NEWS:IBM Global Services Installs Ancor Fibre Channel Switches For Mission-Critical Data Storage Backup
GigWorks Switches Provide Reliable, High-Speed Connections
MINNEAPOLIS, Feb. 19 /PRNewswire/ -- IBM Global Services has installed Fibre Channel technology from Ancor Communications (Nasdaq: ANCR) to provide mission-critical data backup connections for an installation of several high-powered enterprise servers.
Ancor's GigWorks(TM) Fibre Channel switches are being used to move hundreds of terabytes of data every evening from remote buildings at IBM's Research Triangle Park, N.C., facility to a large central backup center.
Reliability was the most important requirement. "We can't have our applications down for even one second," said Ron Howell, network architect for IBM Global Services. "Functionally, Ancor's Fibre Channel solution filled our need for a high-speed and absolutely reliable product. We were also very impressed by how easy it was to set up and test a Fibre Channel solution. Plus, Ancor came through with excellent support and a real willingness to do what it takes to complete the project successfully."
The IBM installation is a classic backup scenario: very high throughput demand with a zero fault-tolerance requirement. Ancor's GigWorks Fibre Channel switch provides server-to-server throughput between IBM SP2 and F50 RISC-based enterprise class servers.
The football-field-sized central facility contains several hundred gigabytes of Lotus Notes data stored on hard disk arrays that are connected to IBM SP2 and F50 RISC-based enterprise-class servers. This building is connected by fiber optic cable to the two remote buildings, one nearly two miles away. Both remote facilities, containing additional IBM RISC servers, are connected to the central building via four redundant circuits, meaning individual lines can be unplugged or broken with no interruption in service.
The scalability of Fibre Channel technology allows IBM engineers to add more Ancor switches as the traffic grows, said Ken Hendrickson, Ancor chairman and chief executive officer. IBM Global Services has also ordered additional GigWorks products from Ancor, including switches and NIC adapter cards, he said.
Ancor's Fibre Channel technology was chosen over both ATM and Gigabit Ethernet systems. IBM was impressed with the throughput offered by the Fibre Channel technology, as well as the fault tolerance offered by redundant connections between buildings. "IBM evaluated a number of different technologies to fill this need, and when it came time to compare Ancor products with the other technologies, Fibre Channel won hands-down due to its reliability and easy set up," Hendrickson said.
About Fibre Channel
Fibre Channel is an ANSI-standard, high-speed, low-latency data communications technology that provides gigabit-per-second transmission rates in storage/server environments and high-performance networks. Ancor GigWorks products combine the speed and simplicity of channels with the flexibility of networks to solve bandwidth problems caused by the transfer of large data files among storage, server and client nodes in high-performance compute environments. Ancor Fibre Channel products provide optimal speed and throughput for data-intensive applications such as shared storage, CAD/CAM, visualization, data mining and file backup.
About Ancor Communications
Ancor Communications, Inc. (Nasdaq: ANCR) , provides GigWorks(TM) high-performance storage and data-intensive network solutions based on Fibre-Channel technology. The company was the first to deliver a Fibre Channel switch, and the first to top the one-gigabit performance level. In addition to Fibre Channel switches, Ancor products also include adapters and connectivity solutions. Ancor is a member of the Fibre Channel Association, Fibre Channel Loop Community, the ANSI Standards Committee and the University of New Hampshire Fibre Channel Consortium to promote the advancement of Fibre Channel standards and interoperability. Information on Ancor is available on the World Wide Web at ancor.com. 
SOURCE Ancor Communications, Inc.
CO: Ancor Communications, Inc.; IBM Global Services
ST: Minnesota
IN: CPR TLS
SU: PDT
02/19/98 07:20 EST prnewswire.com |
