Why should I be concerned about my physical layer?
Many data centers are struggling with power and cooling issues, which can be caused by cable bulk and underutilized equipment. And the virtualized solutions selected to help typically focus on provisioning, managing and monitoring applications, servers, network equipment, and storage. Unfortunately, these solutions assume that the physical layer is designed with ample connectivity, bandwidth, and the necessary degree of fault tolerance and as data centers grow and change, that's not always the case.

I use patch panels, which are inexpensive and do a good job. Why should I implement a switch that can virtualize my physical infrastructure?
Data centers today are implementing virtualization and moving towards having a real-time, agile infrastructure, which is making it necessary for the physical infrastructure layer to also move in that direction. While patch panels provide connectivity, making moves, adds, and changes in a patch panel environment can become a very manual and labor-intensive process, which increases the cost of patch panel ownership. Implementing a switch that virtualizes the physical layer provides the ability to automate and secure that connectivity while also providing hands-off, remote management.

As well, when using patch panels and automated patch panels there is an occurrence of blocked non-usable ports. To make up for lost ports additional patch panels are required, adding additional cost to your data center.

Ultimately, a virtualization switch is the last step in data center virtualization, providing end-to-end virtualization where a patch panel cannot.

Can you explain non-blocking and why that's important?
By definition, non-blocking means that any I/O device can make a connection through a physical layer switch to any other available I/O device at any given moment in time—without regard to other connectivity already established in the environment. Having a non-blocked solution requires less equipment than having a blocked solution, which is typical when implementing patch panels and automated patch panels. This is especially important in data centers where floor space, power and cooling are a premium. Download our white paper, Scalable Non-Blocking Infrastructure Management: A Comparative Study, to learn more.

Can you explain how virtualizing my physical layer will help with cable congestion?
With the Universal Connectivity System™ 2900, your data center will be cabled once with all future moves, adds and changes handled through control software.  

Why would I virtualize the physical layer instead of doing this at the network layer?
Virtualizing the physical infrastructure is fundamental to the overall virtualization strategy. Virtualization products that operate at the network as well as the Application Layer drive a need for a robust physical infrastructure that enables the scalability and flexibility required within the network to drive a successful overall virtualization strategy and enable optimal usage of your IT infrastructure.