Build a Small Data Center Fabric
The customer is buying new Ethernet fabric infrastructure for their data center. They collected existing connectivity requirements and got these numbers:
- 32 servers with 2 x 25GE ports;
- 40 1GE copper ports used mostly by servers but also for storage and appliance management ports;
- iSCSI-based storage (total of 8 x 10GE ports)
- 4 network appliances (firewalls, load balancers…) with 2 10GE ports each;
- 2 WAN routers with 1 Gbps uplinks and 10GE connection to the fabric.
Design an Ethernet fabric that will be:
- As cost-effective as possible while meeting current connectivity requirements;
- Easy to extend as the connectivity needs grow. They plan to increase the number of servers to 50 in the next three years, and they expect the servers to have 2 x 25GE ports plus 1GE management port;
- Require minimum downtime during the expansions.
You can use data center switching equipment from any vendor you prefer.
Your design should also include a migration plan for unexpected fast-growth scenarios, for example, connecting up to 200 servers.
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