PUBLICATION LICENSED BY THE INTERNATIONAL MEDIA PRODUCTION ZONE, DUBAI TECHNOLOGY AND MEDIA FREE ZONE AUTHORITY
www.networkworldme.com | Issue 145 | April 2011
PLUS:
ON THE COMEBACK TRAIL
With cost and security concerns settled, RFID is being adopted across verticals
CERTIFICATION | CLOUD SERVICES | LTE | FCOE | IPV6 | NETWORK SECURITY
e Take th vey at Sur help AG tworkworld ne nd www. m/helpag a me.co xciting prizes win e
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ISSUE 145 | APRIL 2011
contents COMMENT 04 Out of the oven BITS 06 STC deploys Motive to manage fibre network 07 Fujitsu debuts high availability services for Saudi 10 Citrix appoints new regional head 12 Combating web security threats IN ACTION 16 UAE-based Landmark Group is ramping up
its IT infrastructure to keep pace with
business growth
EVENT REPORT 18 Masters of security – Addressing security in the
20
21st century
COVER STORY
FEATURE 24 Certifications that matter 28 On the road to IPv6 34 LTE round the corner
On the comeback trail: With cost and security concerns settled, RFID is being adopted across verticals for asset tracking and inventory management
INTERVIEW
40 Riding a new wave – Cisco’s VP of Mobile
Internet Architectural Play, on mobile Internet
TEST
45
NAS boxes – Desktop devices that deliver
terabytes of shared storage and more
16
28
NEW PRODUCTS 48 A guide to some of the new products
in the market
LAYER 8 50 All the news that’s fit for nothing
Quick Finder Page 6-26 Page 26-52 STC, Qtel, HP, 3PAR, Fujitsu, Fluke, Cisco, Juniper, ZTE, Atheeb IDC, Frost & Sullivan, Motorola, NetApp, Cisco, Alcatel-Lucent, Telecom, Acer, NEC Unified, NetApp, Citrix, McAfee, Symantec, Blue Iomega, Western Digital, Buffalo, Seagate, Nexans, SonicWalll Coat, Landmark Group, Zebra Technologies, Motorola, HID Global, Intermec, TrackIT, Fast Lane, Specturm, CNet Training
EDITORIAL Publisher Dominic De Sousa COO Nadeem Hood
Out of the oven
Commercial Director Richard Judd richard@cpidubai.com +971 4 440 9126
Remember the time when the US retailer Wal-Mart famously kick-started its journey toward RFID nirvana, which triggered a frenzy around the technology that rides on radio waves to transmit data? Despite all the hype and hoopla, the technology failed to meet user expectations, thanks to a host of reasons including cost, integration snafus and lack of standardisation. Now, RFID is making a comeback, not just in retail, but in other industry verticals as well for asset tracking and inventory management. With the prices of tags and readers coming down significantly, RFID is being used extensively for item-level tagging from apparel to footwear in retail and some other verticals starting to use the technology include energy, education, healthcare and in some cases even the public sector. RFID technology seems to have matured a point where all the kinks that held the adoption back have been ironed out by the industry and users have gained greater know-how, and a firm grip on the physics behind RFID applications. Will it finally replace barcodes, as many thought it would? That seems far-fetched at the moment because the barcodes has taken 40 years to reach where it is today, and has found user-adoption to the extent that it is used even by your local grocers at the end of the street. RFID being an electronic chip based technology will never have the economies of scale in its favour to replace barcodes but will complement it in a greater way. In fact a hybrid approach combining both RFID and barcodes is tipped to be the key to enhance your supply chain. What is for sure is that RFID is here to stay. On a different note, on April 25th, we have our annual awards which honour companies that have used networking technologies to transform their businesses, and significantly enhance both customer and user experience, taking place in Dubai. We are also honouring vendors who have demonstrated innovative leadership in creation of technology to help regional businesses reduce costs and meet business goals. Look out for that invitation coming to your inbox to take part in this major networking awards event.
EDITORIAL Dave Reeder dave@cpidubai.com +971 4 440 9106 Senior Editor Jeevan Thankappan jeevan@cpidubai.com +971 4 440 9109 ADVERTISING Group Sales Manager Rajashree R Kumar raj@cpidubai.com +971 4 440 9131 CIO PROGRAMMES CIO Programmes and Events Lead Kavitha Rajasekhar kavitha@cpidubai.com +971 4 440 9132 Strategic Marketing Services Lead Sreejith Nambiar sreejith@cpidubai.com +971 4 440 9133 MARKETING AND CIRCULATION Database and Circulation Manager Rajeesh M rajeesh@cpidubai.com +971 4 440 9147 PRODUCTION AND DESIGN Production Manager James P Tharian james@cpidubai.com +971 4 440 9146 Designer Froilan A. Cosgafa IV froilan@cpidubai.com +971 4 440 9107 DIGITAL www.cpilive.net www.networkworldme.com www.cpidubai.com Webmaster Tristan Troy Maagma troy@cpidubai.com +971 4 440 9141 Web Designer Jerus King Bation jerus@cpidubai.com +971 4 440 9143 Web Developer Elizabeth Reyes eliz@cpidubai.com
Jeevan Thankappan Senior Editor jeevan@cpidubai.com
www.networkworldme.co
m | Issue 145 | April 2011
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4 Network World Middle East April 2011
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Regional partner of
ON THE COMEBACK TRAIL
With cost and secur ity RFID is being adopt concerns settled, ed across verticals
CERTIFICATION | CLOUD SERVIC ES | LTE | FCOE | IPV6 | NETWO RK SECURITY
Š Copyright 2011 CPI All rights reserved While the publishers have made every effort to ensure the accuracy of all information in this magazine, they will not be held responsible for any errors therein.
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bits STC deploys Motive to manage fibre network Saudi Arabian national telecommunication
provider STC has selected Motive, which provides customer experience management solutions for fixed and mobile broadband services and an AlcatelLucent company, to deliver its Network Analyzer – Fiber (NA-F) solution. Motive’s Network Analyzer – Fiber (NA-F) will help STC reduce the complexity and cost of delivering and managing new fiber services such as high-speed Internet and IPTV. The solution also will help improve customer service while reducing customer support handling times and generate new
revenue by simplifying processes needed to increase line speeds. Network Analyzer – Fiber provides STC with a comprehensive line testing and quality management tool that ensures its fiber lines meet quality and stability requirements for the successful deployment of advanced services. When combined with Motive Home Device Manager and Motive ServiceView, STC customer service representatives will have a single, consolidated view and control over STC services from the access network deep into the home.
HP integrates 3PAR for cloud HP has integrated 3PAR Utility Storage across the HP Converged Infrastructure
portfolio to simplify scalable cloud computing, and introduced new storage solutions for virtualization and data deduplication. This integration enables clients to optimize cloud delivery with features like automated storage tiering to improve performance, and thin storage offerings to eliminate overprovisioning. The combination also helps clients seeking to consolidate storage hardware and respond to explosive data growth
TRUE FACT
80% 6 Network World Middle East April 2011
Walid Gomaa, StorageWorks Business Unit Manager and Sales Manager, HP Middle East.
to address both of these challenges with converged block-and-file storage on a single storage array. HP also has simplified data management with solutions built on converged storage, server and networking platforms to provide clients with unified management and a lower total cost of ownership.
Qtel accelerates fibre roll out
Qtel’s fibre deployment project is making
rapid progress, with more than 200 kilometres laid in the past month. The speed of the fibre roll-out in Qatar is currently faster than parallel projects in neighbouring countries, as Qatar surges ahead to bring the fastest Internet speed, HD television and crystal clear voice to the home and small business. The fast rate of deployment means that the commercial launch of the fibre network is closer than ever, with Qtel confident the 18-month migration of customers from the copper network to the fibre network will begin by the middle of 2011. Once the fibre network is fully launched in Qatar, the Internet experience will be transformed, with faster-than-ever Internet speeds and the capacity to download huge volumes of data such as songs and games in a matter of moments. Qatar will have some of the fastest Internet in the region, and the potential to add new and visionary services such as movies-on-demand and high definition television, claims Qtel.
Percentage of surveyed by Juniper who say they access their employer’s network using their smartphone without permission. 59% do it everyday. Source: Juniper
www.networkworldme.com
Fujitsu debuts high availability services for Saudi Fujitsu has launched it high availability service for enterprises in Saudi. Through
to the engineer attending on-site,” said Aiham Al-Akhras, Director of Services – Middle East, Fujitsu
these services, Fujitsu will provide hardware maintenance with pre-defined response or recovery time, while a dedicated in-country spares hub ensures fulfillment of high availability service commitments with the delivery of spares around the clock. “High Availability Services is Fujitsu’s commitment to our enterprise customers in Saudi Arabia, whereby we offer the right level of services to meet our customers’ business needs. Fujitsu has placed a significant investment in Saudi Arabia for services, ranging from dedicated in-country spares to direct Fujitsu service teams. It is a Fujitsu end-to-end experience from the helpdesk agent who answers the phone
Technology Solutions. In addition to the High Availability Service, Fujitsu also provides a range of platform solutions, which combine reliable Fujitsu products with the best in services, know-how and worldwide partnerships. For any service issues, customers can call the local help desk at 800 897 1462.
Fluke offers rebate for cable testers
Juniper honours Spectrum trainer
Fluke Networks is offering a trade-in
deal which could be worth up to $3,500 for users who upgrade to Fluke’s DTX CableAnalyzer. Launched last month, the company’s ‘Your Most Trusted Tester’ campaign allows customers to simply trade in their old cable tester and receive a rebate against one of the six models in the DTX CableAnalyzer range. To claim their rebate, customers simply log on to www.dtxdeal.com, where full details of the ‘Your Most Trusted Tester’ campaign and how to trade in their old tester, together with the levels of rebate can be found. The scheme is being run in conjunction with Fluke’s distribution network.
