Concretization and Morphware Networks

Concretization is the reverse of virtualization: the question becomes one of how to make the move from software to hardware but preserve the same degree of agility as software. This chapter looks at the likely developments in the longer term, with concretization and networks that mutate to suit the clients' needs. Concretization takes the shape of equipment which is almost instantaneously reconfigurable. Even before concretization, one initial solution to speed up the computation of software is represented by accelerators. Reconfigurable microprocessors form a new generation of systems which, in the long term, should come to replace all software elements requiring a little computing power. The virtualization of network equipment has facilitated the introduction of software networks. There are numerous problems that need to be solved, and new ideas have been put forward, including the creation of a software network every time a connection request is made.