|
Advanced TCA PICMG 3.3 specification to include
both StarFabric AND PCI Express
Subcommittee Approved Amended Statement of Work
| WHO: |
Following the recent announcement from the StarFabric Trade Association, which adopted PCI Express Advanced Switching as the high-speed future enhancement for StarFabric, the PICMG 3.3 subcommittee recently approved a new Statement of Work to now include PCI Express as well as StarFabric. PICMG 3.3 will now define:
- The electrical environment that supports PCI Express and StarFabric silicon implementations
- Switched connectivity among node, fabric (switch hub) and full mesh boards for PCI Express or StarFabric interconnects
- Hybrid systems utilizing both PCI Express and StarFabric within the fabric interface.
PCI Express and StarFabric are interoperable through an adaptive bridge
|
| WHY: |
StarFabric and PCI Express Advanced Switching are complementary - they provide the same functionality for embedded and communication applications. StarFabric is ideally suited for applications requiring up to 2.5Gbps links speeds - it is the lowest cost, easiest to implement switched serial interconnect solution, and it is shipping today in production. PCI Express Advanced Switching is ideally suited for application requiring high-speed links of 10Gbps and beyond - it will ship in production in 2004. The StarFabric Trade Association has selected PCI Express Advanced Switching as the 10Gbps and beyond extension to StarFabric.
|
| DETAILS: |
There is currently a set of Advanced TCA - PICMG 3.x specifications under development within PICMG defining a new generation architecture for building high-end 'carrier grade' equipment, which is complementary to PICMG 2.x family of CompactPCI specifications. PICMG 3.0 is a 'fabric agnostic' general specification for mechanics, board dimensions, power distribution, connectors, system management, etc. Initial subsidiary specifications for fabric interfaces are:
- PICMG 3.1 (Gigabit Ethernet)
- PICMG 3.2 (Infiniband)
- PICMG 3.3 (StarFabric)
|
| FUTURE: |
StarGen will be developing StarFabric-to-PCI Express Advanced Switching adaptive bridge product. This can be used when building systems with multiple low-cost, lower speed, StarFabric end-points and higher performance Advanced Switching uplink nodes. StarGen will also have continued development of 2.5Gbps, StarFabric components and a complementary portfolio of 10Gbps Advanced Switching switch and bridge devices, starting in 2004.
|
About StarGen
StarGen (www.stargen.com) is a fabless semiconductor company that has developed a new switched interconnect technology, StarFabric, for the communication and embedded industries. The technology benefits vendors of carrier and enterprise communication platforms for next generation voice, data, and video networks. Early adopters include those building open standards based access/edge equipment such as media over packet gateways, convergence switches, broadband access concentrators, wireless base stations, cable headend systems, edge routers, and remote access concentrators. Many embedded applications benefit from StarGen's distributed multi-processing features. StarGen's technology provides a dramatic increase in equipment performance, reliability, and Quality of Service while providing for the retention of existing standards-based hardware and software investment. StarGen is headquartered in Marlborough Massachusetts.
For more information, contact:
Joyce Radnor or Rebecca Hovey
Stauch Vetromile & Mitchell
401-438-0614
jradnor@svmpr.com or rebecca@svmpr.com
|
