Department of Foreign Affairs Builds Non-Stop Network
The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) in the Philippines adopts an advanced Virtual Chassis Stacking (VCStack™) solution.
A High Availability Infrastructure was Needed
The Republic of the Philippines is a major country within Asia and was one of the original five countries to join the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) when it was first established in 1967. ASEAN’s aim is to promote regional cooperation and facilitate economic integration in Asia.
Most ASEAN states have developed national information and communications technology (ICT) strategies, and are driving these with several proactive ICT policies, including:
- Development of ICT infrastructure
- Promotion of electronic commercial transactions
- Development of laws and schemes to encourage ICT utilization
- Development of ICT-related human resources
In February 2016, the Philippine DFA redesigned and updated its office networks. Like any central government department, robust security and high levels of reliability were imperative. The DFA relied on IT resources and applications for accessing business-critical information and for day-to-day work. A high availability infrastructure was imperative to maintain resource and data availability. After careful consideration of the network requirements, and proposals made by various vendors, the DFA decided to implement an Allied Telesis VCStack solution.
A Simple and Scalable Solution
The availability of the DFA’s network resources is maximized with an Allied Telesis Virtual Chassis Stacking (VCStack) solution, providing continuous and immediate access to information when required. Unlike traditional network topologies, VCStack provides a simple and scalable solution, with no single point of failure. This superior technology reduces admin time and automates failure recovery, providing lower Total Cost of Ownership (TCO).
In addition to using the full power of the network and simplifying network management, VCStack also provided advanced features like:
- Fast failover to minimize network downtime
- Virtual MAC to maximize network connectivity
- Rolling reboot to provide continuity of service
- Provisioning to pre-configure network devices
- Remote login for flexible management of devices
The Allied Telesis SwitchBlade® x908 industry-leading modular switch was selected at the network core because it was ideal where resiliency, reliability, and high performance are the key requirements.
An Unbreakable Network
With VCStack, Allied Telesis has provided the DFA with a truly resilient network. In normal operation, all bandwidth and all routing power in the network are fully available for use at all times. If a link or device fails, the network will still be fully operational and all remaining resources will continue to be fully utilized. The SwitchBlade x908 brings further reliability to the new network. With dual power supplies, fan modules and a comprehensive range of expansion modules (XEMs), which are all hot-swappable, the DFA can maintain and reconfigure when necessary without affecting network uptime.
An Enhanced Support Framework
In collaboration with its partner company, NEC Philippines, Inc. Allied Telesis have also built an enhanced joint support framework. The DFA can rest assured that if they need help with their network, it is available to them in a timely and efficient manner.
