Microsoft's objective for the EEC was to deploy a network that provides internal and external customers access to resources located within the EEC and labs connected to its new 10 gigabit campus area network (CAN). The center's operators demanded a solution that would scale to meet escalating performance requirements, but would be flexible enough to allow staff to reconfigure the network regularly to meet customer needs. With this at top of mind, Microsoft selected Foundry's NetIron MLX-16 routers for its core and the NetIron MLX-4 routers in additional labs to allow for Virtual Private LAN Services (VPLS) across a 10 gigabit connection. Today, the EEC can create a VPLS instance for each customer offering customers improved traffic separation. With the new Foundry Networks solution installed, the EEC also implemented Q-in-Q in conjunction with VPLS to achieve a hierarchical design to meet its goals.

"We needed a network infrastructure that would allow us to utilize the same network for multiple customers without compromising the security or performance of the network," said John Cressey, lead program manager for Microsoft's EEC. "However, we also wanted a solution that would let us better realize the potential for Microsoft products. Scalability and capacity were also critical criteria. Ultimately, we needed the ability to expand as EEC customer needs require."

By leveraging Foundry routers, the EEC has the traffic separation, performance and future expansion capacity it needs with a standards-based solution, as well as improved utilization of the network.

"Foundry provided a solution with the greatest value, from its ability to scale to getting the maximum out of our investment," concluded Cressey. "Today, we have a network capable of handling the cutting edge converged applications our customers use as well as a network that's easy to manage, delivers wire-speed performance and offers a rich feature set to provide the EEC with greater versatility."

Built with Foundry's state-of-the-art, fifth-generation, network processor-based architecture and Terabit-scale switch fabrics, the Foundry NetIron MLX Series routers give the network a rich set of high-performance IPv4, IPv6, MPLS, and Multi-VRF capabilities as well as advanced Layer 2 switching capabilities. Designed to enable reliable converged infrastructures and support mission-critical applications, the NetIron MLX Series features an advanced N+1 redundant switch fabric architecture for very high availability. This architecture ensures that the system continues to operate at peak performance even in the case of a switch fabric card failure. The NetIron's 10 gigabit fiber ports terminate to racks hosting the servers, allowing staff to allocate resources per rack for each customer.