides comparable bulk throughput and public-key performance along with protocol-processing offload. Until Broadcom addresses this issue, the company will remain at a competitive disadvantage for new designs. Broadcom's introduction of a new standalone security processor signals that the company remains committed to its standalone processor line, even as the company continues to embed security functions in many of its other products. —SI Complete
coverage of Broadcom's security processors appears in our report
A Guide to Security and Content Processors. At Microprocessor Summit earlier this month, AMCC announced the PowerPC 440GR, the newest member of its CPU lineup. The 440GR targets low-cost networking equipment with Fast Ethernet speeds. Although it is a lower-cost derivative of the 440GX, the 440GR is positioned as an upgrade to the aging 405GPr, delivering twice the performance for about the same price. Due to sample in 2Q05, the 440GR carries a suggested distributor price of $55 for the 667MHz version, with lower prices for lower speed grades. —LG Complete coverage of AMCC's PowerPC processors appears in our report A Guide to High-Speed Embedded Processors. Earlier this month, Cypress announced sampling of its Sahasra 50000 search engine. With on-chip SRAM, Sahasra is the first single-chip algorithmic search engine. It targets forwarding applications, leaving the company's TCAMs to address classification applications. Sahasra can perform up to 250Msps and can store up to 1.5million IPv4 routes while delivering a power and cost advantage over traditional TCAMs. Sahasra uses the same software APIs as the company's TCAMs, enabling OEMs to leverage existing software. Cypress has won several design wins for Sahasra, taking an early lead in the growing market for algorithmic search engines. —JB More coverage of search engines appears in our report A Guide to Search Engines and Networking Memory. Join us on April 27 for a free one-day seminar on Fabrics and
High-Speed Interconnects. This technical program will consist
of a tutorial by Jag Bolaria of The Linley Group followed by
three in-depth sessions packed with information from industry
leaders.
For the full program of topics and speakers, visit our web site. The seminar is free to qualified individuals who register early. For complete details and registration information, visit the seminar page. This event is sponsored by The Linley Group, IDT, StarGen, Sandburst, and Intel.
10 Gigabit Ethernet in Servers, Benefits and Challenges
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