Gigabit switches

GE Fanuc has announced two gigabit ethernet switches.

The NETernity GBX24 is a fully rugged 6U VME enabled 24-port fully-managed layer 2/3 switch, while the NETernity VXS24 provides 24-port functionality for VXS (VITA 41.3) environments and has a fully managed layer 3 capability.

Both feature full support for IPv6 and both occupy only a single chassis slot.

Management of the switches is through Fastpath, providing the military industry standard for high performance, ease of use and computability across switches.

The rugged GBX24, which is designed to meet the demanding requirements of network switching in harsh military/aerospace environments (it is available in both air- and conduction-cooled formats), provides 24 ports to rear connectors and four ports of optical SX or LX connectivity to the front panel.

It features a non-blocking shared memory architecture, providing 48 Gbps wire speed. An unmanaged version is also available.

The VXS24 provides 22 ports of 1000BaseCX connectivity to the rear panel, with two ports of optional 1000BaseT available at the front panel.

Like the GBX24, it is designed for deployment in demanding switching applications. It is available either in a standard air-cooled format or rugged air-cooled for increased temperature and shock resistance.

It features a non-blocking shared memory architecture, providing 88 Gbps wire speed.

The GBX24 provides optional optical expansion through a mix of onboard optics and a separate optical expansion board. All 24 ports can be converted to optical outputs to give 24 ports of gigabit, either 1000 BaseSX or 1000 BaseLX.

Onboard built-in test ensures the device can be linked with other Fanuc intelligent platforms boards to provide integrated system level health monitoring and diagnostics.

An optional mezzanine capability for the VXS24 allows for 10 Gb uplink expansion, transitioning from XAUI on the switch packet processor to the appropriate 10G standard at the front panel.

The switch can be expanded to 48 ports by connecting two together via the 10 Gb ports.