Aiham Al-Akhras, Director of Services – Middle East, Fujitsu Technology Solutions
Spectrum Training instructor Ghazanfar Ali has been named as
one of the leading Juniper Networks Certified Instructors in EMEA region for the year 2010. Ghazanfar Ali was recognized for high customer satisfaction ratings, number of students trained, and participation in Juniper Betas, curriculum and/ or certification feedback and development. Juniper Networks’ Certified Instructors play an integral role in the global implementation of Juniper Networks’ Training and Certification Program (JNCP.) The JNCP consists of platform-specific, multi-tiered tracks, which enable participants to demonstrate their competence with Juniper Networks technology through a combination of written proficiency
Cisco unveils videoscape Cisco has released Cisco Videoscape, a TV platform for
service providers that brings together digital TV and online content with social media and communications applications to create a new, truly immersive home and mobile video entertainment experience. Videoscape is part of Cisco’s overall video strategy to provide the next generation of TV that is simpler for consumers, and transforms the market opportunity for service providers. Cisco is currently working with several major global service provider customers, including Telstra, to enable next-generation video experiences through the Videoscape platform. “Consumers real-time entertainment choices are driving market change. They are demanding personalized TV experience that can be taken with them irrespective of location or device. Cisco Videoscape is the only entertainment solution available today that delivers this experience in full scope, combining all the necessary technology components of the cloud, the network and client devices. Cisco will go to market through the UAE’s service providers,” says Wayne Hull, GM of Cisco UAE.
tests and hands-on configuration and troubleshooting exams. Juniper Networks Certified Instructors working for JNAEPs have the same certification requirements and rigorous training process as Juniper Educational Services instructors. April 2011 Network World Middle East 7
bits The worlds of IT and operational technology collide
Acer names new regional director
The worlds of IT and operational technology (OT) are converging, and IT leaders must Kristian Steenstrup, Research Vice President and Gartner fellow manage their transition to converging, aligning and integrating IT and OT environments, according to Gartner.Analysts say the benefits that come from managing IT and OT convergence, alignment and integration include optimized business processes, enhanced information for better decisions, reduced costs, lower risks and shortened project timelines. An independent world of physicalequipment-oriented technology is developed, implemented and supported separately from the IT groups. For simplicity, Gartner refers to physical-
Acer Group has appointed Giuseppe Mastandrea as the new Regional Director of META area that includes Middle East, Turkey and Africa. The role will include the responsibility for all Acer Group’s Brands: Acer, E-Machines, Gateway and Packard bell. Mastandrea will lead the Region to continue increasing the prominence and market share: he is well-suited to this role, based on his achievements for Acer and Packard Bell brands in the past years in Italy, France, Poland and Turkey. After Giuseppe Mastandrea, Acer Group Gateway and Packard Bell acquisition in 2007, he was part of the Global Marketing and Branding team in charge of the Multibrand Strategy development and implementation.
Atheeb Telecom signs ZTE for fibre optic network Etihad Atheeb Telecom has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with ZTE to deploy fibre-optic network within the cities (Metro Fiber Ring). The first phase of this network implementation project will start in Riyadh city and will serve the government sectorsandbusiness(FTTB)andhomes(FTTH). Eng. Zaid Al Shabanat, Chief Executive of GO Telecom stated: “We are pleased to sign this Memorandum of Understanding, which represents a new step towards building the most advanced telecommunications network in the Kingdom. The new fiber-optics network integrates with the Fourth Generation (4G)
8 Network World Middle East April 2011
equipment-oriented technology as “operational technology” (OT). “The relationship between the IT and OT groups needs to be managed better, but more importantly, the nature of the OT systems is changing, so that the underlying technology — such as platforms, software, security and communications — is becoming more like IT systems,” said Kristian Steenstrup, research vice president and Gartner fellow. “This gives a stronger justification for IT groups to contribute to OT software management, creating an IT and OT alignment that could be in the form of standards, enterprise architecture (EA), support and security models, software configuration practices, and information and process integration.” IT and OT are converging in numerous important industries, such as healthcare, transportation, defense, energy, aviation, manufacturing, engineering, mining, oil and gas, natural resources, and utilities.
wirelesscommunications technology, WiMAX 802.16e, to provide GO Telecom products & services that meet the needs of various government, business and home sectors, both for Broadband Internet service and Voice services, and opens up more opportunities to provide other Value-Added Services. The second phase of the project will continue in each of the cities of Jeddah and Dammam. Building a new fiber optics network will reinforce the infrastructureofthecompanyanditscompetitive standing in the Saudi market and will establish a long-term partnership with ZTE Corporation.”
MOPW brings on UC UAE’s Ministry of Public Works (MOPW) has selected NEC Unified Solutions to deliver its communications solutions in the new state-of-the-art hospital in Umm Al Quwain (UAQ), scheduled to be open mid-2011. The deal was part of a larger technology project won by NEC’s authorised partner, Alliance Communication Solutions. The current communications system in the new UAQ hospital covers 1500 extensions supported by internal CAT7 cabling and a fibre backbone for voice and data services with its own dedicated communications and server room, according to Alliance Communication Solutions. www.networkworldme.com
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bits Citrix appoints new regional head Symantec to
Aaron White as Regional Director, Middle East & Africa (MEA)
Citrix has appointed Aaron White as Regional Director, Middle East & Africa (MEA). Aaron joins Citrix from VMware to lead business development across
NetApp to acquire LSI’s Engenio storage unit NetApp has agreed to acquire the Engenio external storage systems
business of LSI for US$480 million in cash, aiming to serve new applications with growing demands for storage and to get into original-equipment manufacturing (OEM) arrangements with more system manufacturers. In the highly competitive storage industry, NetApp has offerings in a wide range of technologies and is focused on differentiating itself with a unified management approach under which multiple types of systems can be managed as one system. With the Engenio acquisition, NetApp aims to reach vertical markets with large and growing demands for storage capacity, such as
10 Network World Middle East April 2011
the region, strengthen its position in the virtualisation and cloud solutions market and drive the company’s plans for growth. He replaces Antoine Aguado, who departed Citrix towards the end of 2010. Aaron will join the Citrix team based in Citrix’s regional head office in Dubai, with responsibility for the growing Middle Eastern business. In his previous role, Aaron spent three years at VMware, taking the lead on strategic channel and alliance programmes across its Eastern EMEA operations. Starting his career at Unisys, Aaron also spent eight years at Sun Microsystems pursuing sales and business development roles. He has a MSc in Information Systems from the University of Liverpool, UK.
surveillance, full-motion video capture, genomic sequencing and scientific research. Tom Georgens, president and These are CEO of NetApp applications that are not addressed by the company’s core Data OnTap operating system today, said Tom Georgens, president and CEO of NetApp, in a conference call following the announcement. These will expand NetApp’s total addressable market by about $5 billion by 2014, he said. NetApp also expects the deal to expand its market reach into new areas, such as serverattached and embedded storage, through established Engenio OEM relationships.
release cloud management software Symantec plans to release a full refresh
of its Storage Foundation and Veritas Operations Manager software, which will include features allowing endto-end management of private cloud infrastrutures. Symantec representatives met with Computerworld this week to offer an early preview of the products. Veritas Operations Manager (VOM) 4.0 is due out in May; Storage Foundation 6.0 is planned for release in the second half of the year. One upcoming feature Symantec is planning is called Enterprise Object Store, which will use a global name space to offer a heterogeneous, enterprise-wide abstraction of all file data.
Intel’s McAfee to acquire Sentrigo Intel’s McAfee subsidiary said it would acquire Sentrigo, which provides
database security and compliance products. The acquisition comes just under a month after Intel completed the acquisition of security company McAfee for US$7.6 billion. Intel announced in August it would buy McAfee to enhance its software and on-chip security stack, and the merger was completed on Feb. 28. Intel is maintaining McAfee as a subsidiary. Sentrigo offers a suite of products designed to help prevent database attacks through activity monitoring, intrusion prevention, vulnerability detection and protection of unpatched systems.
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EMC2, EMC, RSA, the EMC logo, the RSA logo, and where information lives are registered trademarks or trademarks of EMC Corporation in the United States and other countries. Š Copyright 2011 EMC Corporation. All rights reserved. 2318
bits GOOD
BAD
UGLY
Broadband boost 2010 saw a steady rise in the number of new broadband subscribers with 56 million subscribers added, accounting for 12% annual growth. Asia is moving to become the largest broadband region in the world and is likely to overtake Europe during 2011 in terms of total broadband subscribers. The Americas and the Middle East & Africa are still showing plenty of activity, but Europe and Asia show faster broadband adoption, according to the data provided by Point Topic.
GOOD
Hackers get their hands on TripAdvisor email list Members of travel review website TripAdvisor have been warned that hackers may have got their hands on their email addresses, following a security breach. The website revealed an unauthorised thirdparty has "stolen" part of the website's members email address list. The website said passwords had not been taken in most cases, and users won't be affected. However, some may receive spam messages as a result of the incident. Steve Kaufer, Co-founder and CEO of Trip Advisor, stressed that the website does not collect members' credit card or financial information, and it never sells or rents its member list.
BAD
54% of second-hand phones contain personal data More than half (54 percent) of secondhand mobile phones contain personal data belonging to the original owner, says CPP. In a study, the fraud protection firm purchased 35 mobile and 50 SIM cards on online auction site eBay. CPP found a total of 247 pieces of data including photos, texts, emails and even banking details on 19 of the mobile phones and 27 of the SIM cards.
