<s>
Fabric	B-General_Concept
Connect	I-General_Concept
,	O
in	O
computer	O
networking	O
usage	O
,	O
is	O
the	O
name	O
used	O
by	O
Extreme	O
Networks	O
to	O
market	O
an	O
extended	O
implementation	O
of	O
the	O
IEEE	B-Protocol
802.1aq	I-Protocol
and	O
IEEE	O
802.1ah-2008	O
standards	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Fabric	B-General_Concept
Connect	I-General_Concept
technology	O
was	O
originally	O
developed	O
by	O
the	O
Enterprise	O
Solutions	O
R&D	O
department	O
within	O
Nortel	O
Networks	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
2009	O
,	O
Avaya	O
,	O
Inc	O
acquired	O
Nortel	O
Networks	O
Enterprise	O
Business	O
Solutions	O
;	O
this	O
transaction	O
included	O
the	O
Fabric	B-General_Concept
Connect	I-General_Concept
intellectual	O
property	O
together	O
with	O
all	O
of	O
the	O
Ethernet	O
Switching	O
platforms	O
that	O
supported	O
it	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Subsequently	O
,	O
the	O
Fabric	B-General_Concept
Connect	I-General_Concept
technology	O
became	O
part	O
of	O
the	O
Extreme	O
Networks	O
portfolio	O
by	O
virtue	O
of	O
their	O
2017	O
purchase	O
of	O
the	O
Avaya	O
Networking	O
business	O
and	O
assets	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
was	O
during	O
the	O
Avaya	O
era	O
that	O
this	O
technology	O
was	O
promoted	O
as	O
the	O
lead	O
element	O
of	O
the	O
Virtual	B-General_Concept
Enterprise	I-General_Concept
Network	I-General_Concept
Architecture	I-General_Concept
(	O
VENA	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Fabric	B-General_Concept
Connect	I-General_Concept
's	O
aim	O
is	O
to	O
provide	O
network-wide	O
,	O
end-to-end	O
,	O
multi-layer	O
virtualization	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
network	O
virtualization	O
capability	O
,	O
based	O
on	O
an	O
enhanced	O
implementation	O
of	O
the	O
IEEE	B-Protocol
802.1aq	I-Protocol
Shortest	I-Protocol
Path	I-Protocol
Bridging	I-Protocol
(	O
SPB	B-Protocol
)	O
standard	O
,	O
Fabric	B-General_Concept
Connect	I-General_Concept
offers	O
the	O
ability	O
to	O
create	O
a	O
simplified	O
network	O
that	O
can	O
dynamically	O
virtualize	O
elements	O
to	O
efficiently	O
provision	O
and	O
utilize	O
resources	O
,	O
thus	O
reducing	O
the	O
strain	O
on	O
the	O
network	O
and	O
personnel	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Extreme	O
Networks	O
base	O
the	O
Fabric	B-General_Concept
Connect	I-General_Concept
technology	O
on	O
the	O
SPB	B-Protocol
standard	O
,	O
including	O
support	O
for	O
RFC	O
6329	O
,	O
and	O
have	O
integrated	O
IP	O
Routing	O
and	O
IP	O
Multicast	O
support	O
;	O
this	O
unified	O
technology	O
allows	O
for	O
the	O
replacement	O
of	O
multiple	O
conventional	O
protocols	O
such	O
as	O
Spanning	B-Protocol
Tree	I-Protocol
,	O
RIP	B-Protocol
and/or	O
OSPF	B-Protocol
,	O
ECMP	B-Protocol
,	O
and	O
PIM	B-Protocol
.	O
</s>
<s>
An	O
adjunct	O
to	O
the	O
Fabric	B-General_Concept
Connect	I-General_Concept
technology	O
,	O
Fabric	O
Attach	O
,	O
allows	O
network	O
operators	O
to	O
extend	O
network	O
virtualization	O
directly	O
into	O
the	O
conventional	O
wiring	O
closet	O
(	O
on	O
existing	O
non-Fabric	O
Ethernet	O
Switches	O
)	O
and	O
automate	O
the	O
provisioning	O
of	O
devices	O
to	O
their	O
appropriate	O
virtual	O
network	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Fabric	O
Attach	O
standardized	O
protocols	O
such	O
as	O
802.1AB	B-Protocol
LLDP	I-Protocol
to	O
exchange	O
credentails	O
and	O
obtain	O
provisioning	O
information	O
that	O
allows	O
"	O
Client	O
"	O
Switches	O
to	O
be	O
automatically	O
re-configured	O
on	O
the	O
fly	O
with	O
parameters	O
that	O
let	O
Traffic	O
Flows	O
Map	O
through	O
to	O
Fabric	B-General_Concept
Connect	I-General_Concept
Edge	O
Switches	O
(	O
aka	O
"	O
Backbone	O
Edge	O
Bridge	O
"	O
in	O
SPB	B-Protocol
definition	O
)	O
functioning	O
as	O
a	O
Fabric	O
Attach	O
"	O
Server	O
"	O
Switch	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Fabric	O
Attach	O
is	O
typically	O
used	O
to	O
automate	O
Wiring	O
Closet	O
connectivity	O
,	O
but	O
has	O
the	O
potential	O
to	O
be	O
extensible	O
for	O
use	O
in	O
the	O
Data	O
Center	O
,	O
with	O
Virtual	O
Machines	O
being	O
able	O
to	O
dynamically	O
request	O
VLAN/VSN	O
(	O
Virtual	O
Service	O
Network	O
)	O
assignment	O
based	O
upon	O
application	O
requirements	O
.	O
</s>
