Nokia expands data centre deal with Microsoft Azure

Nokia will supply its 7250 IXR-10e platform which it says will deliver multi-terabit-scale interconnectivity within Microsoft’s data centers, as well as continuing to deliver its custom developed management top of rack switch throughout the Azure network.

The kit vendor says the new agreement builds upon the companies’ collaboration around open source SONiC, “including in the area of chassis-based support for high-capacity network roles within the datacenter.”

“We are pleased to move to the next phase of our relationship with Microsoft by expanding the agreement’s product scope, geographical reach and time commitment to five years,” said Vach Kompella, Senior Vice President and General Manager of IP Networks business at Nokia. “As a result of this new deal, Nokia will further increase the scalability and reliability of Microsoft Azure data centers around the world. This win affirms Nokia's commitment to being a strategic supplier for tier one hyperscaler companies, and highlights that our multi-year strategic investments and approach have put us on the right trajectory.”

David Maltz, Technical Fellow and Corporate Vice President, Microsoft Azure Networking added: “As leaders in the advancement of cloud compute, we are continuously expanding our global footprint to support the massive growth in compute workloads. Over the past six years we have worked with Nokia's engineers to develop their routers running SONiC to rapidly advance our expansion at the quality our customers demand.”

The Nokia SONiC-based data center routers and switches will be deployed both in greenfield locations and used in support of Microsoft's migration from 100GE to 400GE connectivity within existing facilities. This will enable Microsoft to meet increasing traffic demands, we’re told, and deployment of the Nokia 7250 IXR-10e will begin in February.