UGLY
12 Network World Middle East April 2011
Combating web security threats With criminal activities “Un-Managed on the Internet on the WAN”. rise and changing threat While in the landscape, security early days of Web solutions are finding security threats it difficult to keep up were limited to with the rapid attacks viruses that were by cyber criminals. The attached to email Ammar D Afani, Territory Manager – UAE, Qatar & Oman, Blue Coat Systems. popularity of social and documents, networking activities in Web 1.0, online is also making the Internet more security threats moved from documents to vulnerable to recent attacks. Blue Coat, a the network level with the rise of DDOS market leader in enterprise-class Web security (Distributed Denial of Service) attacks, Worms, appliances, recently organised an event in Trojans and Buffer overflow attacks became Dubai in association with its distribution common place threats along with email spam partner COMPUTERLINKS. The event, and viruses that continued to develop. which was supported by Network World The enterprise defense moved from static Middle East, focused on multi-layered defense LAN defense to more of a perimeter “Depthfor web security and the introduction of the in-Defense” where new features were added company’s ProxyOne solution. at the network layer to prevent these types “Despite the existence of firewalls and of attacks. Perimeter technologies like IDS desktop Anti-Virus, enterprises are seeing (Intrusion Detection Systems) and IPS increases in the amount of PC infections (Intrusion Prevention System), Stateful coming from their network. However they Inspection and VPN-based access were added are not typically able to locate the source to the network to combat these threats. UTM of the threat with accuracy and isolate the (Unified Threat Mitigation) was developed to security breach,” said Ammar D Afani, extend the Enterprise defense to the WAN/ Territory Manager – UAE, Qatar & Oman, LAN but at the network level. Blue Coat Systems. “With the advent of network defenses, According to Blue Coat, Web and WAN attackers moved to exploiting vulnerabilities in traffic are continually increasing as users the Web-based content which is unprotected. download more and more application content Web-based Malware has now become to support their business. This is leading to dominant threat vector for today’s Enterprise. expensive bandwidth upgrades and causing Cybercrime and malware are now winning performance issues on the WAN. Given this against legacy-based defenses. Attacks now trend, however, enterprise lack the ability to exploit the porus nature of Web 2.0 by control the increasing demand for content by injecting code in legitimate websites that we the user or the wider user experience. The visit everyday. result is a more expensive WAN. Attacks are now more organised and Third, more and more employees are sophisticated, often leveraging complex working outside the Enterprise network, automated cloud computing algorithms via tele-working and off-site assignment as that are extremely efficient at exploiting examples. The rise of remote and mobile the maximum number of websites and workers complicates the ability of IT users. The best defense for Web 2.0 is a managers to effectively support and control “Layered Defense” which incorporates end-user administration with policies for Cloud Security Services with realperformance, security and overall user time Malware updates along with next experience. Lack of visibility and reporting generation content-filtering all provided by on remote workers gives rise to the enterprise a Secure Web Gateway,” said Afani. www.networkworldme.com
14 Network World Middle East April 2011
www.networkworldme.com
in action: landmark group
Raising the bar Landmark Group is ramping up its IT infrastructure to keep pace with business growth
Kirit Shah, CIO, Landmark Group
T
he UAE-based Landmark Group is one of the largest retail and
hospitality conglomerates in the Middle East and India, operating over 1000 outlets across 15 countries. Ever since its inception in 1973, the Group has created a diverse portfolio of retail and hospitality brands, with a turnover in excess of $ 3.8 billion with around 32,000 employees. The Landmark Group was founded in 1973 by Micky Jagtiani. He is the Chairman of Landmark Group and the driving force behind the Group’s growth and success. Over the last 35 years, Micky has charted the Group’s journey from a single store in Bahrain in mid 70’s to its current market presence. The Landmark Group has aggressive expansion plans, growing at a CAGR of 28
16 Network World Middle East April 2011
percent. This kind of growth often means the IT systems have to scale up to cater to the growing demands of the business, and that is exactly the challenge that faces the Group. The Group has undertaken many projects to ensure that the IT infrastructure remains up-to-date. A dedicated IT team of 70 professionals maintains the whole technology infrastructure of the Group. Landmark Group’s network supports around 3,500 IT users, spread across various geographical locations. The mission-critical applications running on the network include ERP, HRMS and CRM systems from Oracle, all centrally hosted in a data centre facility located at the Group’s headquarters in Dubai. In addition to enabling business growth, the IT team also supports Landmark Group’s environment initiative, in an endeavour to reduce the Group’s carbon footprint. As part of this initiative, the Group’s data centre has been re-engineered recently to make it more energy efficient by moving from precision cooling systems to a hot aisle/cold isle model, to contain heat, which is expected to reduce power consumption by 25 percent. The Landmark Group’s 66 sq. meter data centre, which houses over 100 servers, is equipped with environmental monitoring systems and FM-200 gas-based fire suppression systems. It is also backed up by a generator which can run for 24 hours in the case of an outage. Virtualisation is another major area of focus for the Landmark Group, which
has contributed directly to the energyefficiency programme of the company. The virtualisation project started with a pilot of 10 servers, which used VMware on IBM blade servers, to be consolidated into two, and the plan is to have around 50 percent of the servers virtualised. Landmark Group is one of the biggest users of the wireless technologies in the region. As part of its roll out of Oracle retail systems, which warrant wireless systems, the Group is now in the process of extending wireless infrastructure across its GCC-wide outlets. All of the Group’s 16 warehouses are on wireless connectivity, with around 200 access points in the headquarters alone, managed by a central wireless controller. The campus network, which supports around 1600 users, runs on a fibreoptic network and is 10 Gig enabled. A link aggregation technology is used to manage bandwidth. On the connectivity front, a mix of both VPN and MPLS for wide area network is used. The passive infrastructure is based on Cat 6 A systems and uses LSOH (environment friendly) cabling from 3M and management solutions from Panduit. Security is also a top priority for Landmark Group’s IT organisation, which has already implemented multiple layers of security mechanism to safeguard data. As many locations connect to the data centre, the company is using a firewall with multi-linking feature at the gateway level to segregate various application traffic to maintain and increase performance. This is in addition to an Intrusion Prevention System (IPS) and Sophos for end-point protection. With the ever evolving and competitive nature of IT, the Landmark Group is committed towards continuous research and development in this field, and will continue to dedicate time and resources towards strengthening its IT infrastructure. www.networkworldme.com
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information, enabling functions like fast layer 2/layer 3 roaming, coordinated RF management, security, and mesh networking, all without the botlenecks posed by controllers. There is no need to add expensive controllers at every location, because the APs share the information they need. There is no need to engage in controller capacity planning, because you can simply add APs when and where they’re needed. So you not only save money, but your WLAN is ready for mission-critical apps like voice-over-WLAN. No controller means you have total control. And that means you have nothing to fear. Learn more about the economic benefits of Aerohive's unique approach. Download the whitepaper at www.aerohive.com/economics. mics.
W W W . A E R O H I V E . C O M © 2010 Aerohive Networks, Inc. Aerohive and the Aerohive logo are trademarks of Aerohive Networks, Inc. All other company or product names es may be trademarks or registered trademarks of the respective companies with which they are associated. April 2011 Network World Middle East 17
event | security
Security Made Smarter – Addressing security in the 21st century
R
apidly evolving malware and fraudulent attacks present a constant challenge to companies and their customers. The impacts of organisational change, consolidation, acquisitions, and the current economic upheaval only add to a company’s data security issues. How do you protect yourself, and your customers? CPI’s Masters of Security initiative
supported by McAfee and Network World Middle East magazine served as a platform for regional IT decision makers to discuss the dynamics behind doing business in these uncertain times. As part of a focused series, across Riyadh, KSA and Abu Dhabi, UAE the event highlighted the latest techniques and tools, practices and processes for securing organisations even as they continued promoting their business. The event brought togetherover 60 customers across the two cities and key McAfee executives, including Gert-Jan Schenk, President EMEA, McAfee, Hamed Diab, McAfee Regional Director Middle East and North Africa (MENA) and Greg Day, Director of Security, McAfee EMEA to elaborate on the future of security in the Middle East. Network World Middle East also caught up with GJ to 18 Network World Middle East April 2011
understand more about McAfee’s plans for the region. Here is an excerpt: What are organisations looking to protect in 2011? One of the biggest topics around
enterprise security is mobility and mobiles. As enterprises want to enable their employees to be mobile and have access to data when they are on a business trip, working from home etc. there is a need to secure mobile devices whether these are smart phones or tablet PCs. Companies also need to think about allowing employees to use one mobile
device for both “worlds”: their business world and their personal world. This leads to the question of how best to protect confidential company information, company data etc. on mobile devices. It also brings up discussion within enterprises on how to avoid data loss and misuse of data through either third parties or internal staff. Corporate intellectual capital is the new currency for cybercriminals and must therefore be protected. Could you elaborate on McAfee’s market strategy for 2011 for emerging markets? McAfee is planning to expand its partner www.networkworldme.com
(From left to right) Hamed Diab, McAfee Regional Director with Gert-Jan Schenk and Jalal Al-Bokhary, Territory Manager – Saudi Arabia
Gert-Jan Schenk, President EMEA, McAfee
base in the Emerging Markets. As we sell only through the channel, partners are very important to us and this is why we keep looking to increase our partner base. We have also invested in the Middle East with the opening of a new office in Saudi Arabia, thereby showing our commitment to these markets. McAfee will continue to develop state-of-the art security solutions that keep our customer’s systems, networks and data safe from attacks and misuse.
does not only apply for data protection but for all security measures that a company implements, starting with the simple update of a virus scanner and ending with comprehensive threat management. How are you working with customers to help them build a strong security-aware culture? The first step in working with
customers is listening to them. Customers are talking about their needs, about their demands and about their infrastructure. With this in mind McAfee is able Greg Day, Director of Security, McAfee EMEA to see the “big picture”. The partners and resellers we work with are McAfee will continue to develop state-of-the art security often able to help us better understand our solutions that keep our customer’s systems, customers’ needs. networks and data safe from attacks and misuse. Based on all this Data protection, threat management Attacks such as Stuxnet and information, McAfee is able to offer a and security policies – are they the top Night Dragon are proof that some solution that best suits the customer. areas for organisations today? of the largest and best protected As IT security is an ever changing Data protection is a top priority corporations in the world were issue, it is necessary to be in contact for enterprises and governments. targeted to steal information. Data with customers constantly – either Confidential data such as development protection and security policies are directly or through a partner. We plans, go-to-market-plans etc. is the very much connected to each other do offer technical training for our currency for cybercriminals who sell – a company needs to define security customers so they are able to capitalise this information to competitors or policies to be able to implement on the McAfee solutions they decide other governments. effective data protection. This upon. April 2011 Network World Middle East 19
feature | rfid
On the comeback trail
that it is a technology solution in search of a problem. But last year, all that RFID hype, which was famously kick started by the US retailer Wal-Mart, has finally given way to real-world implementations and pockets of success. Is RFID making a comeback? There are tell-tale signs that this contactless technology is back in the radar of many IT managers. “Companies around the world are looking to radio frequency identification technologies to better track mobile equipment, tools, assets, vehicles, people and so on. Companies in the Middle East have the same problems and are exploring the benefit of using RFID, particularly in the construction, energy and security industries. Given the large number of tools and equipment used on construction and energy sites, RFID can reduce the amount of time spend looking for specific items and ensure items arrive in a timely way and don’t delay production. In security, RFID is being used to secure weapons and munitions,” says Mark Roberti, founder and editor of RFID Journal. RFID is being increased adopted by verticals other than retail and manufacturing, which have been the early adopters. “Obviously, when referring to RFID technology, many people can identify with retail or manufacturing applications where there is a need to
With concerns about cost and security settled, RFID is now being increasingly adopted by enterprises other than retail for asset tracking, inventory management and host of other innovative applications
T
he adoption of radio-frequency identification (RFID) technology,
every since it burst onto the scene a decade back, has been one long, strange journey: Periods of irrational
20 Network World Middle East April 2011
exuberance followed by times of great frustration and confusion; expensive pilot projects riddled with technical, standards-based and cost complexities; and a widespread belief among users
Mark Roberti, founder and editor of RFID Journal
www.networkworldme.com
Marie- Francoise Glotz, VP of Identification Technologies, HID Global
