Vello Systems offers OpenFlow-based VellOS 7.0 operating system

Optical transport and software-defined networking (SDN) platform vendor Vello Systems has unveiled the VellOS 7.0 enterprise network operating system (OS) for data center edge applications. Vello asserts the platform is the first to truly bring OpenFlow-based SDN capabilities that enable operational management of compute and storage connectivity across Ethernet, optical, and hybrid networks in a way that is both open and vendor-agnostic.

The new version of VellOS adds the ability to work not only with Vello System’s optical transport platforms, but with Ethernet switching systems from such partners as Accton and Centec. (The company also joined the EMC Select channel partner program to address storage-networking applications.) The optical/Ethernet combination helps VellOS support unified control of optical, Ethernet, and virtual network resources via an open, standard hardware ecosystem – a capability no other SDN platform can match, asserts Ashish Shah, director of product strategy and product line management at the company.

VellOS 7.0 therefore enables network manager to support different service tiers, rapid configuration, and reduced capital expenditures without being locked into a particular vendor’s product offering, Shah adds. However, he notes that any non-Vello optical gear would have to be OpenFlow friendly to enjoy the full benefits of VellOS 7.0 – a condition that is by no means universally met.

However, with OpenFlow becoming more fully integrated into Ethernet switches and other networking equipment, and Vello Systems’ partnership program expected to expand, a wide range of systems can be brought under the VellOS 7.0 umbrella, Shah points out. VellOS incorporates standards-based RESTful application provisioning interfaces and GUI-style network policy and control to simplify this process. Plug-ins enable VellOS 7.0 to interwork with a variety of orchestration software suites as well.

Shah says the first customer shipments began this past April and that Release 7.0 is generally available. Hudson Fiber Network (HFN) is one customer (see "Hudson Fiber Network deploys Vello Systems' CX50-T") that expects to benefit from the new VellOS features.

“By helping us deploy a high-performance network with the fastest routes in the financial industry, Vello Systems has already laid the technology groundwork that gives HFN true ongoing competitive advantage,” said Brett Diamond, HFN president, via a Vello Systems press release. “We now have the exceptional business flexibility to provide metered, lit, grey, or dark-fiber services to our clients. Now, with the release of VellOS 7.0, our network is SDN-enabled, giving us the ability to onboard new services even more quickly and at much lower component cost and improved latency.”

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