Brocade intros virtual cluster switching

Brocade unveiled details of Virtual Cluster Switching (VCS), a new class of
Brocade-developed technologies designed to address the unique requirements of
virtualized data centers. Brocade VCS overcomes the limitations of conventional
Ethernet networking by applying the flexibility and scalability of fabric
switching to datacenter architectures. Through VCS, Brocade will help customers
with the transition in their existing network architectures to converged
datacenter fabrics.

• Brocade VCS transforms datacenter networks through four fundamental
  technological innovations optimized for highly virtualized server and storage
  environments:
• Brocade VCS allows organizations to build converged data center fabrics.
  These fabrics are inherently multi-pathing and resilient, effectively
  eliminating the need for Spanning Tree Protocol (STP).
• Brocade VCS provides a complete masterless and distributed control plane.
  This system provides continuous synchronization of state, status and
  configuration of information, such as virtual machine (VM) meta-data, network
  and storage policies, between member nodes to enable converged fabrics to be
  self-forming, auto-healing and self-configuring.
• Brocade VCS simplifies management by treating the cluster as a single
  logical chassis.
• Brocade VCS also enables services to be inserted into converged fabrics,
  without interruption or reconfiguration of the network.

"Brocade has paved the way for data center network fabric convergence by
combining the best characteristics of existing and emerging technologies into a
new network architecture that is purpose-built for virtualized data centers,"
said Dave Stevens, CTO Brocade.