know the particular state or location of a component or item for sale. In reality, RFID technology enables asset tracking and systems improvements in logistics applications such as with returnable transport items, waste management or automation as well as asset management verticals including laundry, jewellery, and medical. Additionally, RFID technology is frequently mandated for food and animal identification to help track provenance or ownership in the case of disease or loss,” says Marie- Francoise Glotz, VP of Identification Technologies, HID Global. Wael Hasan, Territory Manager of Zebra Technologies, says RFID is also being used in the education sector. “Take for example, university libraries with thousands of books. They don’t often do stock taking physically because it can be quite labour intensive. Now the books are being tagged with RFID, so all you have to do is walk through the aisle with a scanner and the whole process is done within a day. It is also being used in data centres to track critical devices.” Experts note that IT executives at companies with large data centres have long grappled with the problem of misplaced equipment, particularly “ghost servers” that draw power but don’t do any work. The problem can be costly, because electricity is wasted and in some cases companies must continue to make
lease and maintenance payments on the “lost” systems. Placing RFID tags on IT equipment could make it easier to keep track of machines moved into or out of the data centre. Traditional inventories of IT assets, which are generated by staffers who walk from server to server carrying bar code scanners and clipboards, have limited shelf lives because a data centre’s equipment is constantly changing. Roberti cites the example of Tagstone, a leading RFID solutions provider, which has developed a solution for managing car dealerships. Tracking many vehicles
Hozefa Saylawala, Product Manager at Motorola Solutions
that all look the same but are slightly customised can be a challenge. Tagstone helps companies find the right vehicle and better serve customers. Tagstone is also working with governments around the region to track weapons. So they have a system that tracks which police offer was issued a gun and when and when it was returned. Kuwait retailer MS Retail is offering an RFID-based tracking system at its new children’s superstore, Baroue, to enable parents to monitor their kids as they play in the store’s playground. There are couple of factors driving the adoption of RFID across verticals. First off, many of RFID’s infamous roadblocks such as managing wireless
signal, resolving back-end IT and supply chain integrations problems, and grasping those immutable laws of physics have been cleared. “When RFID came initially, many people thought it would replace barcoding. In reality, its complementary to barcoding. While some of the integration problems still do exist, users have gained a greater understanding of the challenges and process re-engineering involved in deploying the technology in suppy chain,” says Hozefa Saylawala, Product Manager at Motorola Solutions Another factor driving the adoption is cost. “There has always been a demand for RFID in the region. However the adoption rate has been slow due to high costs associated with the tgas and infrastructure. This is finally changing as manufacturers lead by Intermec are starting to produce lower cost infrastructure and lower cost tags,” says Julian Sperring-Toy, GM of Intermec. Saylawala adds that while the cost was an issue when it came to item-level tagging, today tag prices have come down to the range of 10-20 cents and some of the tags can also be re-used. Also, the amount of data a tag can hold has also gone up. Is RFID’s journey showing more positive signs or is it still an evolutionary slog with more work ahead? After being seven years in, is RFID finally riding a wave, sweeping through enterprises? Soma Sekhar Vedantam, CEO of Track IT Solutions, says the wave has already happened without many people realising it. “Media has failed miserably when it comes to portraying the adoption, and everyone was looking for a WalMart style of adoption. Truth it, there was a wave of adoption on the HF side, as it is being widely used in access control systems, public transportation tickets, etc. It would take time for that to happen in the open supply chain, which is heavily compartmentalised. Getting these silos to adopt a common April 2011 Network World Middle East 21
feature | rfid technology will take time.” Security concerns are preventing some IT managers from using RFID technology as transmissions from active RFID tags can be retrieved. But the industry proponents say the opposite is true as it actually enhances security. “Where there is a need for increased security, identification or tracking, we are seeing more implementations of RFID technology. It is up to the systems integrator to work with customers to determine the right transponder, reading environment and appropriate database infrastructure. Whether or not the tag holds more than a unique
Julian Sperring-Toy, GM of Intermec
number identifier or enables read/write capabilities, for example, is all based upon the user’s requirements for knowledge about the asset along with any regulations which may govern the asset’s use or transport,” says Glotz. While it is true that, as implementations have shown, RFID can deliver true business value and clear ROI, it is nowhere close to the initial hype of RFID’s potential. Soma Vedantam says it will be the only technology which will be used every physical object in the world and he believes RFID would soon find its way into every industry soon. “RFID will be applied in new domains. How many organisations have a proper asset mechanism in place? How many have a proper digital data-based inventory tracking system? These represent enormous opportunities. It is only a question of when.” 22 Network World Middle East April 2011
> RFID IN ACTION
T
he Survey and Land Registration Bureau of Bahrain (SLRB) oversees land and property transactions in the Kingdom of Bahrain. The transactions create a huge amount of files, paperwork, and overtime; processes had become unwieldy and bureaucratic. The SLRB’s General Directorate of Resources and Information Systems team under the patronage of its project director H.E. Shaikh Mohammed Al-Khalifa set out to deploy new technology to enhance workflow and improve security to advance the organization’s productivity, efficiency, and service performance. SLRB has deployed the latest RFID technology with contactless data capture. Every new file has an RFID tag attached to it and, with 28 RFID readers and 110 antennas completely covering the seven floors of the building with non-line-of-sight data capture, files are tracked as they move throughout the premises. The organisation has defined 16 key workflows for managing files that are monitored (users acknowledge the receipt of files and completed transaction using desktop RFID USB readers) to ensure teams comply with best practice. The location of every file and its history is available on a webbased dashboard. Should files become lost, the last location can be traced using the report (collected in real-time) that details the position of files. The file can also be searched for in its last known location using Motorola’s MC9090G handheld RFID Reader with integrated RFID scanner. The time spent searching for files has been recouped, workflow processes are being followed closely, and management is able to measure progress against KPIs in real time. These benefits are greatly enhancing productivity: files that typically took between three weeks and three months to process are usually completed within seven days. Costs are
also falling by streamlining processes and automating key tasks, whilst the confidentiality and security of data is enhanced and rigorously protected. The initiative was overseen by Burzin P. Bharucha, Consultant / Advisor (IS), from the Office of General Director Resources and Information Systems, Survey and Land Registration Bureau. And the project team, which also included Maryam Sabt and Mohammed Al-Binali (under the direction of H.E. Shaikh Mohammed Al-Khalifa and Shaikh Khaled Al-Khalifa), invested considerable time in reviewing tender responses in line with the complex requirements of the project. “Capturing data through RFID hardware is one thing,” observes Burzin P. Bharucha. “But you need to present it in real time to optimize its full value. Covering SLRB’s large headquarters with RFID was a demanding task. The proof of concept involved a detailed evaluation of the maximum range of the RFID readers installed in the premises (including the accuracy of the data capture) and the transmission of data by the antennas to the back-office system. In all, 110 RFID antennas including the AN-400 wall mount (with two filament antennas) and AN-480 wall mount (with single filament antennas) and 28 X R 480 Gen 2 RFID Readers, all from Motorola were installed at strategic points across SLRB’s building. The net result is the blanketing of the premises with RFID coverage. The RFID system delivers a range of key features and applications. All files are continuously tracked and traced. An audit trail is automatically created to display the history of a file as it moves between points. Also, employees must scan files at set points through the workflow. And using the handheld reader and scanner, users can quickly search for misplaced files in the last location that they were recorded by the system. The technology is delivering considerable benefits.
www.networkworldme.com
April 2011 Network World Middle East 23
feature | certifications
Certifications that matter As companies look to bridge talent holes in their IT organisations, there is an increased emphasis on vendor-and technology-specific training. Here are some of the hottest IT certification picks for 2011
W
ith great opportunities in technology, and increased
competition for jobs, certifications are becoming more important for IT pros who want to make themselves more employable. This is particularly true in a region like the Middle East, which has a
24 Network World Middle East March 2011
huge demand for technical education. “The Middle Eastern market is developing at speed and there is a real, and growing, desire to adopt existing, new and emerging technology. Naturally, this translates into the need for professional technical training, and it is apparent that both
individuals and companies can really see the value of personal development, in addition to the need for industry recognised qualifications whilst following a progressive career path. Therefore, it is without doubt that the technical ability within the Middle Eastern region is rising rapidly and it is fast becoming an early adopter of technology and the associated educational training,” says Andrew Stevens, MD of CNet Training. Agrees Josef Miskulnig, MD of Fast Lane, which is primarily into Cisco training: “There is a strong demand for certification in this part of the world, especially for emerging technologies such as Unified Communications and data centre.” Within networking, foundation technologies such as routing and switching – without which no network exists – represent a huge chunk of certification. To the uninformed, the hundreds of techrelated certifications that IT pros use to sell their services amount to an alphabet soup of incomprehensible acronyms. Nevertheless, 68 percent of IT hiring managers regard these labels as a medium or high priority, according to CompTIA, the largest vendor-neutral certifying group. Most computer certification programmes don’t require a college degree, and they can give help-desk professionals and network managers a competitive advantage and an earnings boost. For example, CompTIA says, businesses will typically pay www.networkworldme.com
Andrew Stevens, MD of CNet Training
a 10 percent premium for someone who has earned one of its entrylevel certifications, and individuals with higher-level certifications can command a 40 percent mark-up. Stevens says there are couple of reasons driving the demand. “Firstly, the acceptance by companies and individuals that there is a definite need for professional technical training. They need to be educated to the very latest standards and hold the associated industry recognised qualifications in order to stand a chance at competing within the global marketplace.” Secondly, the desire of individuals; they have a recognisable and strong thirst for knowledge that seems above and beyond that from other regions such as Europe and the US. They are highly driven and motivated to learn and progress within the technological market place and are constantly seeking to expand their knowledge and qualifications, he adds. These days, most of the training providers see virtualisaiton and data centre as the top networking invest areas. “Professionals with practical knowledge around some of the advanced technologies such as Unified Communications and data centre can
command a premium, because the skill sets are very rare in these areas,” says Miskulnig. Stevens agrees that data centre training and development is extremely popular: “With an increasing number of organisations relying on data centres to hold and secure their data, more data centres are needed, therefore it is certainly one of the hottest technology areas and professional training is a must. Again, professional educational frameworks with associated industry and internationally recognised qualifications have been developed extending across the entire data centre arena, from initial design considerations through to on-going management and energy efficiency.” Programmes such as CDCDP (Certified Data Centre Design Professional) and CDCMP (Certified Data Centre Management Professional) are highly popular. In
currently is primarily for vendorspecific certifications and Cisco is often the popular choice within the network domain, with CCNA being the most common at the entry level and CCIE at the top of the rack. The networking giant has recently introduced new level of certification, Cisco Certified Architect, which has been dubbed the Ph.D in Cisco.
Professionals with practical knowledge around some of the advanced technologies such as Unified Communications and data centre can command a premium, because the skill sets are very rare in these areas. JOSEF MISKULNIG, MD of Fast Lane addition, these new and advanced educational frameworks are helping to ensure that the entire industry works to a consistent and verified quality standard. Sanjeev Singh, MD of Spectrum Training, foresees a huge demand around cloud computing. “Right now, there are no vendor-neutral certifications around cloud computing, and it is really a unique skill which will be in demand particularly from telcos.” The demand in the Middle East
While Cisco boasts more than 20,000 CCIEs worldwide, the vendor decided to build another layer of expertise on top of its proven certification program. The CCA requires applicants to already be certified as Cisco Certified Design Experts (CCDE) and have 10 years of experience. The training for CCA would equip IT professionals with the C-level knowhow and skills to prevent wasteful investments on technology and better align network projects with business goals, according to Cisco. April 2011 Network World Middle East 25
feature | certifications
certification are one to two years of experience in designing, installing, configuring, and troubleshooting network systems. ITIL v3 Foundations For many, the goal this year is to
streamline IT operations, adding automation where possible, while at the same time increasing services to users. The premise of overhauling the way IT works is outlined in the IT
We train around 20-25 people around JNCIA-Junos, and JNCIE is targeted at service providers. Soon, Juniper will introduce JNCIE for security. SANJEEV SINGH, MD of Spectrum Training On the other hand, Juniper has its popular JNCIA at the entry level and JNCIE at the top of the pyramid. “We train around 20-25 people around JNCIA-Junos, and JNCIE is targeted at service providers. Soon, Juniper will introduce JNCIE for security,” says Singh of Spectrum, which is the authorised training partner for the company. Determining the best IT certification to pursue depends on an individual’s existing skill level, career goals and accessibility to training. Here we detail some of the hottest IT certifications for 2011.
