Data Center, Cloud Computing and Switch/Router Resources

Switch/Router Architecture:

•  Packet Switch Architecture 
•  Internet Engineering @ Virginia University 
•  Computer Networking from UCSD

Cloud Computing :

• The Cloud Tutorial
• eXtreme Computing Group

All about Virtualization:

• Virtuatopia

Introduction to switch/router

First, let's think about postal system in real life. The system consists of branch office and main office. In branch office, there is one table which records each house hold's detailed address. In main post office, it have one table which records the postal code the corresponding branch office will process. When you want to deliver your mail,  you will put the " to" and "from" address onto the envelop. Local postal man collect  your mail and send to branch office. At branch office, staff will check whether the destination address of your mail belongs to local postal code. If yes, they will deliver your mail to the address directly; If not, they send your mail to main office.  Main office will classify mails according to postal code of "to address", put them into different buckets and ship to next office which is responsible for processing mails with corresponding postal code. The peer main office will deliver those mails to branch office ;  the peer branch office will deliver the mail to the local address if the destination address is one of household in its area.

In fact, switch/router works like real postal system. Switch is like branch office; while router like main office. Switch/Router is the device which help the incoming packets find the right outgoing interface, which is closer to the destination of the packet, by checking look-up tables. Switch/router is the key components in all modern communication network  such as wireless cellular  network, telephone network,  ATM network,  IP data network and so on.