Unified Communications and IP Telephony Solutions

Today's campus networks are expected to deliver services thought impossible just a few years ago. Video conferencing, real-time collaboration, and distance learning are just a few of the new applications that organizations expect to run reliably on wired and wireless campus networks. Brocade networking solutions provide the connectivity that organizations need to support Voice over IP (VoIP) and Unified Communications (UC) services while delivering uninterrupted service quality, reliability, security, and compatibility for IP-based phones, video, and converged multimedia desktop applications.

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Few networks are ready to support Unified Communications (UC) and IP-based voice services. In fact, Gartner estimates that 90 percent of existing data networks need additional build-out to support VoIP, and all require configuration changes.

These findings are not surprising. Organizations seeking to deploy IP telephony and UC services face several infrastructure-related challenges, including:

• Service quality: The network infrastructure needs to meet critical voice and video conferencing latency requirements.
• Power delivery: The network needs to support power delivery to IP phones and other UC devices.
• Auto-configuration: Network ports need to auto-configure when IP phones are plugged in.
• Availability: Telephony is a mission-critical application that does not tolerate downtime.
• Security: Voice and UC services need to be protected against threats and need to work across firewalls.

Delivering voice and UC solutions requires more than just basic network connectivity. Brocade provides a complete set of switching and routing solutions that help organizations implement IP telephony and UC solutions while leveraging their existing network infrastructures.

Brocade Networking Solutions for Unified Communications
Brocade UC-ready networking solutions provide a rich set of features that help ensure the highest-quality VoIP and UC environments, with both stackable and chassis-based edge products. These enhanced features include:

Automated Quality of Service

• Layer 2-3 automatic, dynamic honoring of QoS: Brocade networking solutions are built to deliver QoS without the need for manual configuration. This eliminates both the work in defining complex QoS configurations and the possibility that the configuration will be incorrect. Brocade automatically delivers QoS honoring in stackable and chassis-based edge switches.

Dynamic Power Delivery

• Brocade products fully support 802.3af (PoE) and 802.3at (PoE+) standards, with integrated and redundant Power over Ethernet (PoE) power capabilities that are affordable, reliable, and effective.
• These PoE networking solutions include support for non-802.3af-compliant devices, configuration on a per-port basis, and a unique smart ports feature, which delivers proper wattage even if manually misconfigured.

Always-on Reliability

• Integrated, redundant, hot-swappable AC/DC power supplies: Brocade provides the only fully redundant internal power management solution that spans both high-density stackable and chassis product lines. This includes internal, hot-swappable, redundant, load-sharing power supplies, and power upgradability with no system impact.
• Brocade modular switches include redundant management modules, fans, load-sharing switch fabrics, and power supplies.

Automated Port Configuration

• Brocade edge products support a variety of industry-standard methods for placing an IP phone on the proper voice Virtual LAN (VLAN). With both automated QoS and voice VLAN discovery, an IP phone can be automatically given the proper QoS features and be placed in the proper voice VLAN with no manual intervention. This decreases the cost of deploying VoIP infrastructure and services, and eliminates costly configuration errors.

Comprehensive Network Security

• Brocade IronShield 360 security architecture, combined with products from leading security provider vendors offers converged security for access control, intrusion detection, and secure enforcement.
• Brocade offers security solutions with key partners that are specifically targeted at securing voice and UC networks.

Wireless Mobility

• Wi-Fi connectivity is an integral part of VoIP and UC connectivity solutions.
• Brocade offers all the pieces to deploy a wireless enterprise. In addition to offering indoor networking equipment, Brocade also provides the tools to wirelessly connect multiple buildings across a corporate campus.

Proven VoIP and Unified Communications Solutions

• Brocade provides multiple options by working with best-of-breed IP telephony and UC vendors to validate the functionality, performance, and quality of converged networking solutions on a variety of different phone and call manager/media gateway and UC server platforms.
• Brocade has developed and tested VoIP and UC networking solutions with key partners, including Microsoft, ShoreTel, Polycom and Avaya.

UC-ready network infrastructure for SMBs.

UC-ready network infrastructure for enterprises.

• Data Sheets

  • Brocade FastIron SX Series (1.2 MB)

  • Brocade FastIron WS Series (906.5 KB)

  • Brocade FCX Series Switches (1.5 MB)

  • Brocade ICX 6610 Switch (1.4 MB)

  • Brocade Mobility 7131 Access Point (370.6 KB)

  • Brocade Mobility RFS7000 Controller (535.6 KB)

• Partner Briefs

  • Avaya & Brocade Product Brief (1.4 MB)

  • Avaya Joint Solution Brief (8.3 MB)

• Success Stories

  • St Mary's Adacemy Preps Graduates for Higher Ed (415.6 KB)

  • Veracity Networks: Building a World-Class Network with a Local Touch (1067.4 KB)

• Technical Briefs

  • Deploying Brocade PoE and PoE+ Solutions in the Campus Network (318.6 KB)