Infrastructure Library, or ITIL (Version 3 is currently being adopted). With four levels of ITIL certification, IT professionals can prove they understand the principals around service life-cycle management and apply them to real-world environments. Companies seeking such expertise would likely desire a candidate who couples ITIL skills with security or other technical expertise. Considered more of a process-oriented area, ITIL can still deliver benefits such as improved availability, faster problem resolution and reduced costs due to streamlined processes.
Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer Few businesses get along without a hearty helping of Microsoft-powered equipment, and the company offers a raft of specialised training programmes for those who service its products. Among Microsoft’s most popular certifications is Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer (MCSE). The requirements for MCSE
Red Hat Certified Security Specialist The fastest-growing information security certification is Red Hat’s. Launched in 2006, this certification is aimed at senior network administrators and is designed to prove that a person has deep skills related to running Red Hat Enterprise Linux in a secure fashion. To qualify for this certification,
26 Network World Middle East April 2011
network engineers must first pass the Red Hat Certified Engineer test and then be trained as a Red Hat Certified Security Specialist. Engineers must pass three exams – in advanced networking security, Linux policy administration and directory services/authentication — in order to earn this credential. Beyond certifications While vendor-specific knowledge
and foundational certifications seem a prerequisite for most jobs, IT professionals in 2011 should also consider ramping up their vendorneutral skills around technologies that continue to gain attention from hightech as well as business leaders. “There is a need for a combination of both vendor specific and vendor neutral education training. It is without doubt that a certain level of vendor neutral training is needed in order to understand the market and gain the skills and knowledge to move forward. Delegates can take these non product specific skills with them wherever they go and prove valuable to all employers. This, combined with vendor specific training can be of extra benefit to both the employer and employee,” says Stevens. It is also important to keep in mind that a credential along doesn’t guarantee real-world job skills, but it increases the odds that the person is competent. As companies try to do more with smaller budgets, they turn to technologies that reduce the need for IT staff. As a result, the market for IT professionals now emphasizes hybrid skills. Not only must they understand the equipment, but they must solve business problems creatively. But, unfortunately, no IT certification currently available can gauge whether a professional understand how IT supports and complements the overall business. www.networkworldme.com
April 2011 Network World Middle East 27
feature | IPv6
On the road to IPv6 How to avoid the pitfalls when transitioning to IPv6
S
ometime this year the world will run out of Internet addresses
doled out under the old-style IPv4 protocol, and while the 128-bit addresses in IPv6 will allow for essentially an unlimited number of addresses, the upgrade path is a tricky one.
28 Network World Middle East April 2011
For starters, the protocols are incompatible in a binary fashion. Network equipment designed to run IPv4 cannot effectively route IPv6 Internet traffic. IPv6 gear typically will be backward compatible and will be able to handle IPv4 packets; however translating packets from
one world to the other is still not trivial. That adds up to a backwards compatibility problem of epic proportions. Think of the impact of this in terms of broader network interoperability. The Internet community and its various providers of connectivity, transit, collocation, and other services, are far from monolithic. The whole Internet won’t flip the switch one day and transfer everything to the IPv6 protocol. Guaranteed, in that awkward period of transition, connections will break. We’ve never made this big a switch. Beyond compatibility, IPv6 will also give large swathes of the switching and routing infrastructure of the Internet a crushing performance downgrade. Many of the core, critical packet traffic cops use customized ASICs designed to accommodate IPv4 data streams. The manufacturers of these devices have given them the capability to support IPv6 by means of software upgrades. But purpose-built ASICs cannot be upgraded, so the tasks of routing will fall on the CPUs instead. Further, the typical routing device does not tend to have a particularly powerful CPU. After all, that’s what the ASIC is for, right? The result? Routing IPv6 traffic will dramatically reduce throughput speeds. Routers and cards that once ran on cruise control for days will begin to stagger under the increased performance requirements of IPv6. Your mileage may vary, but experts estimate performance declines of as much as 60% may loom. Then there are the issues of end-user experience and Web site performance. A www.networkworldme.com
significant portion of the wireless routers and home networking equipment is not designed to handle IPv6. While modern operating systems have IPv6 compatibility, millions of users are on older OS platforms that will require continued IPv4 support. As a result, publishers of content, providers of connectivity and advertising networks will all need to accommodate this dual-mode reality for years to come. Add this all up and there are multiple implications for IPv6. First, network operators from the biggest to the smallest will need to closely coordinate their efforts to ensure that the Internet maintains wide-scale connectivity and IP compatibility. These same network operators must embark on an aggressive network upgrade path. Finally, network operators, publishers, e-commerce purveyors, advertisers, ISPs must plan for a double-existence and an architecture that supports both IPv4 and IPv6 for the foreseeable future. Sounds expensive? It can be. One way that many ISPs are planning on handling the problem is by “dual-stacking” maintaining network equipment that runs in parallel with one handling IPv4 traffic and the other handling IPv6 traffic. Maintaining an entire network with Internet content along with a data delivery infrastructure while having one foot in both worlds, is both cumbersome and complicated, not to mention costly. Putting in place transparent proxy servers that can translate traffic into the appropriate IP version in order to meet user needs could help alleviate the issue. However, end users trying to reach a Web site could still fail to connect if the Domain Name Servers of the destination site or network are using the wrong version of IP, causing the connection to break before the user even reaches the Web server. The best initiative for IT teams to employ is to examine all the possible options for bridging IPv4 and IPv6 in
the interim with an eye to the future for transitioning the whole network over to IPv6. Commit your infrastructure vendors to make that transition with you each step of the way, with no interruption
to the business. Although a challenge, this metamorphosis will result in better security, faster transactions and will guarantee that customers will connect with your Web site.
IPv6 migration tips Ali Ahmar, Regional Sales Manager of Brocade Communications, recommends a 6-step systematic approach to IPv6 issue 1. Don’t panic, prepare While there is no need for panic, IPv6 is something businesses need to start preparing for - and preparing for right now. Understand the impact on your business 2. Conduct an in-depth audit of your network The question isn’t ‘are you IPv6 ready?’ but ‘WHERE are you IPv6 ready?’ IT companies have been offering IPv6-ready solutions for some time, and some applications and services are less likely to be impacted. Those that are customer facing and mission critical should be the priority. 3. Create a strict timeline, and stick to it It will take a while before the number of IPv6 addresses issued generates a ‘tipping point’ - estimates suggest it will be another 12 months before the available IPv4 addresses completely run out. But as the number of Internet users continues to increase (up to 1.97 billion in 2010, a year on year increase of 14 percent), it won’t be long before IPv6 use grows to a level that creates problems. 4. Don’t try and do everything at once If a full network upgrade is under consideration, this is a good to time to clean-house. If not the best approach is one of incremental migration over time versus any ‘rip and replace proposition’ (a high cost and high risk approach). 5. Recognise that the network needs to support your business demands today, tomorrow and in the future for your business to succeed Plan your migration in a series of stages to reduce impact on business activities, and see it as part of a long-term network evolution. Build your IPv6 planning into product lifecycle replacement plans and don’t consider anything that isn’t compatible with IPv6 moving forward. 6. Recognise that interim solutions can provide long-term ROI Using transition technologies such as double stacks, will help manage the initial flow of IPv6 traffic, and don’t dismiss translation solutions. Upcoming new solutions mean you can run IPv6 and IPv4 without any noticeable time-lag. Diligently review the solutions available before taking action. There are dual-protocol point-solutions available that are specifically engineered to help organisations make the transition without the need for costly upgrades.
April 2011 Network World Middle East 29
feature | ecs
Enterprise cloud services Cloud services have the potential to deliver important business benefits to the enterprise, including cost savings, flexibility, resiliency, agility, quicker time to market, better customer service and the ability to handle unexpected spikes in demand
H
owever, achieving those goals isn’t going to be easy. Enterprises
need to have a cloud-ready, virtualised infrastructure. They need to understand the different types and styles of cloud computing. They need to navigate through a complex decision-making process in order to determine which aspects of cloud services are the right fit. Then there’s negotiating and managing contracts, keeping track of SLAs, and making sure security and compliance concerns are addressed. This series, which kicks off with this story and continues throughout the year, will provide a comprehensive guide to Enterprise Cloud Services. This package provides a set of clear definitions of cloud computing and the various models that are available to enterprise IT. In future issues, we will dig into the public cloud vs. private cloud debate, provide a guide to working with SaaS and IaaS providers, examine the available management tools, look into cloud security options and analyse the cloud vendor landscape. While there’s no lack of uncertainty and questions when it comes to cloud computing, one thing is for sure: interest in cloud computing is sky high. For example, when Deloitte Consulting began fielding questions on cloud computing around 18 months ago, 80% of the discussions centered on setting the stage, helping clients define cloud and understand what it might mean for them. 30 Network World Middle East April 2011
Only 15% of cloud conversations dug into actual road maps, strategies and pilots, with a mere 5% of engagements dealing with actual implementations of production solutions, says Mark White, CTO of the firm’s technology practice. Now the percentage breakdown is more along the lines of 10% setting the stage, 50% planning and 40% implementation, “with that continuing to swing more and more into production implementation as people get through the strategy and road map phase,” White says. Enterprises are adopting cloud computing at a quicker-than-anticipated rate, White says - a situation he attributes to the economic downturn that hit two years ago. “The economic crunch caused people to really be interested in the cloud’s Opex over Capex story and the ability to buy small and, if it works, to go big,” he says. “That really accelerated adoption, and we’re doing large-scale implementations now of private and public cloud services among our clients.” The fourth quarter of last year was a turning point for enterprises and their pursuit of cloud computing, says James Staten, vice president and principal analyst with Forrester Research. “That’s when we started seeing IT’s interest shift away from getting educated on the cloud to getting ready to invest in it,” he says. Whereas understanding the various www.networkworldme.com
April 2011 Network World Middle East 31
feature | ecs
cloud computing models, service types and product choices were once hot topics, now the conversation has shifted to vendor particulars and best practices. Staten points out two reasons for the shift: One, as products mature, vendors have been tapering off on the “cloud washing” that had been obfuscating what cloud is and isn’t, and two, cloud definitions have begun resonating with enterprise IT, Staten says. That is, enterprise IT - and the industry at large - now generally accepts the cloud definition put forth by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST).
