Kontron and Pica8 collaborate on new SDN infrastructure

PicOS will bring industry-leading SDN capabilities to Kontron SYMKLOUD Series

Augsburg, GERMANY, October 12, 2015 – Kontron and Pica8 Inc., the one-stop source for white box networking, today introduced a partnership plan to integrate the PicOS network operating system (NOS) with Kontron SYMKLOUD converged modular servers that tightly unify compute, storage and redundant network switches in a ultra-scalable, compact platform.
 
Both Kontron and Pica8 will be on hand at SDN & OpenFlow World Congress in Dusseldorf, Germany, October 12-16, to discuss how service providers and system integrators can derive tremendous value from this collaboration when seeking to deploy new services across software-defined networking (SDN) infrastructure.
 
The Kontron philosophy to “design COTS hardware for a software defined world” fits extremely well with the open networking pioneering spirit of Pica8. The collaboration is expected to open up new opportunities for telco cloud and cloud hosting providers who require full service agility from a single platform that supports both software defined networks (SDN) and network functions virtualization (NFV) infrastructure.
 
SYMKLOUD is the convergence of compute, storage, and dual 10GbE networking into a single, hyper-scalable, high-density modular 2U platform. As a hybrid design approach, SYMKLOUD incorporates the best of both carrier grade High Availability (HA) and standard IT COTS features. PicOS as a NOS on the SYMKLOUD modular, redundant 10GbE switches is interoperable with open SDN Controllers including those from OpenDaylight, Ryu, and ONOS. This greatly reduces the adoption risk of new technologies and minimizes integration complexities and delays.
 
Pica8’s PicOS NOS is driving service differentiation for over 450 customers globally, by uniquely incorporating both SDN and legacy switching and routing functionality into the same software. This unique ability ensures organizations can extend the investment of existing network environments while ushering in new service models with the best ROI using Kontron SYMKLOUD SDN-ready appliances.
 
“We recognize Pica8 as an SDN innovator who has leveraged the best of both new and existing technologies in the same infrastructure platform,” said Antoine Sirois, Director, Product Management, Kontron. “We are excited to complete the collaboration and demonstrate the full value of a SYMKLOUD-SDN solution for any number of service provider wireless, customer premise, hosting and IoT Use Case workloads.”
 
“Kontron customers gain a powerful SDN networking operating system that integrates with leading SDN controllers,” said Niraj Jain, vice president of business development at Pica8. “With this combination, service providers can roll out advanced SDN-based applications in their networks.”
 
First trials of a SYMKLOUD SDN-ready platform featuring PicOS are targeted for first half of 2016.
 
Be sure to visit Kontron and Pica8 during:
SDN and Openflow World Congress
12-16 October 2015 | Swissôtel Düsseldorf, Germany
http://www.layer123.com/sdn

About Pica8, Inc.
Since 2009, Pica8 is the one-stop source for white box networking with PicOS™, a network operating system that enables organizations and original equipment manufacturers to easily integrate Layer-2 / Layer-3 networking and software-defined networking (SDN) using commodity switches. Pica8’s solutions enable real time, hands free provisioning that fits today’s complex networks and scales with them to enable transformation. PicOS supports an industry-standard CLI for Layer-2 / Layer-3, unmodified Linux, and OpenFlow 1.4. Pica8 provides PicOS on both pre-loaded switching hardware or as standalone software for a growing list of compatible bare metal switches. Pica8 is a global company headquartered in Palo Alto, California. For more information, visit www.pica8.com or follow @pica8 on Twitter.
 
PICA8, Inc. Media Contract:
Steve Garrison
415-205-8566
steve@pica8.com
 
About Kontron in Communications
Kontron designs innovative carrier-class and cloud infrastructure solutions that bring any infrastructure application to life for the new world of software defined networks (SDN) and network functions virtualization (NFV). We are experienced system architects who match our clients’ network application requirements with the right hardware and software solutions for the 4G LTE Evolved Packet Core, Content Delivery Networks, and Cloud infrastructure. By partnering with Kontron, service providers and their ISV partners can enter new markets with greater speed, confidence and operational efficiency.  For more information, please visit www.symkloud.com or www.kontron.com/communications. Kontron is a Corporate Sponsor of the OpenStack Foundation, and is an ecosystem member of the Alcatel-Lucent CloudBand™ Ecosystem Program, and the Wind River Titanium Cloud NFV partner program.
 
About Kontron
Kontron, a global leader in embedded computing technology and trusted advisor in IoT, works closely with its customers, allowing them to focus on their core competencies by offering a complete and integrated portfolio of hardware, software and services designed to help them make the most of their applications.
 
With a significant percentage of employees in research and development, Kontron creates many of the standards that drive the world’s embedded computing platforms; bringing to life numerous technologies and applications that touch millions of lives. The result is an accelerated time-to-market, reduced total-cost-of-ownership, product longevity and the best possible overall application with leading-edge, highest reliability embedded technology.
 
Kontron is a listed company. Its shares are traded in the Prime Standard segment of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange and on other exchanges under the symbol “KBC.”