Data Center Interconnect has historically been driven by the pressure of simple demand: the kind of demand that’s satisfied by big, fast, dumb point-to-point pipes. But the value and potential of “big and fast” are held in check by “dumb.” It’s like football; bigger and faster will only take you so far in the National Football League (NFL). As game plans get more complicated, players are expected to think strategically about the other team’s offense or defense. Similarly, DCI is also getting more complicated as the pressure builds—and those big, fast pipes must ditch the dumb and get smart.
Data centers already have requirements in place for encryption, streaming telemetry and LLDP, all of which mean adding intelligence. Flex-grid; mixed modulation schemes; the growing mix of baud rates; and multiple FEC options (not to mention mesh connectivity in the planning arena) also demand more “brains” to match the brawn. The challenging task of selecting the optimal modulation, baud, grid and FEC is impossible unless the intelligence is there.
Variable and unpredictable traffic loads add another layer of complexity; business and the internet are inherently chaotic. The historical trend of “designing for the worst case,” (AKA “busy hour design”) is no longer economical. Data centers need capabilities to handle changing workloads gracefully and efficiently without overbuilding. These trends have significant positive implications for DCI; the agility and intelligence needed to meet dynamic workloads will improve the operational efficiency of the whole network. Put simply—bigger, faster, smarter pipes in DCI are just like NFL players who are also strategic thinkers. In both cases, add brains to brawn and the game is on.