Hp Procurve Adaptive Edge Architecture - HP 5300 Reviewer's Manual

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HP ProCurve Switch redundant power supply (J4839A)
Pricing for each of these switches and modules is given in the Pricing section.

1.3 HP ProCurve Adaptive EDGE Architecture™

Networks are now being asked to carry many different types of data with differing delivery
requirements. Traffic volumes are rising quickly. Security needs are more stringent. And the typical
user is demanding a higher level of mobility than ever before. To meet these critical needs
HP ProCurve Networking has developed the HP ProCurve Adaptive EDGE Architecture. The two major
tenets of the EDGE Architecture are:
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Intelligent control to the edge, and
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Command from the center
It is the network edge where users and applications connect, where network traffic enters and exits the
network, and where the network must determine how that traffic should be handled. The edge is where
security policies must be enforced, where the user connects after being authenticated at a central
command resource. Without control to the edge, decisions about security and traffic must be deferred
to the network core, impacting core performance and scalability while at the same time requiring more
bandwidth in all parts of the network driving up cost and complexity. In addition, this opens the
network to security attacks between where access is physically attained and where authorization is
granted. The intelligent control to the edge must be done in the switches closest to the users. Since
these switches constitute the highest number of network ports in a network, they must also be cost
effective.
The Adaptive EDGE Architecture is not just a future vision. Many elements of the architecture are
already available in HP ProCurve's current products, including the HP ProCurve Switch 5300 Series.
With its HP developed ASICs, the 5300 series delivers a broad range of Layer 2, 3 and 4 features for
control to the edge. The 5300 series is cost effective at the edge and can be coupled with the 9300
series core switches or used to create a distributed core in a network comprised entirely of 5300 series
switches in a meshed – at layer 2 or layer 3 – highly available configuration or grid.
Over time more features will be added to the HP ProCurve Switch 5300 Series to round out the
intelligent control to the edge, filling in the command from the center, providing a dynamic network
environment needed by users in a rapidly evolving information environment.
For more information on the HP ProCurve Adaptive EDGE Architecture, see the HP ProCurve website
at http://www.hp.com/go/hpprocurve.
© Hewlett-Packard Co. 2002, 2003
HP ProCurve Switch 5300xl Series Reviewer's Guide
Rev 1.1 – 2/11/2003
http://www.hp.com/go/hpprocurve
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