HP this week will unveil a software-defined networking portfolio that spans infrastructure, control plane operations, and applications in an effort to lead the emerging SDN market.
HP will roll out its own SDN controller, a separate control plane appliance, and software for dictating flows in an OpenFlow-based SDN. HP will also unveil nine more OpenFlow-enabled switches through the addition of the open source SDN protocol to its existing 3800 line, which debuted a year ago. HP rolled out 16 OpenFlow-enabled switches earlier this year.
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And HP will also roll out application software that allows enterprises to create their own, isolated virtual cloud network in a public cloud. HP will also unveil three applications it developed for its SDN controller.
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HP claims that no other vendor, including Cisco, offers as complete an SDN portfolio as it does, with a controller, 25 Open-Flow-enabled switches, and applications. HP also has beta customers for its SDN package, including HBO and CERN.
"We're the only company now with a complete solution, with customers," says Bethany Mayer, senior vice president and general manager, HP Networking.
"We believe this is the correct approach to make SDN useful in the market," says Saar Gillai, HP Networking CTO.
The stakes are high for HP. SDNs take networking control largely away from the hardware infrastructure and put it in software. Since Cisco is so dominant in networking hardware, SDNs could provide a way for competitors like HP -- and Juniper -- to tip the balance of the networking market more toward them.
