Microsoft has built a Linux-based cross-platform operating system called Azure Cloud Switch (ACS). The company demonstrated ACS at the recent SIGCOMM conference in August 2015 at Imperial College London. It is a cross-platform modular operating system for data center networking and will power network components. The most interesting thing about this operating system is that it is built on Linux.
According to the announcement made through an official blog post, Azure Cloud Switch describes as “cross-platform modular operating system for data center networking built on Linux.” Or simply, “Commodity switch software stack for data center networks.” Azure Cloud Switch (ACS) is Microsoft’s first foray into switch hardware. The purpose is to make it simpler to control the hardware from multiple vendors.
Azure Cloud Switch, as Subramaniam writes, “The Azure Cloud Switch (ACS) is our foray into building our own software for running network devices like switches. It is a cross-platform modular operating system for data center networking built on Linux. ACS allows us to debug, fix, and test software bugs much faster. It also allows us the flexibility to scale down the software and develop features that are required for our datacenter and our networking needs.”
“We’re talking about ACS publicly as we believe this approach of disaggregating the switch software from the switch hardware will continue to be a growing trend in the networking industry and we would like to contribute our insights and experiences of this journey starting here,” she added.
Microsoft’s vertical integration of its ACS includes a solution for sharing the same software stack across hardware from multiple switch vendors. ACS is built around the Open Compute Project’s Switch Abstraction Interaction (SAI).
The company under the leadership of Satya Nadella does not hesitate to partner with old rivals if that gets the job done. The company is now aggressively making apps for Android and iOS platforms. Satya Nadella is very different in his approaches from one he inherited from Steve Ballmer. Under Nadella, Microsoft is more open that it has ever been before.
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