Cisco’s latest routers focus on data, voice and video. Developed over five years at a cost of $250 million, the Cisco ASR 1000 Series Aggregation Services Routers were introduced Monday.
The new product line features software virtualization to enable “instant-on” provisioning and simultaneous use of multiple services, including a firewall, virtual private networks, deep-packet inspections and Session Border Control. The goal was to eliminate the need for multiple single-function appliances in addition to a router.
Part of what makes the grouping possible is the new Cisco Quantum Flow Processor, an integrated and programmable engine. The processor scales services and allows the platform to be retasked to new requirements as they emerge and as networking evolves, Cisco says.
Analyst: ASR 1000 is ‘Beefy’
Pankaj Patel, senior vice president and general manager of the Cisco Service Provider Group, said the ASR 1000 Series is unsurpassed in flexibility because it incorporates new technologies to support innovation without having to rethink network decisions.
“Any comparable configuration would not only cost much more, but require more rack space, consume more power and require additional blades or network appliances in order to equal the capabilities that are already integrated into this compact, multipurpose router,” Patel said.
Besides endorsements from Lufthansa Systems, Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Communication and Wachovia, Zeus Kerravala, a vice president at Yankee Group, called the ASR 1000 a “beefy router.” Not only is the performance impressive, he said, there’s nothing on the market that competes.
“If you look at the products Cisco has released over the last few years with Nexus, ISR, ASA, you’ll see that the company is definitely working on the concept of multifunction appliances,” Kerravala said. “To me, ASR follows in exactly the same footsteps. There are a number of functions that have to be done at the aggregation edge, whether it’s enterprise or telco, and Cisco…