Top 10: Data Centre Networking Technologies

Data centre networking is the integration of a constellation of networking resources to facilitate the storage and processing of applications and data. As connectivity becomes faster and more widely available than ever before, it is up to the world’s data centres to deliver these critical services to end users.

In today’s power-hungry world, the demand for data centre networking services is surging, with a greater need for more computing power, faster processing speed and larger storage space.

Globally, the data centre networking market was valued at US$21.43bn in 2022. In fact, a Kings Research report found that North America is leading the market, particularly as the widespread application of 5G continues to rise.

With this in mind, Data Centre Magazine considers some of the leading networking technologies that data centres engage with to support their operations.

10. Switching

Data centre switching is the process of transferring data packets between devices in a network using a switch. Switching technology consists of high-performance switches that connect servers, storage devices and other network devices within the data centre. 

Data centre switches have a central role via forwarding network data packets and ensuring connectivity among devices within the data centre. They are designed to allow devices to communicate and share data with each other, which also means they are essential for large-scale data processing and virtualisation.

9. Routing

Data centre routing is the process of moving data packets from one location to another within a data centre network. The process involves selecting the best path for data to travel between nodes in a computer network, which is done using predetermined rules to ensure that data is routed efficiently and with minimal delays.

As a data centre network consists of thousands of nodes, they inevitably experience frequent software and hardware failures or congestion. Therefore, routing with packets allows the network to be run more efficiently to minimise delays.

8. Load balancing

Load balancing within a data centre refers to a method of distributing network traffic across multiple servers to prevent one particular server from becoming overloaded. This improves the overall performance and responsiveness of the system and reduces latency as a result.

It performs several critical tasks within the data centre, with the distribution improving overall performance. Likewise, it redirects client requests to a geographically closer server and works to ensure greater reliability and performance of physical and virtual computing resources.

7. Access switches

Access switches are the main switches that connect end-client devices to a network within a data centre. They are typically the entrance tier in a three-tier switch architecture, the well-established software application architecture. 

Despite having a high number of ports, access switches usually have the lowest throughput per port of all switches. However, they are well-suited for connecting to end-devices and offer many features that are not required by upper tiers. They also permit rapid data transfer across networks and are engineered to adapt to evolving data centre needs.

6. Ethernet fabrics

Ethernet fabrics are a type of network fabric that connect network devices to transport data. They can be used for a variety of purposes, including storage, AI and Gen AI workloads. "Fabric" can mean the physical wirings that make up these connections, but Cisco explains that it usually refers to a “virtualised, automated lattice of overlay connections on top of the physical topology”.

It is able to lower risk to a business by limiting traffic propagation, containing possible threats and bolstering security. It is also able to enforce policies uniformly across wired and wireless users and devices.

5. Edge computing

Edge computing distributed computing resources closer to the data sources, or "edges" of the network which then offers several advantages, including reduced latency, improved bandwidth utilisation, and enhanced privacy and security. The increasing adoption of AI and the Internet of Things (IoT) devices and the growth of real time applications are driving the need for edge data centres.

Likewise, edge data centres are smaller facilities located closer to the source of data generation than a traditional centralised data centre. This means that they can process and analyse data more quickly and efficiently, which can be crucial for applications that require low latency or high bandwidth.

4. Network Automation

Network automation is the process of automating the configuring, managing, testing, deploying and operating of physical and virtual devices within a network - without the need for human intervention. 

AI is able to support network automation in data centres by enhancing efficiency, reliability and performance. The technology can automatically configure network settings based on real-time traffic, which ensures optimal network performance and reduces manual intervention. 

Likewise, AI-driven systems can support network policies across the data centre, updating configurations automatically to comply with security policies.

3. Network Function Virtualisation (NFV)

A network functions virtualization (NFV) data centre refers to the infrastructure used by service providers to host communications and networking services. These services can be loaded as cloud-based software on commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) server hardware.

It abstracts network functions and allows them to be installed, controlled and manipulated by software running on standardised compute nodes. Likewise, NFV incorporates cloud and virtualisation technologies to drive the development of new network services.

2. Network overlays

A data centre network overlay is a virtual network created on top of a physical network to enable the deployment of flexible services. It's a key component of modern data centres and allows for dynamic scaling, network segmentation and secure connectivity.

Whilst overlay networks are not a new thing for data centres, they are becoming increasingly mainstream across multiple places-in-the-network (PINs). Overlay networks now typically provide a fully meshed fabric of VXLAN tunnels across a Layer 3 IP underlay and can be deployed inside a single data centre or across multiple data centres to provide increased agility. 

1. Software-Defined Networking (SDN)

Software-defined networking (SDN) is a key component of a software-defined data centre (SDDC), which is a data repository that uses software to manage and monitor all data centre resources and services. SDN abstracts the physical network resources from the logical network topology and allows for real-time bandwidth assignment and reassignment to devices or servers.

The SDDC combines virtualised compute, storage and networking resources with a standardised platform for managing the entire integrated environment. It enables operators to optimise compute, storage and networking for each application and workload without having to make physical changes to the infrastructure.

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