The notion of hosting centralized network functionality appeals to even enterprises, and operators positively salivate over it. There is a potential issue, though, and that’s the performance of the servers that do the hosting. Servers weren’t really designed for high-speed data switching, and when you add hypervisors and virtualization to the mix you get something that’s potentially a deal-breaker. Fortunately there are answers available, and we’re starting to seem more about them as function virtualization gains traction.
In any activity where a server hosts a virtual switch/router the network I/O performance of the device will be critical. Where a server hosts multiple VMs that include data-plane processing (firewalls, etc.) the same issue arises, perhaps even more so. If a given server hosts a virtual switch (OVS for example, or one of the other open or commercial equivalents) to support adjacent VMs hosting virtual functions, the whole mixture can be compromised. So you have to make the handling of at least data-plane packets a heck of a lot better than the standard hardware/software mechanisms would tend to do.
The first player in this space that we became aware of was 6WIND, who has a network software stack for Linux that’s designed to harness the full capabilities of any hardware-level acceleration (like Intel’s DPDK) and to improve performance even when there’s no special hardware available. The software divides into three segments, one of which is fast-path processing of the data plane. If you dedicate enough cores to the process, 6WINDGate (as the software is known) can drive the adapters to their throughput limit.
6WIND’s website is quite good, with links to explain how the software manages high-performance network connections in SDN and NFV, and they were the first we saw assert specific support for NFV. They’re also planning to do a seminar in conjunction with open-source giant Red Hat at noon, Eastern Time, on June 25th. You can get details and register HERE. Red Hat is an important supporter of OpenStack, the cloud framework I like best for NFV, and their big Red Hat Summit is this week so I expect they’ll have some interesting announcements. Because of their strength in Linux, credibility with operators, and experience in OpenStack, it’s pretty obvious that Red Hat is going to be a player in NFV.
And that could be important for a bunch of reasons, not the least one exposed by a JP Morgan report today. The IT forecast cuts the expected IT spending growth by half, and cites particular weakness in the hardware space. A big part of the hardware problem is PCs, but servers and storage are “sluggish” according to the report and the reason cited is the long-expected plateau in virtualization. I’ve noted for almost two years now that applications designed to be run in a multi-tasking environment don’t need to be virtualized to use resources efficiently. Obviously many such applications already exist (most mission-critical apps are designed for multi-tasking) and obviously software types would design applications for multi-tasking use where possible. Anyway, virtualization is running out of gas in the enterprise, which makes it dependent on the cloud.
Even the cloud isn’t boosting spending though, and the likely reason is that public cloud justification is a lot harder than people think and private cloud justification is harder still. That’s what make NFV important. Our models have consistently suggested that a given metro area could be the largest incremental source of new data centers globally, and the largest consumer of servers globally. Which is why it’s important to understand what servers need to host virtual functions.
The cloud figures in another way this morning—in Apple’s WWDC. Setting the stage a bit for the conference is Google’s purchase of Waze, a mapping and GPS navigation player. Some think that Google is as interested (or more) in keeping Waze out of other hands as doing anything themselves, but the point is that Waze points out the value of “social GPS”, and the fact that the smartphone and tablet market is changing to a software and cloud market. This is the transition Apple has dreaded the most and has supported the least, and even at this week’s WWDC the Apple fans are looking for the next cool device rather than for a conspicuous and determined move to the cloud.
If we see the cloud as IT economy of scale, we see nothing. The cloud is the network-IT architecture of the future, the framework for applications and services that have to draw on the breadth of the Internet and its connected information to provide us with navigation, social connections, buying decisions, and life support in general. It’s not only the “next big thing”, it’s likely the next-only-thing. You get it, you support it, or you are putting yourself on a path to marginalization.
I know 6WIND and Red Hat get it. I’m pretty sure Google does as well, but I’m not at all sure what either Apple or rival Microsoft have taken their training wheels off on the road to the cloud. Apple still, in its heart of hearts, wants to be a purveyor of cool devices. I bet more Apple engineers work on iWatches than on iClouds. Microsoft wants Windows to come back as the platform of the future, and more people are probably working on Metro than on Azure. This isn’t going to lead to a happy outcome for any of those old giants, so look for a change in direction—this week, from Apple—or look for trouble ahead.