Foundry Networks and Level 5 Networks recently joined forces to promote networks for high-performance computing systems.

The partnership is being done through Foundry’s HPC Ethernet Alliance Program, which is the company’s effort to develop products geared toward bringing Gigabit Ethernet and 10 Gigabit Ethernet to high-performance computing environments. This means Foundry is trying to get further into server cluster, grid and supercomputer installations.

Through the program, Foundry also works with adapter makers Ammasso, Chelsio Communications and Neterion. Foundry intends also to work with server and application vendors.

The companies involved in the program participate in interoperability testing and benchmarking, joint marketing and trade show efforts, and seminar tours to promote high-speed Ethernet in high-performance computing.

Foundry and Level 5, then, will perform interoperability tests between Foundry’s switch hardware and the network interface cards from Level 5, to show end-to-end performance.

Level 5 describes its EtherFabric on its Web site as “a complete solution of software, specialized silicon and high performance NIC hardware that allows Ethernet Networks to be used as high-performance server interconnects that are future-proof even as performance requirements continue to increase.” The company also claims that its product will be able to scale to 10G bit/sec “and beyond.”

An EtherFabric adapter presents a virtualized interface to each application - that is, it works directly with applications, bypassing the operating system kernel and improving the efficiency of the CPU, Level 5 says.

The company offers a card today with two ports that each run at 1G bit/sec.

Jeff Caruso is site editor at Network World.