Cloud complexities One of the fascinating aspects of cloud
computing is that it’s possible for an enterprise to become both a cloud service subscriber and a cloud service provider at the same time, according to Deloitte’s White. “A CIO will say, ‘I want to be a subscriber of public cloud infrastructure as a service,’ and we have an actionable conversation about that, talking about the benefits, the hurdles, the business case. And then the CIO also may want to be a subscriber of public cloud software as a service, and, if the client wants to implement private cloud, that CIO might want to talk about being a provider of private cloud platform as a service, too,” White says. Cloud computing enabled convenient, on-demand “That CIO could network access to a shared pool of configurable be involved computing resources that can be rapidly provisioned and in all three released with minimal management effort or service conversations, provider interaction. but we do them Users access the applications, infrastructure or one at a time and platforms they need via a Web browser or other simple then put them front-end interface, grabbing and releasing them at will all together so and paying only for what they use and no more we come up with more explicit outcomes.” Cloud computing enables convenient, Early cloud adopters aren’t shying away on-demand network access to a shared pool from the technology’s promise. of configurable computing resources that Cloud trends can be rapidly provisioned and released As the cloud comfort level ratchets up in with minimal management effort or service the enterprise, Forrester anticipates the provider interaction. strengthening of two critical trends over Users access the applications, the next six months. One, application infrastructure or platforms they need via development managers are going to a Web browser or other simple front-end put more concerted effort into running interface, grabbing and releasing them workloads in the cloud. “For those who are at will and paying only for what they use new to the cloud, this means more trials and no more. going on in cloud environments. For those Also, there are now commonly accepted who have experience with cloud trials, this service models and deployment models. means more applications in production on The three service models are: software-asthe cloud,” Staten says. a-service (SaaS), infrastructure-as-a-service And if they can’t get the servers and (IaaS) and platform-as-a-service (PaaS). storage they need from an IT-sanctioned The four deployment models are: private, private cloud, it’s off to the public cloud for public, hybrid and community.
Cloud defined
32 Network World Middle East April 2011
many. As individual developers have been doing for some time, application managers will oversee use of public cloud services. This could be as simple as buying capacity in Amazon’s Elastic Compute Cloud or, when stringent service-level agreements (SLA) are in order, contracting with a hosted private cloud provider such as GoGrid or Terremark. The key is getting the resources they need in the timeframe they desire rather than waiting weeks or months for internal IT to get its servers in order. For its part, enterprise IT is starting to get aggressive about limiting uncontrolled use of public cloud services. One way is by offering up IaaS via private clouds, quickly deployed using cloud-in-a-box packages. “Most of time when we see IT operations setting up clouds, they’re doing them for defensive reasons - so developers won’t go to the public cloud,” Staten says. But getting control of what’s already out in the public cloud is another matter, Perry says. In fact, he adds, some enterprise IT managers resist doing so and for good reason. “They’ve had no control over business units running off and using cloud services without permission, yet they’re still being held accountable for governance, compliance, security and the like,” Perry says. “But more and more, IT is coming to an understanding that they can have the best of both worlds. We can have that easy, on-demand accessibility, pay for use and all that good stuff of cloud with the proper governance and security.” Ultimately, enterprise IT will create and manage what essentially will amount to an app store, Perry says. “Central IT will decide on an approved platform, on all levels SaaS, PaaS and IaaS - and business users or developers will pick and chose what they need from this app store. It’ll all be preintegrated and IT will ensure compliancy and everything else,” he says “And the sooner IT gets its act together around that, the better off it will be,” Perry adds. That, of course, will be easier said than done at many enterprises. www.networkworldme.com
special focus
April 2011 Network World Middle East 33
special focus
LTE round the corner With LTE gaining traction in the Middle East, and being rolled out in some countries across Middle East and Africa, the spotlight is on most advanced mobile tech. Here is what you need to know
S
o now that Etisalat is
launching its LTE services, and some other operators in the region trialling the next generation of mobile network technology, should you rush out to invest in 4G data plans and devices for your employees? Here is what you need to know as to what sets LTE or longterm evolution service, which is poised to be the new world standard for mobile data, apart from its predecessors. LTE is a GSM-based wireless data standard that has been adopted by some leading mobile operators all over the world as their choice for 4G wireless technology. So far, tests of commercially deployed LTE technology have shown it can deliver average download speeds in the 7M to 12Mbps range, although these speeds are likely to decline once more users subscribe to the services. Along with mobile WiMAX, LTE is part of a new breed of wireless technology that aims to give users a wireless Internet experience that matches or exceeds the speed of most wireline broadband connections. What does LTE really mean for the Middle East, where operators have made heavy investments into 3G 34 Network World Middle East April 2011
networks? Should they wait till they maximise those assets before joining LTE bandwagon? “We’ve already seen investments in technology by operators such as STC that recently announced a deal with Mobiserve to roll out their 4G network. We’ll see leading operators investing in LTE, with roll out concentrated mainly in high traffic areas such as major cities. At present there are still many countries in which network expansion is a priority. We believe countries such as UAE, KSA and Qatar will lead the deployment of these networks,” says Lindsey McDonald,
Information & Communication Technologies Consultant with Frost & Sullivan. IDC believes that the telecom space in the Middle East will not witness launch of LTE networks before 2012. However, once LTE is launched, consumers in search of better mobile broadband, primarily High ARPU Customers (HACs) both from business and youth segment are expected to be the early adopters of LTE based services in the region, according to the research firm. From an enterprise perspective, who will be the initial adopters of LTE in the region? Globally, in markets where LTE has already been rolled out, the early adopters have been small and midsize businesses located in major markets and that don’t have many branch locations in rural areas or cities where coverage has yet to arrive. However, it may not be the case in the Middle East. “LTE promises to provide higher bandwidth, improve latency levels and speed which effectively means better transmission of real time
Vendors believe that the primary reason for delay in trials of LTE in the Middle East is the spectrum allocation. HASAN SANDILA, Telecommunication Analyst with IDC
www.networkworldme.com
We’ve already seen investments in technology by operators such as STC that recently announced a deal with Mobiserve to roll out their 4G network. LINDSEY MCDONALD, Information & Communication Technologies Consultant, Frost & Sullivan
LTE’s long-term evolution information. It might be attractive for consumers but it would be interesting to note that most enterprise applications are designed for existing connectivity and do not require high bandwidth. Hence, it is highly unlikely that the enterprise segment – both large enterprises and SMBs (Small Medium Businesses) will take the lead in boarding the LTE bandwagon,” says Hasan Sandila, Telecommunication Analyst with IDC. Currently, there are very few companies who provide mobile broadband to their employees and even fewer who would want to upgrade their employees to better connectivity on limited part of territory, he adds. Noel Kirkaldy, Director of Solutions Marketing in Motorola, says LTE won’t come close to fulfilling its potential until more wireless spectrum is freed up for use by the regulators over the next five years. “Spectrum availability is key as LTE can operate on a host of spectrum. You can use 2.6 Ghz for HSPA offload, and 800 Ghz for wider coverage and to make Internet available for all. We have to offer operators a basket of choices to pick from in terms of spectrum and most chipsets today can handle multiple bands.” Sandila from IDC agrees that one
A timeline of where LTE has come from and where it’s headed
2004 The 3rd Generation
Partnership Project (3GPP) begins work on the Long Term Evolution (LTE) project with the goal of delivering eventual peak download speeds of 100 Mbps and peak upload speeds of 50Mbps
2010 Verizon becomes the
first major wireless carrier to offer commercial LTE services in the US as the company launches its LTE network in 38 markets.
2011 Etisalat becomes the first
service provider in the region to start the commercial deployment of the region’s widest LTE network in the UAE. The next proposed evolution of LTE, dubbed LTE-advanced, is due to be finalized sometime in 2011. Additionally, the GSM Association has said that it hopes to have the Voice over LTE standard operational and ready to go this year.
of the foremost challenges is the availability of desired spectrum. “Vendors believe that the primary reason for delay in trials of LTE in the Middle East is the spectrum allocation. LTE can operate at a
spectrum which can range from a frequency of 700 MHz to 4GHz. Currently the frequencies used for the LTE trials in the Middle East are 2.5 GHz in Oman, 800 MHz and 3.6 GHz in Kuwait and 2.6GHz for the rest of the Middle East. It is difficult to identify optimum spectrum for wireless technologies because the lower the frequency the better is the indoor coverage. However, it is easier to obtain more bandwidth in higher frequencies.” He adds that for LTE in Time Division Duplex (TDD) mode, operators need at least 20 to 30 MHz of spectrum to deliver throughput to each user. A spectrum of 2 x 20 MHz should suffice for the Frequency Division Duplex (FDD) LTE. Ideally FDD LTE operators would try to obtain 2 x30 MHz which would enable them to provide good indoor coverage and better throughput. Another burning question is whether LTE will go the way of 3G, which was plagued by many ills when it came out ten years back. Kirklady says robustness and QoS have been top priorities in the development of LTE. “When UMTS came out, it didn’t have quality of service and operators were forced to sell it as dump pipe. But towards the end of HSPA evolution, the industry started adding QoS. WiMax was built with tiers of QoS while LTE has 20, which will help you differentiate on speed, and latency.” Will the mobile industry finally bite the bullet and move from dump pipe to smart pipe? It might still be a number of years away. April 2011 Network World Middle East 35
feature | FCoE
FCoE: From fee to free With demand for FCoE more sluggish than vendors had hoped, 10 Gigabit Ethernet switch and adapter makers are making it available for free
F
ibre Channel over Ethernet (FCoE) is a standard driven largely
by Cisco to converge customers’ data centre LAN and storage fabrics with 10G Ethernet. Industry heavyweights Intel and Brocade are among those now giving away FCoE capabilities. 36 Network World Middle East April 2011
There are several factors prompting vendors to slash FCoE prices or stop charging for it altogether, including market indifference; technological immaturity; competing alternatives, such as virtualized Fibre Channel and Ethernet I/O; the recession; and vendors
looking to drive switch volumes. “When FCoE first came out there used to be a fairly large price premium,” says Alan Weckel, director of Dell’Oro Group. “Cisco had to give it away for free to drive switch volumes. Users were not adopting as rapidly as thought or www.networkworldme.com
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feature | FCoE
– occur there. Cisco’s recently announced Nexus 5500 switch is designed to allow any port to be configured as 10G Ethernet, supporting FCoE, iSCSI and NAS, or native Fibre Channel. “We believe the 10-Gigabit Ethernet transport is the underlying key to providing the flexibility which allows IT organizations to wire once, and then mount any type of storage to their computing infrastructure,” Cisco’s Ross says. “More customers are moving to a unified fabric approach because it delivers greater data center efficiency, simplifies management and can accelerate the deployment of virtualization and cloud-based services.” Dell’Oro believes FCoE is a “no brainer” inside blade server chassis. “It has no complexities such as interoperation among multiple suppliers, and server operating systems,” Dell’Oro says. “FCoE connects the server to the FCoE switch inside the blade server chassis and then the switch sends it out in either Ethernet or Fibre Channel – something that all equipment understands. (And) instead of needing both an Ethernet switch and a Fibre Channel switch inside the blade server chassis, users will only need one switch – thereby freeing up a slot in the blade server.” Weckel believes 40G Ethernet on servers will help FCoE adoption at that level too by addressing the bandwidth disparity between Fibre Channel – 4Gbps and 8Gbps – and 10G Ethernet. Beyond server access, standards such as TRILL and Shortest Path Bridging are being defined that may help scale FCoE deeper into the core of data center networks and out into the cloud, and provide one physical point of access between a core switch and storage arrays.
