Customer Profile
A US-based OEM offering a broad range of products for data centers, telecommunications, and enterprise networks.
Situation Overview
Seeking to expand its product portfolio, the customer decided to introduce a switch powered by SONiC NOS, an open-source network operating system. This strategic move was driven by SONiC’s flexibility and cost-effectiveness, and ability to eliminate software vendor lock-in – allowing for customization and competitive differentiation. Backed by a vibrant ecosystem and industry leaders, SONiC aligns with the customer’s long-term growth objectives.
To enhance profitability and stand out in the market, the company sought to tailor SONiC with unique features that would set their product apart from proprietary NOS solutions. However, SONiC’s complexity required an experienced team to handle customization, maintenance, and updates – expertise the customer lacked in-house.
Building an internal team was not a viable option due to time and cost constraints. Instead, they needed a reliable partner to deliver a production-ready, customized SONiC distribution efficiently and costeffectively, while maintaining software vendor independence. Their key priorities included:
- Full access to the customized SONiC source code, coupled with knowledgesharing and support to manage basic maintenance internally.
- The flexibility to request additional feature development and Tier 3 support for comprehensive assistance.
- Retaining complete control over their software to ensure long-term autonomy in a disaggregated networking environment.
How PLVision Helped the Customer Achieve Their Business Goals
Recognizing the need for specialized expertise, the customer partnered with PLVision, a networking software product development company and a recognized member of the Linux Foundation, Telecom Infra Project, and Open Compute Project. With extensive experience in SONiC, active contributions to the SONiC community, and a proven track record of serving industry leaders, hyperscalers, switching silicon providers, and innovative startups, PLVision was uniquely positioned to deliver custom SONiC-based distributions tailored to the customer’s use case.
PLVision specializes in developing SONiCbased solutions tailored for OEM and ODM vendors. By integrating SONiC into their hardware and software stack, the customer leveraged PLVision’s expertise to build a sustainable, production-ready SONiC version adaptable to diverse use cases. This flexibility enabled them to expand their target market, increase profitability, and eliminate costly subscription fees or licensing dependencies on third-party vendors.
The project unfolded within PLVision’s standard Product Development Life Cycle (PDLC) framework, encompassing stages from use case definition and analysis to prototyping, product delivery, and postdevelopment support. This structured approach, rooted in open-source product development, ensured faster development with fewer challenges and expenses, delivering a production-ready SONiC configured to address the customer’s specific feature gaps.
The phases included:
PLVision conducted a detailed evaluation of the customer’s business needs, exploring use cases to align SONiC capabilities with project goals. This phase included creating a project roadmap, defining milestones, and setting up demo scenarios to ensure clarity and alignment.
Our expert team developed and validated a prototype, confirming the correct functionality of all components. They also gathered feedback, which proved instrumental in identifying key areas for improvement, further ensuring the solution met the customer’s requirements.
SONiC was enhanced with tailored features, rigorously verified through expanded automated testing using community infrastructure. PLVision ensured seamless integration, while a comprehensive knowledge base was created for efficient lifecycle
management.
PLVision provided essential assistance, including training to help the customer’s team overcome the SONiC learning curve and manage the system independently. Additionally, 24/7 Tier 3 support was offered for ongoing needs, ensuring long-term reliability.
By offloading the initial heavy lifting to PLVision, the customer received a vendor-neutral SONiC distribution faster, with enterprise-level support and maintenance included. This partnership not only delivered the product but also empowered the customer with the skills and resources to sustain it.
Business Results
Through this partnership, the customer successfully took control of a customized SONiC distribution, closing functional gaps and creating a tailored version aligned with their specific product requirements, achieving complete software vendor independence. The switch, powered by SONiC NOS, supports advanced data center technologies like RDMA, ensuring low latency and high throughput for demanding workloads.
Key outcomes included:
- The phased PDLC approach demonstrated effective project management, from initial assessment to knowledge-sharing, ensuring a smooth deployment.
- Detailed documentation and expertise exchange from PLVision guaranteed the solution’s sustained success, empowering the customer to handle basic maintenance independently.
- With PLVision’s ongoing 24/7 Tier 3 support and access to the latest SONiC developments, the customer is well-positioned to adapt to evolving market demands, ensuring the product’s longevity and competitiveness.
Contact Us to Discuss Your Use Case!
Get in touch with our team to define your needs and help you with transitioning from the proprietary SONiC distribution.