Open uCPE Solution

The universal customer premises equipment constructs SD-WAN with more secure connectivity and reasonable cost

Software-defined wide-area networking (SD-WAN) has been the center of focus when it comes to internet connectivity for corporates that have multiple branches around the world. The SD-WAN uses software to manage and partition the traffic of different connections like LTE, MPLS and broadband; it also lowers the high cost of private lines and provides a secure connection to enhance access to the software as a service (SAAS). Moreover, the overall network infrastructure can be managed more easily by one centralized controller. Taking the advantage of Zero Touch Provisioning of SD-WAN, as soon as the “white box” networking device, the universal customer premises equipment (uCPE) is installed, the network can be established right away.

Challenges

The customer was looking for a 1U rackmount white box to build open uCPE solutions for enterprises. In order to run the vCPE® software, it requires the network platform with the high-end, multi-core Intel® Xeon® processors for enhanced reliability and performance as an SD-WAN router. In addition, the network appliance must feature the Intel® SR-IOV to achieve virtualization. It also needs to be equipped with extra NIC slots for flexibility and a variety of power options.

Main Requirements

Server-class Intel® Xeon® processor with up to 16 cores
Supports customer’s vCPE operating system
SR-IOV virtualization extended capabilities
NIC slots for extra LAN or SFP+ ports
Redundant or DC power supply options
Customized form factor with customer’s logo

Axiomtek’s NA720 provides reliable performance for the network

Axiomtek has proposed its NA720, a 1U rackmount network appliance powered by the server-class Intel® Xeon® processor D-1527. It comes with two 10GbE SFP+ ports, eight Gigabit Ethernet ports and two expandable LAN modules supporting 1GbE/10GbE/Fiber/Copper/Bypass with a maximum of 26 LAN ports. Four DDR4-2400 MHz R-DIMM/U-DIMM sockets can provide system memory of up to 128GB and support both ECC and non-ECC memory types. For storage, it supports one mSATA and two 2.5” SATA hard disk drives.

To enhance reliability, the NA720 is equipped with two pairs of LAN Bypass functions for fail-over option as well as featuring BIOS console redirection. Trusted Platform Module (TPM 1.2) is also supported to provide efficient hardware-based data protection. In addition, it supports the mainstream Linux operating system.

The NA720 has been deployed to provide access to on-demand functions and connectivity management

The customer has adopted Axiomtek’s NA720 as uCPE to run Virtualized Network Functions (VNFs) including SD-WAN to build the open uCPE solution. The system combines powerful networking capabilities with virtualization for hosting SD-WAN and any other value-added VNFs from any vendor. In the solution, the universal customer premises device can include the function of a router, firewall, monitor, etc. The solutions replace the traditional specialized hardware devices and allow users to utilize them as services in the cloud since they are software-based and can be set up virtually. It also saves time and cost that the technicians do not have to be on-site for network environment deployment, instead, at the moment it is plugged in, the functions can be set up remotely. As a result, the solution also simplifies and lowers the cost of management and maintenance.

System Configurations of the NA720

Intel® Xeon® processor D-1527 (codename: Broadwell-DE)
288-pin DDR4-2400 for 64GB ECC system memory
2.5” SATA3 SSD with 1TB
Max. up to 24 LAN ports and 2 SFP+ ports
Supports SR-IOV for Intel® Virtualization Technology
2 expandable NIC modules supporting 1GbE/10GbE/Fiber/ Copper/Bypass (optional)
Onboard TPM 2.0

Why Axiomtek

With rich experience in researching and developing networking appliances for enterprises of different sizes, the system Axiomtek provides has met the demand of the customer. The customer can provide a complete solution as a system integrator and refashion the enterprise network with more secure and cost-effective connectivity and management.

“We provide an economical migration path to network edge virtualization via the disaggregation of software and hardware. Through the successful collaboration and the best service which we get from Axiomtek, our solutions allow our service provider customers to enrich their business service offering as they add value off the edge to businesses transitioning to the cloud”. product manager of the customer.

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