SUNNYVALE, Calif. & YOKNEAM, Israel, Mar 01, 2010 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- Mellanox(R) Technologies, Ltd. /quotes/comstock/15*!mlnx/quotes/nls/mlnx (MLNX 20.39, +0.14, +0.69%) ; (TASE:MLNX), a leading supplier of high-performance, end-to-end connectivity solutions for data center servers and storage systems, today announced the immediate availability of InfiniBand driver support for VMware vSphere(TM) 4, providing IT end-users the compelling choice of deploying field-proven InfiniBand-based unified and virtualized I/O in cloud environments. Compatible with Mellanox's industry-leading ConnectX(R) and InfiniHost(R) III line of adapter cards, the InfiniBand software drivers are based on OpenFabrics Enterprise Distribution (OFED) version 1.4.1, enabling broad interoperability with other operating systems and the ecosystem of OEM supplied servers, switches, gateways and storage systems.

Mellanox server and storage adapter cards enable customers to deploy the most efficient and proven unified fabric technology that seamlessly connects any server to any SAN storage and LAN environments. By supporting VMware vSphere, Mellanox extends the value of its adapter card products into customers' next-generation cloud computing and virtualized data centers.

The InfiniBand driver provides additional feature enhancements to VMware vSphere by leveraging InfiniBand's built-in reliability and performance capabilities to enable the highest number of VMs per core available over any standard network today. Features like VMware VMotion(TM) and VMware High Availability (HA) gain further performance improvements resulting in increased data center efficiency.

"Virtualization is a key technology lowering data center total cost of ownership while enabling new cost-effective cloud computing services," said Sujal Das, sr. director of product management at Mellanox Technologies. "Mellanox ConnectX and InfiniHost III adapter cards leverage the advanced data center virtualization and high availability features of VMware vSphere(TM) 4. Running VMware vSphere 4 over higher bandwidth, lower latency and extremely reliable networking, optimizes the overall performance of the data center infrastructure and enables new cost-effective system architectures for the next generation of flexible, reliable IT services."

"When we designed our VMware vSphere-based cloud appliance, large bandwidth, low latency reliability and quick access to storage were of top priorities, and for these reasons InfiniBand became our fabric of choice," said Ismael Chang Ghalimi, CEO of Intalio. "Furthermore, InfiniBand also enables a highly secure environment since each VM can reside over a different InfiniBand Virtual LAN, providing strict isolation between VM running in the cloud. It has allowed Intalio to deliver a cutting-edge appliance to our customers that meets their growing demand for an efficient cloud computing infrastructure."