In this day and age where “instant gratification” is a requirement and not the norm, it’s quite easy to fall into the trap of thinking the world revolves around one’s own self (present self included). I’ll be the first one to admit there are times when I’m ready to fast pitch my iPhone at a passing bicyclist simply because my Facebook updates aren’t loading fast enough or the PayPal confirmation I am waiting on for my newly purchased ear-hair trimmer is taking longer than two minutes to hit my inbox.
Other than a few milliseconds of inconvenience in my life, nothing of consequence is at stake. Which brings us to the topic at hand: milliseconds. Believe it or not, in the high-risk, high-rewards ecosystem that is Wall Street, milliseconds do matter. One such area where the adage, “take a few seconds to smell the roses” is not applicable is within the volatile world of High Frequency Trading (HFT).
HFT can be best described as a program trading platform that uses powerful computers to transact a large number of orders at very fast speeds while utilizing complex algorithms to analyze multiple markets and execute orders based on market conditions. Unlike regular investing, an investment position in HFT may be held for only seconds, or fractions of a second, with the computer trading in and out of positions thousands or tens of thousands of times a day. Typically, the traders with the fastest execution speeds will be more profitable than traders with slower execution speeds. As of 2009, it is estimated more than 50 percent of exchange volume comes from HFT orders.¹
One of, if not the biggest, issue facing HFT environments is the proliferation of network congestion in today’s cloud-based world. However, it is especially prevalent for latency-sensitive traders dealing in HFT, where seconds of reaction time can mean the difference between a buy or a sell for a trader.
In order to address these non-negotiable requirements, Emulex has engineered a specific solution that eliminates network congestion and latency, addressing the needs of HFT environments. The Emulex OneConnect® 10Gb Ethernet (10GbE) Network Xceleration™ (NX) OCe12000-D adapters, with FastStack™ DBL software delivers industry-leading performance by accelerating User Datagram Protocol (UD) and Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) communication in HFT environments over industry-standard 10GbE network and IP protocols. I encourage you to delve further into the nuances of our HFT solution by reviewing the following release: (Emulex and Gnodal Partner to Deliver Solution for High Frequency Trading Environments)
I feel somewhat cathartic after writing this little blog – much more relaxed and less inclined to throw my iPhone, in fact. I think I’ll go outside and smell the roses now (for a few milliseconds, that is).
In case you are wondering, we will highlight this solution, along with the following joint-solutions with key strategic partners at the Supercomputing event this week Nov. 12 – 15, in Salt Lake City, in booth #632.
High Frequency Trading
Emulex OneConnect 10GbE (NX OCe12000-D adapters, with FastStack DBL software, powered by Myricom, and a Gnodal GS4008 10GbE switch (we announced details of this solution, see here).
The Emulex FastStack DBL network acceleration software combined with Gnodal 10GbE switches, are purpose-built for high performance computing (HPC) environments demanding high throughput in heavy transactional and computational environments, while achieving ultra-low latency processing. For HFT environments, low latency performance has a direct correlation to how fast trades can be executed. Emulex Labs testing revealed that the combination of FastStack DBL and a Gnodal switch provided lower latency by 57 percent in UDP testing, and 47 percent in TCP testing environments, when compared to a standard 10GbE switch. This results in faster transactional performance, which is crucial to the HFT market and any transaction-intensive environment.
Big Data
Emulex OneConnect 10GbE) NX)OCe12000-D adapters, with FastStack™ Sniffer10G software, powered by Myricom integrated with uCIRRUS’s XPRESSmp™ big data analytics solution. (We announced details of this solution, see here).
Using Emulex’s FastStack Sniffer10G software, which feeds data into the XPRESSmp analytical application, allows customers to build real-time analytics of network traffic, such as customer buying patterns. By placing the data management platform in to the network or at the edge, the solution can process data as it is generated, before it is stored. This “live data” enables decision results to be interpreted faster than with traditional big data analytics solutions. This solution will be demonstrated in the Emulex booth at Supercomputing, #632.
AMAX PHAT-Data (Peta-Scale Hadoop Analytics Technology) running Apache Hadoop and Emulex 10GbE NX adapters
This big data turnkey solution is fully integrated, optimized, and easily deployed, enabling rapid implementation of a Hadoop environment in hours rather than months. It’s built on an open architecture design, leveraging commodity hardware with advanced, features, and addresses large unstructured data sets that are difficult to work with when using traditional database management tools. The joint AMAX/Emulex PHAT–Data solution is being demonstrated at AMAX’s booth #2206.
Fast I/O Connectivity for SSD Storage Area Networks (SAN)
Emulex’s LightPulse® LPe16000B series of 16Gb Fibre Channel (16GFC) Host Bus Adapters (HBAs) and DataCore SANSymphony 9 server containing Fusion-io ioDrive2 PCIe-based flash memory streaming video while simultaneously handling live editing. (See our recent release on this joint solution with Fusion-io here),
Emulex LightPulse HBAs deliver unsurpassed performance along with reliability, manageability and low latency that can’t be matched, complementing the persistent, high capacity Fusion-io iodrive2 memory platform and DataCore storage virtualization software. The solution will read uncompressed 1080P video streams (close to 3 GB/s) across the Emulex LPe16002B-M6 16GFC links from the mirrored DataCore backend (two DL380p G8s with two quad-port Emulex LPe12004-M8 adapters and one ioDrive2 DUO and one ioDrive2 each) and then add live editing by shrinking, angling, adding reflection and adding transparency. The joint video streaming solution is being demonstrated at Fusion io’s booth#2201.
We hope to see you at SC12 this week at our booth, #632, or in our partners’ booths for joint demonstrations for the HPC market!
¹Investopedia.com
The purpose of our blog are to facilitate an ongoing conversation on what's going on in our industry, with our partners and customers. We encourage your comments. Your ideas and feedback are what makes our blogs interesting, timely and useful for our readers.
We want to publish your comments, however, all comments are moderated. Offensive, off-topic or fraudulent comments won't be approved. We also expect a basic level of civility; disagreements are expected, but mutual respect is a must. We will not post comments that contain vulgar or abusive language; personal attacks of any kind; or offensive terms that target specific ethnic or racial groups. Comments that make accusations will also not be posted.
By submitting a comment, you agree to these terms; having your name displayed with your comment and that you are 18 years old or older. Your name and personal information will not be used for any other purpose, and your e-mail address will not be published.