Source: Freepik
The ACI User Group came together again this year. This time, the meeting took place at the Bosch IT Campus in Stuttgart from 24 to 25 June 2025. Around 40 participants from the public sector, industry and the IT Center were in attendance. The aim: to discuss current developments, challenges and future topics in the ACI context.
What Is ACI?
ACI stands for “Application Centric Infrastructure” and is a data centre network solution that is used at the IT Center. It forms the basis for the network connectivity of more than 1,500 virtual machines (and bare-metal servers) operated both by the IT Center itself and by its customers.
The ACI architecture consists of three central elements: the “DataCenter-Admin” self-service portal, a network of three redundant controllers and a large number of switches. The “DataCenter-Admin” management platform was developed in-house by the IT Center and enables administrators to manage the infrastructure independently and in a controlled manner. This access allows configurations to be managed centrally via the controllers, which in turn distribute all information to the switches. These take care of routing, switching and firewalling and ensure that data packets are reliably forwarded to the end systems.
Focus: Networks for ML and AI
Source: Own Illustration
This year’s focus was on setting up and operating high-performance network infrastructures for applications in the field of machine learning and artificial intelligence. In particular, the focus was on questions such as:
- Which network protocols are suitable for highly dynamic ML workloads?
- Which concepts can help to organise computing and data paths efficiently?
- How can classic architectures be transferred to the requirements of modern AI setups?
The experts agreed that networks are the backbone of high-performance AI infrastructures. However, many solutions still need to be tested for practical suitability and adapted accordingly.
IPv6 in ACI: IT Center Confirmed in Pioneering Role
Another key topic was the integration of IPv6 in ACI environments. The IT Center has taken on a pioneering role here: We have activated and tested the first functions. The aim is to make productive ACI setups IPv6-capable in the medium to long term. However, the IT Center has already taken this step. This represents an important step towards future-proofing and scalability.
High-Speed Networks: 400G and 800G in View
In addition to the technical focus on ML and IPv6, technological progress in the physical network infrastructure was also on the agenda. The new 400G and 800G per second standards were discussed. These are bandwidths that will play an increasingly important role in modern data centres and core networks in the future.
The participants discussed the requirements that networks must fulfil in order to be able to use such speeds effectively.
Source: Own Illustration
Exchange at Eye Level
As always, the focus was also on sharing experiences. Best practices and lessons learnt were openly shared in various sessions. In addition to the technical depth, the participants particularly appreciated the open, solution-orientated atmosphere of the group.
Outlook
The ideas from the meeting will now be followed up internally and incorporated into current projects and strategic planning. Especially with regard to AI workloads, IPv6 and future network standards, there is a concrete need for action for many organisations.
The next ACI user group is already being planned. We look forward to further exciting discussions and practical developments.
You can find all contributions to past ACI meetings on our blog!
Responsible for the content of this article are Benedikt Paffen and Arlinda Ujkani.
Leave a Reply