According to the 2012 Cisco Global Cloud Networking Survey, the majority of IT decision makers cite a cloud-ready network as the biggest requirement to enable the migration of business applications to the cloud.
To meet these challenges, Cisco announced the Cisco Cloud Connected Solution, introducing cloud-enabled routing and wide area network (WAN) optimization platforms, along with innovative Cloud Connectors, an open architecture that enables users to intelligently connect to cloud services.
The Cisco Cloud Connected Solution contains three critical elements:
Cloud Connectors – new software modules hosted on the ISR G2 platform that interact with cloud services to improve performance, security and availability of cloud applications. The Cloud Connector software will allow service provider and channel partners to develop third-party Cloud Connectors to help them deliver differentiated services to their customers. Cisco is also introducing Cloud Connectors for Cisco Hosted Collaboration Services (HCS), Cisco ScanSafe Web-based security service and the CTERA Storage Connector on Cisco UCS-E Series for voice and application survivability.
Cloud-enabled platforms – Cisco expands the Aggregation Services Router (ASR) platform with the Cisco ASR 1002-X router, and also introduces Cisco AppNav technology, which intelligently clusters Cisco's Wide Area Application Services (WAAS) physical and virtual appliances into a single resource pool managed by a central controller.
Innovative cloud services – introducing the Cisco Cloud Services Router (CSR), a virtual router that enables customers to extend their virtual private networks (VPNs) into the cloud; Cisco Application Visibility and Control (AVC) technology integrated into the Cisco Integrated Services Router (ISR) G2 and ASR platforms to optimize the delivery of cloud applications on the network; and Cisco UCS E-Series Server Modules on the ISR G2.
With more than 500,000 worldwide customers and 78.6 percent of the global enterprise router market share,(1) Cisco is uniquely positioned to lead the transformation of the WAN with its enterprise routing platforms and the introduction of the Cisco Cloud Connected Solution.
The Cisco Cloud Connected Solution is a foundational element of the Cisco Cloud Intelligent Network, which together with Cisco Unified Data Center and Cisco Cloud Applications and Services enables the world of many clouds. In addition, Cisco is introducing enhancements to existing routing, security and WAN optimization solutions, including WAN innovations as well as new features and models on the ASR, ISR G2 and WAAS appliances.
The primary new products in the Cisco Cloud Connection Solution include:
Cloud Services Router (CSR) 1000v: Provides Cisco's rich networking and security services in a virtual form factor for deployment in cloud environments. This enables enterprises to extend and control various facets of their enterprise network to clouds, while providing cloud service providers (CSPs) with increased revenue opportunity though an on-demand, flexible "network-as-a-service" model.
Cisco WAAS 5.0 with AppNav: Enables customers to virtualize WAN optimization resources by pooling them into one elastic resource in a manner that is policy-based and on-demand with the best latency performance. Cisco WAAS 5.0 with AppNav provides highly secure application delivery and cloud connectivity, along with an elastic "scale-as-you-grow" deployment model that enables enterprise-wide application acceleration and performance visibility. Cisco AppNav can be installed as a hardware module on existing Cisco Wide Area Virtualization Engine (WAVE) appliances or as software on the new Cloud Services Router (CSR).
Cisco ASR 1002-X router: Enables organizations to increase their WAN performance by up to seven times and enhance deployment agility with an easy “pay-as-you-grow” performance upgrade model that delivers up to 36Gbps performance with services turned on for the WAN Edge, Internet Edge and Managed Services environments. Cisco is also introducing the ESP-100G, a forwarding processor for the ASR 1000 Series in cloud edge deployments, in addition to FlexVPN on ASR 1000, for highly secure IPsec site-to-site and remote access VPN.
All products are currently available, with the exception of the CSR 1000v, AppNav on the CSR, and Cisco UCS E-Series on ISR G2, which will begin shipping Q412. The ASR 1002-X router will begin shipping in July 2012.
Praveen Akkiraju, senior vice president and general manager, Cisco Services Routing Technology Group: “As businesses are driving the rapid adoption of cloud based services, routing platforms and the WAN have become a strategic control point to provide an optimal user experience across the cloud. The Cisco Cloud Connected Solution redefines the WAN architecture with key innovations that leverage the network intelligence as a critical link in cloud deployments by putting more functionality into traditional enterprise routing, allowing customers to connect to the cloud with an optimal user experience.”
Gartner: Bjarne Munch, Principal Research Analyst: "Network infrastructure must rapidly adapt to fully support future enterprise communications systems, which will be highly virtualized, intelligent and application-aware. The impact of new infrastructure and application strategies on the network cannot be overstated. To prepare for these changes, the enterprise network must be modernized, and enterprises must plan for the retirement of legacy technologies.” (“IT Market Clock for Enterprise Networking Infrastructure, March 2012”)
BT Global Services: Jeff Schmidt, Global Head, Business Continuity, Security & Governance: “In addition to data security services, BT Global Services can now also offer customers enterprise-wide voice security, regardless of whether they are using TDM or SIP trunking, and regardless of the service provider they are using. As a result, we can give our customers the utmost visibility and control of one of the largest assets that they have in their corporation.”