There were about 300,000 FCOE switch ports and 500,000 adapter ports shipped worldwide in 2010, according to Crehan Research. That’s still a tiny share of the approximately 29 million total Ethernet ports of all speeds that were shipped in adapters and LAN-onmotherboard systems. that Cisco had hoped for.” Despite the low cost for FCoE, Dell’Oro notes a 72% compound annual growth rate in FCoE revenue over the next five years – from $180 million in 2010 to $2.7 billion in 2015. But in actuality, FCoE switch revenue is a subset of overall 10G Ethernet revenue, which is currently about $5 billion, according to Dell’Oro. “Port shipments for adapters and switches have exceeded what we projected for 2010, but prices have come in lower,” says Tam Dell’Oro, founder and president of Dell’Oro Group. Indeed, there is virtually no difference in the average selling price of FCoE switch ports and plain vanilla 10G Ethernet switch ports, according to Dell’Oro. In 2010, the ASP of an FCoE switch port was $475, dropping to a projected $169 in 2015; for 10G, the ASP of a switch port was $442 in 2010, dropping to a projected $178 in 2015. The slightly higher differential in price for 10G over FCoE in 2015 – and in years 2011 to 2014 – is due to the higher concentration of fiber ports for non-FCoE 10G. As a server access convergence technology, FCoE will have more copper deployments, Dell’Oro’s Weckel says. Infonetics Research also forecasts FCoE switches to be a $2 billion market in 2014 from a barely detectable market in 2009, and that FCoE will eventually overtake Fibre Channel. But it will take eight to 10 years for this to occur due to challenges cracking Fibre Channel’s solid installed base. The ASP of FCoE adapters, meanwhile, will drop from $308 in 38 Network World Middle East April 2011
2010 to $138 in 2015. Intel recently announced that it will bundle FCoE on its X520 10G adapters at no additional cost. Brocade, the market leader in Fibre Channel SANs, says it’s been doing that on its converged network adapters (CNA) for nine months now. Brocade also offers FCoE on its 8000 series switches for no added fee. On its VDX 6720 switch, Brocade says FCoE costs extra, but would not say what the price is. “We’re seeing demand increase but we’re not seeing the same uptick as Dell’Oro is seeing,” says Doug Ingraham, vice president of data centre products at Brocade. “We’re seeing the downward side of the hype curve with FCoE. We’re starting to see customer skepticism come in.” Ingraham says FCoE still needs “hardening and maturing” before it can be deployed for mission-critical data center applications. He says there are still a lot of questions that have to be addressed with the technology, such as management, diagnosis and troubleshooting of FCoE implementations; and when best to deploy it to converge data and storage, vs. keeping data and storage separate. “It comes down to best practices,” Ingraham says. “(Customers) still may separate storage and data networks for management. There are some cases where convergence makes sense and some where separation makes sense.” Cisco says FCoE makes sense at the server network access point because 80% of the consolidation cost savings of a unified fabric – less adapters and cabling
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interview | cisco
Riding a new wave With mobile internet usage ramping up, Cisco is eyeing bigger opportunities in the fast-changing telecom service provider landscape. Kit Beall, VP of Mobile Internet Architectural Play at Cisco, spoke to NWME editor Jeevan Thankappan about his company’s expertise in the domain $2.9 billion dollars, and out of that acquisition we have actually created a technology group focused on mobile Internet headed by the former CTO of Starent. NWME: How do you see nextgen mobile networks evolving? It’s really all about user
Kit Beall, VP of Mobile Internet Architectural Play, Cisco
NWME: Cisco has been expanding its mobile internet offerings. Please tell us a bit more about it. Cisco has been in the Internet business
for a long time, and this is how we made our name, and we have been in mobility business for ten years now. We have been doing a number of different aspects of networking, and in the last two years or so, we have seen the rise of smart phones and the whole concept of mobile internet. We are not just building mobility platforms but building for mobile Internet. We have acquired Starent Networks last year for 40 Network World Middle East April 2011
experience, and having intelligence in the network. Of course, it is still about getting packets from point A to point B, which is foundational, but the real differentiator between operators will be all about how do you actually drive the user experience. If you look at the market data, the smart phone market is exploding. What we really see is that users will pick the devices they want and then find a network that will give them the best user experience. Actually, our visual networking index predicts that by 2014, we are going to have around 3.6 exabytes of mobile data traffic every month, and if you look at the video and other types of traffic going to be out there, you need to have the intelligence to handle these applications. We are putting out investment into bring that intelligence into networks and tie all the pieces together from an end-to-end architecture perspective.
NWME: Are we looking at a flat IP network model here? I wouldn’t necessarily say it is going to be flat
because it is going to be more of a horizontal approach, where you have different layers – IP RAN on backhaul, core layer, packet switching layer, data centre layer, all running pretty much independently of radio access. So we are talking about a common core architecture based on IP that can support technologies agnostically and yet deliver best user experience. NWME: Most of the operators are now looking to reduce their operational costs. How do you help? We are actually doing two things in parallel
– we are working towards optimising networks, using technologies such as IP RAN and putting different classes of services so that you can run 3G and 4G in parallel, and using a single MPLS network in the backhaul with different classes of services, which will help to drive costs down. Another area of focus is to help telcos add new services and bring in new monetisation opportunities by having real-time business intelligence in the network to deliver all these new services cost-effectively. We can’t build bespoke, custom silos anymore and you have to have an infrastructure that is flexible. You have to have an infrastructure that is flexible and can do many things. In a nutshell, what we are doing here is to drive cost out of the network, plus optimisation and monetisation. NWME: Is Carrier Ethernet a big focus area for you? Ciisco has a hug e carrier Ethernet presence,
and its foundational for lot of the work we do in backhaul technologies. In fact, every mobile operator is now leveraging Carrier Ethernet for mobile Internet. Another exciting development for us is in the space of femtocells, as it is becoming more pervasive now. We think femto is going to be a key access technology. www.networkworldme.com
April 2011 Network World Middle East 41
interview | alcatel-lucent
New game, new rules Alcatel-Lucent is a force to be reckoned within the enterprise space, says the company’s Sr VP for Sales EMEA Enterprise, Tom Eggemerier, in this freewheeling chat with NWME NWME: Not many people think of Alcatel-Lucent as a serious enterprise player, and market share has been flat over the last couple of years. I am going to disagree. In EMEA, we are
number one in telephony, contact centre and three or four in data, depending upon whom you are talking to. From EMEA perspective, we have been growing 3-4 percent in voice in the last four years, 20 percent in data, which is more than the market growth and in the contact centre we have kept our lead. We have done an excellent job with engineering, and probably haven’t done a good job of marketing, hence your question. In EMEA, we have done over a billion dollars in the enterprise space. NWME: You have been traditionally strong in voice but it’s been two years since you have made your OmniSwitch announcement. Truth is we have been gaining market
share, mainly in three areas. Our installed voice base is enormous, and customers have been buying convergence solutions from us. We have also won a number of large enterprises as a second source. We realise in most large companies Cisco has been the standard and now they are looking for alternative. You will see us getting more aggressive in the marketplace. NWME: Do you really have the breadth in your portfolio to address customers’ demands? We can go from edge to the core. 42 Network World Middle East April 2011
already have a trust relationship with these customers and we are now talking to them about our data portfolio. I have been talking to a customer recently and they were really surprised to find out we have a 10G data switch in our portfolio. We are a big player in the data centre space, and we don’t offer 1000 different products. What we offer is a minimum of boxes that can cater to customers’ demands, and drive down cost of ownership. NWME: Do you have a cloud computing strategy? Cloud computing indeed is
Tom Eggemerier, Sr VP for Sales EMEA Enterprise, Alcatel-Lucent
We have a fairly comprehensive LAN switching portfolio and in the data centre space, our value proposition is port density, performance, and throughput, all at one fourth of the power consumption compared to competitors. While they have three layers of products, we have only twolayer, which is all about simplification of networks, making it easy and cheaper to manage. NWME: How do you plan to compete against some of the leaders in the enterprise space? Will price/performance be your unique selling point? Within EMEA, we have around 40-50
million voice lines installed, we have more than 10 million data ports and one million contact centre agents. We
the latest buzzword, but in reality, it has been around for a while. It is all about being able to deliver solutions, be it telephony, contact centre, on premises or hosted or in a managed model. Customers shouldn’t really care about the mechanism by which these solutions are delivered. It is all about application fluent networks and a customercentric approach. NWME: What is the dynamic enterprise framework you have been talking about? It is all about putting knowledge
management, employees, customers and partners together on the same framework. The enterprise game is changing. Consumers have a better experience with technology, not enterprises. The way Unified Communications has been sold by vendor over the last five years is dead. It hasn’t really delivered the business value customers have wanted. I think we are now moving into the next layers, where you use some of the components of UC, be in for healthcare, transportation, education or hospitality, and make it all about conversation with the customers. How do you integrate technology to have the most effective conversation with your customer is the next level. www.networkworldme.com
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test
NAS boxes Desktop devices that deliver terabytes of shared storage and more
Iomega StorCenter A little smaller than average, the Iomega StorCenter ix4-200d unit with 4TB of storage is all black. This unit also has two Gigabit Ethernet ports as well as three USB 2.0 ports, and after disk redundancy and system storage overhead, provides 2.71TB of open space. Printers and external disks can be attached to the USB ports. The information display, about the
size of a domino, is the best in the group. White letters on a blue background show time of day and date, the IP address of the unit, and a bar graph of available storage. Free and used totals are listed in text above the bar graph that shows at a glance how much disk space is used and free. Nice touch. Following the paper Quick Start Guide was simple, and the installation CD
includes both the administration software (Iomega StorCenter) and EMC Retrospect Express backup software (both PC and Mac). Unlimited client backup licenses are included, which is unusual. A pitch for Mozy online backup is enclosed, since EMC owns both Iomega and Mozy. Iomega’s QuickProtect file level backup software is also on the CD. Time Machine server for Apple client backup is pre-installed. The contents of the Iomega unit can be replicated to another NAS or USB attached hard drive via one touch (to the USB drive) or rsync. The default shares on the single large volume are Public and Backup. Private user folders, created with new users, appear in the root of the folder, but only the user in question can see their folder. It may look a little messy with all those private folders to the administrator, but users won’t see that. RAID 5 and RAID 10 are supported, as is JBOD (Just a Bunch of Disks) giving maximum storage space but no protection against drive failure. Security must be enabled before adding users, which makes sense. Creating a user is a two-click process (and typing the name and password), and the second step offers a chance to let other users access the private folders of the new user with an easy radio button interface. Default access is None, but Read and Read/Write security options are available. Speaking of security, Iomega suggests using at least eight characters for user passwords, but no such restrictions are enforced. Administrators will appreciate Iomega’s admin utility with friendly icons and help only a click away. The Dashboard button opens a page showing a pie chart of used and open disk space, and hardware details. Unfortunately, there’s room for only a single e-mail address for notifications. Storage quotas are assigned per folder, not username, but restricting a user’s private folder April 2011 Network World Middle East 45
test gets the job done. Iomega also supports media services with a screen to manage Torrent downloads and support for photo dumping from cameras (PTP or Picture Transfer Protocol), DLNA AV Media Center, and iTunes streaming (aimed at home users primarily). Video surveillance support includes the ability to connect up to five Axis network security cameras and use the Iomega box to store video without needing a PC in the loop. The box is also VMware certified as a storage unit. The search function in the Iomega box has a nicer front and works just as quickly and accurately. Users of the search utility see the administration utility interface, stripped down to display Public. Creating users is a snap for those new Administrators will appreciate Iomega’s admin utility with to administration, friendly icons and help only a click away. The Dashboard since Western Digital button opens a page showing a pie chart of used and open includes a Basic and disk space, and hardware details. Advanced Mode for administration, and the icons for both are Ethernet port joins three USB 2.0 ports; only Search, Access Shared Storage (that non-threatening. Users get their own two are on the back and one on the front. the user has rights to), and Manage private folder by default, and the security When a USB hard drive is attached to the Torrent Downloads. One click, and users controls for managing user access are as front USB port, a push of the file transfer can search indexed contents quickly. complete as any of the other boxes. The button just above the USB connection user folders are again placed in the root Western Digital ShareSpace copies data from the external drive to of the volume, but only users authorized The Western Digital ShareSpace offers the NAS system. Western Digital sells a to see a folder can see it in the directory 2.68TB of usable space (after disk large number of USB external hard disks, listing. An attached USB hard drive can redundancy and system overhead on the so give them credit for making it easy be managed as a volume just like an 4TB maximum size). The dark silver box to upgrade to a disk-redundant shared internal volume. looks like a home theater component, storage system from a USB disk. Not quite bare-bones, the Western and includes media streaming support. All important features remain even Digital ShareSpace gives quite a bit of It does cut a few corners by using a with the low price. Configured with storage for the buck. It may be priced single Ethernet port and foregoing an RAID 5 by default, the box also supports for home users, but it does all the information display, but bargain hunters levels 0 (striped) and 1 (mirrored drives). important things any small business or will love this box. Microsoft Active Directory support is department needs. The Quick Installation Guide does a included, as is a built-in FTP server. fOR MORE PRODUCT REVIEWS, LOG ON TO: good job, although it hasn’t been updated Default folders on the DataVolume www.networkworldme.com to included Windows 7. One Gigabit are Configuration, Download and 46 Network World Middle East April 2011
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toolshed tools & gadgets
Buffalo Terastations Buffalo Technology is bumping up against the limits of Intel’s Atom platform with its forthcoming six- and eight-bay Terastation NAS (network attached storage) devices, on show at Cebit this week. Both models have a dual-core, quad-thread Atom d510 processor running at 1.66GHz, two Gigabit Ethernet ports, two USB 2.0 ports and a serial port for communicating with a UPS (Uninterruptible Power Supply). But the top-of-the-range eight-bay TS-8VH Terastations lack the two USB 3.0 ports found on the six-bay TS-6VH models. The new Terastations will come with a full load of either 1TB or 2TB disks. The six-bay model can operate in RAID modes 0, 1, 5, 6, 10, 50 and 51, while the eight-bay model also operates in modes 60 and 61. The USB ports can be used either to connect a printer -- the Terastations can also act as printer servers -- or additional storage for backup. The Terastations can make data on Ext3 disks connected in this way accessible to Windows clients. Both models can boot from an external USB device rather than their internal firmware: A physical switch on the back panel selects whether a bootable external drive will be used or not.
