Anchoring the new paradigm of intelligent computing networks: H3C solves network challenges in the era of intelligent computing with the "end-network collaboration" and "DDC" architectures
Recently, the 9th Future Network Development Conference with the theme of "Global Networking, Winning the Future" was held in Nanjing. This globally renowned event in the field of network information, strongly supported by Jiangsu Province and carefully crafted by Nanjing, gathered the Chair of the Internet Research Task Force (IRTF), numerous academicians of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the Chinese Academy of Engineering, corporate representatives, and top experts to discuss the future of network technology and development.
As a leader in digital and AI solutions, H3C Group, a subsidiary of Tsinghua Unigroup, actively participated in the conference, comprehensively presenting its cutting - edge technological achievements in the field of intelligent computing networks. In addition, Qiao Yan, the Senior Vice President of H3C Group and the President of the Network Product Line, delivered a keynote speech at the main forum, clearly outlining H3C's technological path and strategic thinking of "strengthening computing with networks" and promoting the intelligent transformation of the industry in the era of the AI boom.
Qiao Yan, the Senior Vice President of H3C Group and the President of the Network Product Line, delivered a keynote speech
As the scale of AI models has jumped from trillions of parameters to hundreds of trillions or even tens of trillions, far exceeding the growth rate of single - GPU computing power, the large - scale clusters have brought more complex traffic dynamics and the need for multi - brand heterogeneous product - based diversified computing power access.
H3C has deeply recognized that the traditional and fragmented computing and network ecosystems have been broken, and the network must shift from passive carrying to active collaboration. Based on the core concept of "computing power × connectivity", H3C highlighted its innovative practices at this conference to solve intelligent computing problems through end - network collaboration and the DDC (Diversified Dynamic - Connectivity) architecture, providing the H3C solution for building agile, efficient, and secure intelligent infrastructure.
End - Network Collaboration: The Key Path to Unleashing the Potential of Diversified Computing Power
"In the era of intelligent computing, the value of the network far exceeds its 10% share of infrastructure investment. An optimized network can boost the overall computing power business capacity by more than 20% to 30%," said Qiao Yan, the Senior Vice President of H3C Group and the President of the Network Product Line. "The core of network optimization is to make the network actively interact with the end - side (GPUs, network cards) for collaborative scheduling, turning it into a business - carrying network that can smoothly access any computing power."
However, achieving end - network collaboration faces significant challenges. Especially in the context of the diversified development of the domestic computing power ecosystem, how to enable GPUs and network cards of different brands and technical routes to achieve optimal performance in the network is an industry - wide problem. Instead of building a closed "all - in - one" ecosystem, H3C has adopted an open and win - win approach, committed to achieving efficient collaboration of diversified heterogeneous computing power through technology.
H3C's end - network collaboration solution achieves more intelligent network scheduling through the orderly distribution of entropy values and the enhanced CBRC algorithm. Its AD - DC intelligent computing version provides full - lifecycle protection for clusters, reducing the on - line cycle of ten - thousand - card clusters from weeks to days, and supporting automated performance verification and real - time fault monitoring. This solution has successfully run the Llama3 model in joint verifications with more than 50 H3C switches and multiple GPU and network card manufacturers, achieving an average 16% improvement in network performance and a 20% improvement in anti - congestion effects.
Regarding the openness and value of end - network collaboration, Chen Bochao, the Director of the Product Management Department of the Switch Product Line at H3C Group, gave a vivid analogy to 36Kr, clearly explaining the company's concept. "H3C's approach is not a mandatory standard. You can think of it as a 'compatible' solution," he further explained. "It's like a kindergarten that requires children to be 1.2 meters tall to play on a certain facility. Instead of turning away children who don't meet the height requirement, we provide them with a 'hat' so that they can meet the standard."
This analogy reveals H3C's strategic thinking: instead of requiring hardware manufacturers to follow strict proprietary standards, it actively adapts to the diversified ecosystem through its own solutions. As long as network card manufacturers are willing to cooperate openly with H3C and join its collaborative system, they have the opportunity to achieve optimal transmission effects, thus breaking down ecological barriers.