CA Technologies, Inc: Karen Sage, vice president of Cloud, Alliance, and Service Provider Marketing: “CA Technologies is proud to be working with Cisco to address the challenges enterprises and managed service providers face in delivering end-user services, which have morphed into a broad, multi-layer array of discrete, hybrid, on and off premises, multi-sourced public and private offerings. Recognizing the multi-dimensional complexity of IT and cloud service delivery, we are collaborating on the development and delivery of solutions that to enhance user experience by improving customer insight, visibility, and control. Today in announcing the availability of AVC functionality, Cisco has taken a huge step forward in providing embedded, non-intrusive instrumentation and control. Together we are well positioned to enable our enterprise and service provider customers to comprehensively prioritize resources for business critical applications, provide better capacity management, and allow deeper, multi-layer visibility into performance.”
Compuware: Kimberly King, general manager and senior vice president for Channels and Alliances: The joint value between Cisco’s Cloud Connected Solution, including Cisco Application Visibility and Control (AVC) and Cisco Wide Area Application Services (WAAS), and Compuware’s new generation Application Performance Management, enables IT organizations to improve the end-user experience by providing complete visibility of cloud application and network performance across the entire application delivery chain.”
GE: Chris Cheu, principal technologist: “To respond quickly to business needs of a large global enterprise, GE is building its own cloud infrastructure and leveraging external clouds. This helps GE drive down costs and improves agility, but creates operational challenges with respect to end-to-end security and user experience. The Cisco Cloud Services Router 1000v provides GE with a unique deployment option to dynamically and securely extend our network to external clouds. We can now extend our network to qualified cloud service providers while maintaining the integrity of VPN connectivity and the enforcement of access policies.”
InfoVista: Vikas Trehan, Sr. Vice President Product Strategy and Alliances: “InfoVista is looking forward to working with Cisco to help accelerate the adoption of AVC (Application Visibility and Control) offered in Cisco router platforms. Hyper-connected enterprises require end-to-end visibility of their business-critical applications during and after the cloud migration process, and at the same time, service providers are looking to provide value-added services to enterprises by offering application traffic and experience visibility. By leveraging the embedded instrumentation provided by Cisco AVC and WAAS, InfoVista 5View APM solutions will help operationalize AVC by providing enhanced analysis and customizable customer-centric reporting.”
Intel: Rose Schooler, general manager, Communications Infrastructure Division:“As virtualization has become standard practice in enterprise data centers, our customers are starting to look at how they can use the same technologies to optimize remote branch offices. Specifically, they need a solution with great flexibility and integrated management that helps save them money. Based on Intel® Xeon® processor E3 and E5 families, Cisco’s UCS E-Series Server Modules enable branch office customers to deploy data center class, virtualization-ready compute infrastructure in a size, weight and power efficient, network-integrated single module form factor. This is an ideal platform for deploying mission-critical applications and services as a way to reduce costs, improve business agility, and, implement a distributed, centrally managed cloud ready infrastructure in a lean branch office environment.”
Microsoft: Clyde Rodriguez, Partner Group Program Manager, Windows Azure:“Microsoft gives customers cloud-optimized solutions that extend from Windows Server Hyper-V virtualization in enterprises and branch offices to the worldwide scalability and elasticity of the cloud with Windows Azure. To serve this vast spectrum of customers, Microsoft and Cisco continue to evolve our joint solutions that take advantage of Cisco’s networking strengths and Microsoft’s proven infrastructure and application expertise. Thus, as customers deploy Windows Server Hyper-V throughout their organizations, Cisco’s UCS E-Series Server Modules help customers deploy datacenter-class, virtualization-ready compute infrastructure in the branch in a size-, weight- and power-efficient, network-integrated form factor. For customers that interact with the cloud over WAN connections, Cisco Connected Solution address WAN challenges such as performance, security, and operational issues: To establish VPN connectivity, Windows Azure infrastructure can interoperate with Cisco Integrated Services Routers (ISR) G2 in branches and with Aggregation Services Routers (ASR 1000) at enterprise edges.”
Ricoh Business Internet Services: Mr. Daisuke Kubota, senior managing executive officer, general manager, ICT Strategy: “Ricoh Japan's Business Cloud Service – Ricoh Business Internet Service (RBIS) runs on high-quality, highly secure, managed Cisco ISR G2 and Cisco Unified Communications Manager infrastructure, allowing our customers to immediately take advantage of business optimizing services such as Web applications, mobile and landline collaborative technologies, and BYOD. By providing our customers with flexibility, agility, and cost-control, RBIS and Cisco free our customers to focus their energies on growing and innovating their own core business."
Swift Transportation: Mike Ruchensky, vice president, chief information officer: “Cisco WAAS was instrumental in helping Swift Transportation ensure highly secure application delivery and high-margin service delivery to remote locations. We’re looking forward to using Cisco AppNav, the latest virtualization technology, to easily scale our second data center deployment, reaping additional benefits such as on-demand provisioning of WAN optimization resources, virtualization of service infrastructure, and investment protection.”
Verizon: Juzer Kopti, Manager, Advanced Services Architecture and Planning: “The virtualized software platform of the Cisco (CSR) 1000v router provides Verizon with the opportunity to enhance selected services such as IPv6, IPsec VPNs and virtual CPEs while reducing the need for extensive equipment upgrades. As a result, Verizon can better support its customers’ needs with the solid combination of improved performance and increased manageability of the infrastructure."