Dell Networking has expanded its data center portfolio with the new Z9100, S4048, and the S3038, giving customers operating system choices with low latency and high density, flexible 1, 10, 25, 40, and 100GbE switching to address the shift to next-generation multi-rate, open-enabled architectures. 
The new flexible, open networking (ON) products help enterprise customers move toward software-defined networks and prepare for the future-ready data center. Open networking is inherent to Dell Networking’s strategy. Dell is supporting this shift to a modern network by delivering network switches for every area of the enterprise and providing industry-leading service to ensure businesses can support growing bandwidth demands and address the challenges associated with scalability and network management. The range of switching speeds (1-100GbE) offered provides customers flexibility for the life of their technology investment.

“These advancements are another example of Dell helping our customers to future proof and accelerate the financial and performance rewards the software-defined data center promises,” said Francois Smith, Enterprise and Field Marketing for Dell South Africa. “The new products announced today offer customers complete flexibility to take advantage of open networking environments and new computing models as well as the revenue streams these network infrastructures will allow.”

Open Networking for the Open Standards, Software Defined Era
Dell’s latest generation of switches reaffirm the company’s commitment to moving beyond proprietary stacks to customer-centric open architectures. All of these switches support the Open Network Install Environment (ONIE) to allow for a zero-touch install of all pre-qualified third party operating systems, including Dell Networking OS9. With ONIE loading, these networking switches can be booted without using proprietary means. They also drive differentiation and remove costs associated with licensing fees for each network interface. The switches are fully tested and validated with third party operating systems and network virtualization solutions from Cumulus Networks, Big Switch Networks, VMware and Midokura.

Dell Networking Z9100-ON
Dell Networking Z9100 features an industry-leading 100GbE fabric switch in a 1RU fixed form factor for aggregation and access layers, and offers multi-rate switching (10/25/40/50/100GE). The Z9100 is designed for cloud, HPC and Web 2.0 applications that require a range of options in switching rates in high-density environments and excels in Big Data analysis and where high performance, low latency requirements exist. The fabric switch offers up to seven times the density per RU versus competing switches.

Dell Networking S4048-ON
The Dell Networking S4048 is an ultra low-latency 10/40GbE Top-of-Rack (ToR) switch designed for the software-defined data center. With advanced features supporting large hardware tables, VXLAN and expanding buffering, it is designed for Web and Cloud service providers with Linux and OpenSource-heavy environments. The S4048 provides a low latency 10GbE switching in HPC and business sensitive deployments that require the highest bandwidth and lowest latency, while cutting in half the latency and power consumption versus other switches.

Dell Networking S3038-ON
The Dell Networking S3048, an ultra-efficient 1/10GbE ToR switch built for efficiency and performance, is also designed for the software-defined data center and developed for Web and cloud service providers with Linux and OpenSource-heavy environments. The S3038 is equipped with next generation 1G silicon, a complete OS9 feature set including VLT, OpenFlow, OpenAutomation, Cloud Stack Integration with OpenStack, Microsoft, VMware, Docker and others, while offering 30 percent lower power consumption and costs 30 percent less than competing switches.

New Open Networking Ecosystem Partners
Dell has also announced IP Infusion, Inc. as a new ecosystem partners in support of its Open Networking initiative.

IP Infusio – IP Infusion is a leading provider of intelligent network software for telecom and data communications services. The company recently announced its OcNOS™, the first, full-featured network operating system for data center and enterprise networking, including advanced capabilities such as extensive protocol support for multiprotocol label switching (MPLS). OcNOS brings the power of the Open Compute Project, an open hardware movement and foundation, to data networking to reduce operational complexity.