Chen Bochao emphasized that the core lies in the methodology rather than binding to specific hardware. "Regardless of whether it's a switch, GPU, or network card with any chip, as long as it follows this methodology, it can enjoy the value it brings." This is H3C's practical path to solving the problem of diversified computing power access with an open attitude.
DDC Architecture: Cutting - Edge Innovation to Promote Computing Power Decoupling from the Network Bottom Layer
In addition to relying on standard protocols and operation and maintenance software to be compatible with diversified computing power, H3C has also proactively explored root - level innovation to promote computing power decoupling from the network itself. For this purpose, H3C has innovatively launched a new - generation lossless network solution based on the DDC (Diversified Dynamic - Connectivity) architecture, aiming to provide the industry with computing power decoupling and efficient scheduling capabilities.
According to its official introduction, this architecture relies on the cell - forwarding technology to slice data into 512 - byte segments and evenly "spray" them across all paths, completely eliminating the HASH polarization phenomenon and achieving 100% load balancing. More importantly, this architecture reconstructs the slices at the network edge, enabling network cards to smoothly access diversified computing power and eliminating the need for tuning without supporting complex out - of - order reordering functions, greatly reducing the threshold and cost of heterogeneous computing power access.
The performance of this architecture has been verified by authoritative institutions. According to the test report of the Tolly Group, the DDC architecture can increase the effective bandwidth by up to 107% compared with the traditional ECMP (Equal - Cost Multi - Path Routing) protocol. In the demanding All - to - All traffic scenario, the transmission performance is 2.5% higher on average than that of the InfiniBand solution, and it performs better when transmitting large - message data.
The introduction of the DDC architecture is a profound practice of H3C's concept of "strengthening computing with networks". It solves the stubborn problem of diversified computing power cluster access at the network forwarding level, providing customers with greater flexibility and better performance and laying a solid network foundation for building an open, heterogeneous, and efficient intelligent computing infrastructure.
Meanwhile, H3C officially launched the new - generation 800G AI intelligent computing switch, the H3C S9828 - 128EP, at this conference. This product is equipped with the industry - leading 102.4T ultra - high - performance switching chip, features a 4RU compact design, and offers up to 128 800G OSFP full - speed ports, achieving comprehensive improvements in performance, latency, energy efficiency, and operation and maintenance. For the new - generation artificial intelligence and large - scale computing scenarios, the S9828 - 128EP can significantly optimize the intelligent computing network hierarchy, simplify cluster construction, and reduce the total cost of ownership (TCO). At the same time, the product supports low - power LPO/LRO optical modules, is compatible with intelligent switching between liquid - cooling and air - cooling, reduces energy consumption by more than 20%, and through the full - stack implementation of the UEC (Ultra Ethernet Consortium) standard, it can smoothly connect with diversified computing power, further promoting the intelligent computing network to evolve towards greater openness, higher performance, and lower latency.
Building an Open Technological Foundation for a Smart Future
The Future Network Development Conference was a comprehensive showcase for H3C of its cutting - edge thinking, technological strategies, and core products in the field of intelligent computing networks. From leading the practice of "end - network collaboration" to introducing the "DDC" architecture for computing power decoupling, H3C has always adhered to the open and win - win concept, leveraging its profound experience in computing and networking to address the most urgent and practical network challenges in the industry's intelligent transformation.
As Qiao Yan emphasized, "H3C is not a company that just sells concepts. We are a company that actually delivers product solutions and services." This practical and innovative approach enables H3C to combine globally leading chip technology with its strong engineering and product - development capabilities, translating them into solutions that customers can truly use and benefit from.
Looking to the future, H3C will continue to upgrade its "AI in ALL" technology strategy, deepening end - network collaboration and intelligent computing innovation. Its goal is clear and firm: to become a leader in digital solutions in the AIGC era, empower the intelligent transformation of all industries by strengthening the foundation of intelligent connectivity, and ultimately promote the development of new - quality productivity and overall social progress. In the wave of intelligent computing, H3C is using the power of the network to win the future.