Cisco Cisco Catalyst Blade Switch 3030 for Dell White Paper

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Design Guide 
Figure 4.   
Virtual Blade Switch Configuration 
 
Data Center Network Architecture 
The architecture of the data center infrastructure must address the requirements necessary to 
create a highly available, scalable, and secure network. This section describes the basic 
architecture necessary to meet these goals.  
It is a synopsis of the Cisco Data Center Network Architecture and includes the following topics: 
● 
Data Center Network Components 
● 
Aggregation Layer 
● 
Access Layer 
● 
High Availability 
● 
BladeSystem in the Data Center Architecture 
For details about this architecture, refer to the guide at: 
Data Center Network Components 
The terms front-end network and back-end network define the devices that comprise the 
infrastructure of the data center and their general role. The front-end network is the IP routing and 
switching environment. It provides client-to-server, server-to-server, and server-to-storage network 
connectivity. The back-end network supports the SAN fabric and connectivity between servers and 
other storage devices such as storage arrays and tape drives. 
 
© 2008 Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved. This document is Cisco Public Information. 
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