Two-way radio from Motorola Motorola Solutions has launched the TLKR T8 two-way radio (walkie talkie). Ideal for anyone enjoying outdoor activities, the TLKR T8 is perfect mountain climbers and other extreme sports enthusiasts thanks to its ruggedized design, long range and impressive battery life. Aimed at the serious amateur, the dual handsets recharge conveniently from a twin charger pod and come complete with belt clips for easy carrying. With an LCD backlit display and 10 call tones, the TLKR T8 is designed for maximum ease of use, as well as providing unbeatable voice clarity and coverage whatever the surroundings.
New Seagate Solid State Drives Seagate has unveiled new models of its Pulsar line of solid state drives (SSD)-delivering performance, endurance, and reliability that business can trust. The new drives bring the benefits of SSD to organizations with demanding data storage needs. There are two Pulsar models being added to the Seagate arsenal--Pulsar.2 and Pulsar XT.2. The Pulsar.2 drives use MLC (multi-level cell) technology. MLC stores two bits instead of one per cell, resulting in double capacity, but lower endurance and integrity. However, Seagate has added a few tricks that set the Pulsar.2 apart from consumer-level MLC SSDs. Seagate is aware that businesses require stronger data integrity and endurance from drives. According to the Seagate press release, the Pulsar.2 was developed with these more stringent requirements in mind. “It has the intelligence to automatically detect and correct a multitude of data errors than can occur during normal drive operations to deliver the highest levels of enterprise-class data integrity and endurance.” The Pulsar XT.2 drives are SLC (single-level cell) devices. As such, the XT.2 drives offer superior integrity and endurance, but half the storage capacity of the Pulsar.2 line. The Seagate press release describes the XT.2 series, “The Pulsar XT.2 is the fastest drive in the Seagate portfolio, with sustainable random reads at 48K and writes at 22K IOPS and sequential reads at 360MB/sec and writes at 300MB/sec. The Pulsar XT.2 is optimized for real world, complex, mixed workloads typical of enterprise environments.” 48 Network World Middle East April 2011
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SonicWALL debuts next-gen firewalls SonicWALL has rolled out its SuperMassive E10000 Series of NextGeneration Firewalls (NGFW) consisting of the E10100, the E10200, the E10400 and the flagship E10800. The SuperMassive Series features a massively scalable multi-core architecture that utilizes up to 96 cores of processing power. It delivers more than 40 Gbps of firewall throughput and over 30 Gbps of application control and Intrusion Prevention Service (IPS). The SuperMassive E10000 Series utilizes SonicWALL’s ReassemblyFree Deep Packet Inspection (RFDPI) engine to scan every byte of every packet with full content inspection of the entire stream while providing high performance and low latency. The RFDPI engine also ensures full inspection of SSL-encrypted traffic as well as non-proxyable applications. It enables comprehensive protection regardless of transport or protocol. The SonicWALL SuperMassive E10000 Series addresses the security needs of enterprises, governments, universities, and service provider deployments and secures enterprise networks, data centers and server farms.
Western Digital launches 6TB external drive Western Digital has introduced the My Book Studio Edition II, a dual-drive storage system with a massive 6TB of storage. The company says that new capacity provides users 33 percent more storage than the previous capacity, while being the same size. The drive is formatted for Macs and support’s Apple’s Time Machine backup technology, but can be reformatted for Windows Vista and 7. It offers a quad interface for a mix of performance and flexibility including eSATA and FireWire( 800 when maximum performance is essential; and FireWire 400 and USB 2.0 when system flexibility is most important. The drive boasts cool, eco-friendly operation with WD’s drives with WD GreenPower Technology that consume approximately one-third less power than standard dual-drive external storage systems and efficient convection cooling architecture and power-saving mode and designed without a fan to run quietly. Users can open the enclosure and replace the drive inside, and the drives has a capacity gauge to see at a glance how much space is available.
Nexans launches new micro-bundle fibre optic cables Nexans has introduced cables based on an advanced Micro-Bundle design. This new technology allows for the production of small, light cables that maintain excellent mechanical robustness. The Micro-Bundle itself is an incredibly flexible small tube, containing a maximum of twelve fibres. With this type of construction, cables of a very small bend radius can be produced, without the need to use more expensive bend insensitive fibres. The improved construction means that the cables can be used for both horizontal and vertical installations, and they are available as indoor or universal varients. The installer friendly LANmark-OF Micro-Bundle Indoor cable features yarns as one of the internal strength members and is a high fibre count cable, available from 12 to 96 fibres. It has excellent flame and fire retardant properties and complies with the requirements of IEC standards. The water-tight universal cable can be used both indoors and outdoors in a duct. Special additives in the jacket make the cable UV resistant, and the glass yarns ensure the cable is also rodent resistant.
April 2011 Network World Middle East 49
layer 8 Men AND women might both be from Mars
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device being developed by MIT researchers and could fly on a future spaceship to Mars might settle the potentially explosive theory that all life on Earth is descended from organisms that originated on the red planet. According to the scientists, the device, known as the Search for Extra-Terrestrial Genomes (SETG), would take samples of Martian soil from below the planet’s surface and isolate any living microbes that might be present, or microbial remnants. It would then separate the genetic material in order to use standard biochemical techniques to search for signs of particular genetic sequences that are nearly universal among all known life forms, the researchers stated. The researchers say that it could take two more years to complete the design and testing of a prototype SETG device. Mind you, the proposed instrument has not yet been selected for any upcoming Mars mission, a future mission with a lander or rover equipped with a drill could potentially carry the instrument, researchers stated.
Blistering “micro-drum”
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ome heavy metal rock band might love this technology. Scientists with the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have demonstrated an electromechanical micro drum that can vibrate an astounding 11 million times per second. The scientist said the drum looks like an Irish percussion instrument called a bodhrán, the NIST drum is a round aluminum membrane 100 nanometers thick and 15 micrometers wide. NIST scientists said experiments created strong interactions between microwave light oscillating 7.5 billion times per second and what it calls a micro drum vibrating at radio frequencies 11 million times per second. Compared to previously reported experiments combining microscopic machines and electromagnetic radiation, the rate of energy exchange in the NIST device-the “coupling” that reflects the strength of the connection-is much stronger, the mechanical vibrations last longer, and the apparatus is much easier to make, NIST stated.
50 Network World Middle East April 2011
Lights, camera, Big Blue
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BM wants to see itself through the fisheye lens as it turns 100. The company today said a few well-known Hollywood directors have shot a series of three movies that highlight the company, its inventions and impact on society over the past 100 years. According to IBM: The first film “100 x 100,” features one hundred people who describe an IBM achievement that took place the year they were born. Joe Pytka, one of the most influential and prolific commercial directors, shot the “100 x 100” film. The second film, “They Were There,” shot by Oscarwinning documentary director Errol Morris with music by famed composer Philip Glass, examines the leaders and inventors behind some of IBM’s most noteworthy contributions such as the invention of the UPC code, helping put a man on the moon and the launch of the first mainframe computer. The third film, “Wild Ducks” now being filmed by Oscar-winning Davis Guggenheim, director of “An Inconvenient Truth” and “Waiting for Superman,” seeks to capture the spirit of invention and risk that defines the character of IBM. The films look back at IBM’s earliest developments in computers to the ubiquitous bar codes on everyday products to the breakthroughs in computer science that have changed the world.
Chip promises 50% reduction in mobile power consumption
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Harvard researcher is developing a technology that could cut power to parts of a microprocessor that are not in use, saving energy and improving the efficiency of the device by as much as 50%. Harvard graduate student Wonyoung Kim says his on-chip, multicore voltage regulator (MCVR) addresses what amounts to a mismatch between power supply and demand. “The multi-core voltage regulator responds almost instantaneously to changes in power demand from each core of the processor.” As a result, the power supply matches the demand more closely, conserving energy, according to a Harvard release. “The on-chip design means that the power supply can be managed not just for each processor chip, but for each individual core on the chip. The short distance that signals then have to travel between the voltage regulator and the cores allows power scaling to happen quickly - in a matter of nanoseconds rather than microseconds - further improving efficiency.”
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