Not entirely unexpected, the optical capabilities in our switch have provoked questions from customers and potential customers on whether the Plexxi solution could be used to create campus, metro or even long distance multi site fabrics. The answer to that question is a resounding yes, and with the newly introduced switch 2 platform, some of the connectivity options added to that platform make it extremely flexible to do just that.
The whole topic of Data Center Interconnects tends to attract strong supporters and strong opponents at the same time. In a world without constraints, the ability to tie public or private clouds together across distance without losing any of the L2 or L3 capabilities and freedom is very attractive. Virtualized platforms love networks that provide seamless L2 and L3 connectivity from anywhere to anywhere. Virtual machines can be moved around at will without much worry about VLAN and subnet boundaries. The reality of course is that this is not necessarily easy to create or maintain.