Unicoi Targets VLAN Development

By Arthur C. Cole

TMCnet Contributing Editor

 

Virtual LANs (VLANs) are about to make a big splash in the enterprise, with new tools set to make more efficient use of available bandwidth and offer significant security benefits as well.

           

VLANs largely came into being with the ratification of the IEEE 802.1Q and 802.1P standards, which defined a set of protocols that allowed LANs to be segmented into virtual workgroups. Not only does the technology assist with user relocation and other changes, it allows the establishment of secure working groups and allows network managers to better balance the traffic load to ease up on heavily used switches.

           

Systems integrators and OEMs, then, have been eagerly awaiting new hardware and software that let’s them take advantage of VLAN technology. One such development is the newest version of Unicoi Systems Fusion TCP/IP networking stack. The system offers support for 802.1Q to allow network managers to divide their large networks into smaller, virtual ones so as to prevent broadcast and multicast traffic from tying up network resources.

           

Version 8.1 of the software offers a number of benefits, including the ability to create virtual network interfaces in such a way that network traffic can be segregated into VLANs based on IP routing.

 

It also allows you to run virtual interfaces over a single physical interface. And each virtual interface is networked with one or more IP addresses obtained from DHCP servers within the VLAN.

 

The company also claims that it provides “true virtual networking” by virtue of its use of PPPoE, IPsec and IPv6 protocols over the 802.1Q VLAN.

 

The software was created specifically for embedded systems using the ANSI C language, and is designed to be scaleable and portable. It is processor, OS and compiler independent and is capable of being ported to either DSP or RTOS processors.

 

Unicoi currently provides integrated solutions for a number of major OEMs, including, Motorola (News - Alert), Nokia (News - Alert), HP and Scientific Atlanta. The Fusion TCP-IP stack is complemented by a number of related systems, including the Fusion Web Product Suite, featuring a line of XML tools and an embedded browser, and the Fusion Security Suite.

 

The company has established technology partnerships with Analog Devices and Freescale Semiconductor.