Plexxi and SolidFire Partner to Extend Value of SDN Beyond the Network

Integration of a programmable networking solution and QoS-capable storage drives real business value for joint customers

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Plexxi, Inc.

May 07, 2013, 09:00 ET

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. and BOULDER, Colo., May 7, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Plexxi, Inc., creator of the industry's first affinity-driven networking solution, and SolidFire, a leader in all-solid-state (SSD) storage systems designed for cloud infrastructure, today announced a technology integration that directly addresses the performance challenges that commonly plague large-scale cloud infrastructure.

The Plexxi-SolidFire partnership demonstrates how a tighter API linkage between the network and storage infrastructure can help maximize application performance and minimize network infrastructure inefficiency. Through this integration the Plexxi network controller can now auto-discover a SolidFire cluster and create an optimized network for SolidFire block storage traffic. With guaranteed bandwidth allocations, customers can drastically simplify the infrastructure by combining storage and application traffic on the same network.

"As a public cloud IaaS provider, we are always looking for ways to deliver greater speed and scalability to our customers," said Robert Jenkins, CEO, CloudSigma. "With the integration of SolidFire and Plexxi's solutions, we have not only been able to optimize the way we use our network, but have seen a 30 percent performance increase across customers' IT stacks. What's more, we are now better able to drive real value for our customers with varying workloads, such as those in the research science and media industry, who rely on the immediate scaling Plexxi allows."

"Hosting performance sensitive applications in a cloud environment requires consistent and predictable performance across the network and storage infrastructure," said Dave Cahill, Director of Strategic Alliances, SolidFire. "Together with Plexxi, we are able to extend quality of service from storage up to the network while stripping away the complexity and inefficiency that plague traditional network topologies."

"While the industry is focused on the benefits of software-defined networks, Plexxi is proving the need to think outside the network," said Mat Mathews, co-founder and VP of Product Management at Plexxi. "The IT infrastructure world revolves around applications and end-user experience. This integration with SolidFire is proof that without understanding who is talking to whom within the data center, the network fundamentally misses out on the biggest value it can add: improving these conversations."

Want to learn more? Register here for SDNCentral's DemoFriday™: Plexxi and SolidFire Demo Programmable Networks & QoS-Capable Storage Solution on May 10 at 10:30 a.m. PT.

About Plexxi, Inc.

Plexxi is the creator of the industry's first affinity-driven networking solution. Plexxi's products – Plexxi Control and the Plexxi Switch – create an optimized network that dynamically helps applications perform better. The company has raised $48+ million in venture financing from Lightspeed Venture Partners, Matrix Partners and Northbridge Venture Partners. Headquartered in Cambridge, Mass., Plexxi also has offices in Nashua, N.H. and San Francisco. For more information, visit www.plexxi.com or www.twitter.com/plexxiinc .

About SolidFire

SolidFire delivers high-performance data storage systems for cloud service providers. Leveraging an all-flash scale-out storage architecture with patented volume-level quality-of-service (QoS) controls, providers can now guarantee storage performance to thousands of applications within shared infrastructures. By using real-time data reduction techniques and system-wide automation, SolidFire is fueling new and profitable block-storage services that are advancing the way the world uses the cloud.

Learn more: www.solidfire.com | www.twitter.com/solidfire | www.facebook.com/solidfire.

SOURCE Plexxi, Inc.