PSNC Brings in Massive New Network Core System

It's not every day we hear about supercomputers, but even these massive devices require a proper network infrastructure to do the best job possible. This much was recently made clear as the Poznan Supercomputing and Networking Center (PSNC) in Poznan, Poland recently turned to ADVA Optical Networking to provide a powerful new core network solution: the ADVA FSP 3000.

The ADVA system would become a part of the PSNC's PIONIER network, known throughout Europe as not only one of the biggest networks for research and education in the region, but also as Poland's direct connection to the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN). Now, the connection between PIONIER and other systems can be made appreciably better and faster thanks to the ADVA FSP 3000's 100Gbit/s core systems and 96-channel operation.

Additionally, the new connection will be used to power further operations in several of Poland's supercomputing operations, including not only Poznan, but also in Krakow, Wroclaw, Warsaw and Gdansk. With a maximum reach of around 2,154 miles—and without the need for signal regeneration—the system can better provide connectivity remotely. Better yet, the system also includes ADVA Optical Networking's line of reconfigurable optical add-drop multiplexers (ROADMs), which offer additional value in systems that turn to wavelength division multiplexing in the network.

PSNC's technical director Maciej Stroinski commented, “Now, research centers including CERN, home to the world's largest and most complex scientific instruments, can quickly and efficiently transport huge sets of data to supercomputers where it can be analyzed. With such an enormous increase in broadband capacity, scientists and academics will be able to further push the boundaries of what's possible from advances in particle physics to understanding the origins of our universe.”

Here we get an object lesson in why improving network infrastructure is so important; better network infrastructure means better network operations, which means a greater potential for achieving positive benefit. That's a valuable development all along the system, and one that produces value in turn. It couldn't have been done without the new ADVA components, and so we see that augmenting the network when new systems are available produces positive outcomes.

Stroinski's own remarks show us just what network improvement can do. Not every network improvement project gives us greater insight into the universe around us, of course, but whether it's a greater understanding of what we are as a species or just better collaboration between arms of a corporation, the end result remains the same: a better outcome thanks to transforming network infrastructure. 

Edited by Alicia Young