BEAVERTON, Ore.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The Ethernet Alliance, a global consortium dedicated to the continued success and advancement of Ethernet technologies, today announced its next interoperability test event will be held June 22 – 25, 2015 at the University of New Hampshire InterOperability Laboratory (UNH-IOL) in Durham, N.H. The organization’s largest-ever multi-vendor plugfest represents a complete testing ecosystem for 40 Gigabit (40G) and 100 Gigabit (100G) Ethernet. Additionally, a technical feasibility event on 25 Gigabit per second (25Gb/s) technologies will be held to assess the state of these technologies, and provide input into standardization and development to optimize future interoperability of the 25 Gigabit Ethernet (25GbE) family.
“Ethernet’s continued growth and expansion into new markets and applications is driven by its intrinsic interoperability. The seasoned level of maturity of 40G and 100G Ethernet dictates the need for a broad-scale testing event of this magnitude. These are real technologies being deployed in real-world situations every day,” said John D’Ambrosia, chairman, Ethernet Alliance, and chief Ethernet evangelist, Dell. “As demonstrated by the 25 Gb/s technical feasibility testing, interoperability is something that the industry considers from the very beginning of any Ethernet standardization activity.”
Dating back to its inception, the Ethernet Alliance has worked with the UNH-IOL to host interoperability test events aimed at advancing Ethernet technologies. The biggest interoperability event hosted by the Ethernet Alliance to-date brings together 23 companies representing a large, diverse array of 40/100G Ethernet technology vendors, including cabling, chip, connector, optics, system, and test equipment manufacturers. The plugfest provides a rigorous environment enabling the testing of 40GbE and 100GbE operation over hundreds of different scenarios, including the various optical and copper solutions that define these two families. And as the IEEE 802.3 25GbE Project is nearing entry into the next development phase, the broad testing will enable obtaining valuable input from vendors for that phase.
“The UNH-IOL contributes a rich history in Ethernet testing to its collaborative partnership with the Ethernet Alliance and together, through interoperability plugfests and ongoing initiatives, we are helping companies bring products to market faster and increasing customer confidence in the reliability and functionality of those products,” said Jeff Lapak, associate director, UNH-IOL.
The Ethernet Alliance 40/100G plugfest will be hosted at UNH-IOL’s 32,000-square-foot, state-of-the-art network and data communications testing facility. Among the many companies and organizations taking part are Amphenol Corporation; Arista Networks, Inc.; Avago Technologies Ltd.; Cisco Systems, Inc.; Cube Optics AG; Dell, Inc.; FCI; Hitachi, Ltd.; Intel Corporation; Ixia; JDS Uniphase Corp. (JDSU); LUXSHARE Precision Industry Co., Ltd.; Marvell Technology Group Ltd.; Mellanox Technologies Ltd.; Molex Incorporated; Oclaro, Inc.; Panduit Corp.; QLogic Corporation; Semtech Corporation; Spirent Communications Plc.; TE Connectivity Ltd.; Teledyne LeCroy, Inc.; and Xilinx, Inc.
The 25Gb/s technical feasibility event is being held concurrently with the 40/100G plugfest. Participating companies include Amphenol Corporation; Arista Networks, Inc.; Cisco Systems, Inc.; Cube Optics AG; Dell, Inc.; FCI; Hitachi, Ltd.; Intel Corporation; Ixia; LUXSHARE Precision Industry Co., Ltd.; Marvell Technology Group Ltd.; Mellanox Technologies Ltd.; Molex Incorporated; Oclaro, Inc.; Panduit Corp.; QLogic Corporation; Spirent Communications Plc.; TE Connectivity Ltd.; and Xilinx, Inc.
For more information about the Ethernet Alliance, please visit http://www.ethernetalliance.org, follow @EthernetAllianc on Twitter, visit its Facebook page, or join the EA LinkedIn group. Individuals who would like to receive updates on Ethernet Alliance, activities, and events may sign up for the organization’s newsletter at www.ethernetalliance.org/newsletter.
Founded in 1988, the UNH-IOL provides independent, broad-based interoperability and standards conformance testing for data, telecommunications and storage networking products and technologies. Combining extensive staff experience, standards-bodies participation and a 32,000+ square foot facility, the UNH-IOL helps companies efficiently and cost effectively deliver products to the market.
www.iol.unh.edu | Twitter @UNH_IOL | Facebook @UNHIOL I LinkedIn @UNH InterOperability Lab
The Ethernet Alliance is a global consortium that includes system and component vendors, industry experts, and university and government professionals who are committed to the continued success and expansion of Ethernet technology. The Ethernet Alliance takes Ethernet standards to market by supporting activities that span from incubation of new Ethernet technologies to interoperability demonstrations and education.
