Cisco Enterprise Content Delivery System, ECDS

In June, 2011 Cisco announced the system of content delivery at the enterprise (Cisco Enterprise Content Delivery System, ECDS) which represents a packet of the interacting products for distribution of video. These products solve the information and technology problems connected with need of delivery of best quality video on demand for any place and at any time.

Heads of corporate IT departments face rapidly growing demand for video services which it is necessary to deliver on already overloaded networks. The solution Cisco ECDS is proposed by a successful method of management of video traffic on the global area network (WAN), limiting at the same time the cost of distribution of video on all organization.

ECDS, a key infrastructure component of architecture of Cisco media networks, consists of a number of hardware devices and program virtual a blade servers for the Cisco WAAS systems (Wide Area Application Services). This hardware-software complex helps the organizations to distribute video content using video flows or a multicasting and also to deliver video on demand using caching and a prepozitsionirovaniye, i.e. anticipatory transfer of content to systems which are in close proximity to the end user. Besides, ECDS provides to the customer the convenient management system allowing to set, configure and support easily work of this solution and to carry out monitoring of video services. Together with the software of Cisco WAAS the ECDS system makes the complete solution for optimal adaptation of global networks to video transmission, data and support of the most different applications.

Network managers can set ECDS in any physical or virtual environment practically in any place that allows to use the available customer's resources with maximum efficiency. ECDS interacts with different video formats and is well scaled, supporting from several tens to several thousand users distributed thousands of geographical points.

ECDS offers end users the highest quality of video services for access to video content in the schedule and in the dynamic mode (on demand). This solution can liquidate delays and interruptions in reproduction of video records, distortions on the screen and other problems which are quite often arising on delivery and acceptance of video.

Cisco ECDS will help the organizations to use better video for communication with any user and access to wider audience in any place using any device. ECDS optimizes forward translations and video transmission on demand in one direction for corporate communication, training, holding actions and addresses by leaders to employees.

IT managers can use ECDS for scaling of a streaming video without the appeal to a multicasting. For example, instead of transfer of ten video flows to ten users working at one office, ECDS will send only one flow there. It automatically will be separated and be transferred in office to each addressee separately. Such method increases quality of video services and minimizes the need for bandwidth.

Besides, ECDS increases "intellectuality" of network, allowing to cache and prepozitsionirovat content effectively. Video content delivered on demand: video records for training of employees, the written negotiations in the telepresence system, etc., - it is possible to transfer on a global network in offpeak hours for local caching and a subsequent delivery to a great number of users. This function allows the solution ECDS to minimize the traffic volume connected with transfer of often required video records. Delays during the loading and video playback are as a result reduced.

Three options of implementation of ECDS are offered:

• based on the hardware network device Cisco Media Delivery Engine 1100 for 500 at the same time working users,
• based on the hardware network device Cisco MDE 3100 for 5000 at the same time working users and
• based on program virtual a blade server of Cisco MDE 50WVB supporting up to 200 at the same time working users on the Cisco WAAS device.

All three products ECDS are completely compatible among themselves and ready to delivery of video on demand without deceleration of the crucial business applications and forward video broadcastings (including Cisco TelePresence™ sessions) which are at the same time working in the same network. It is one more example of how the architecture of Cisco Borderless Networks ("Networks without borders") freely supports video and other applications in the safe mode, providing the highest level of information security and reliability at which many IT departments aim.

Ample opportunities of integration allow the ECDS system to interact with Cisco WAAS devices for the benefit of optimization of global networks or to function as the independent solution for optimization of video. Besides, customers can set only the solution Cisco WAAS for acceleration of applications and scaling of video, or only ECDS if at the enterprise the popularity of video sharply increases and there are urgent problems with scaling of video services. ECDS reliably supports forward video broadcastings and delivery of video on demand in the Flash, H.264 and Windows Media formats and also allows IT heads to plan delivery of video records and to satisfy unplanned increase in demand for popular content.

ECDS helps to increase performance of such applications of Cisco for joint work and video as Cisco Show and Share® (for forward translations and delivery of video on demand) and Cisco Digital Signage (for demonstration of high-quality video on promotional and informational panels). Besides, ECDS supports video applications and terminal units of other producers, including mobile devices and tablet computers.

ECDS interacts with other infrastructure components of architecture of Cisco media networks, such as Cisco MXE Media Experience Engines and Cisco TelePresence Content Server, supporting all worker thread from creation of video content before management, delivery and joint viewing.

The solution ECDS is available to the order in all countries at the price from 4.395 US dollars.