Extreme Networks ExtremeRouting SLX 9540

Overview:

With cloud services, 4K HD video streaming, Internet of Things (IoT), and mobile connectivity for billions of devices becoming standard, organizations must modernize the way they communicate and conduct business. In addition to consuming an enormous amount of network capacity, these services increase operational complexity just as organizations are striving to meet customer demands for greater business agility and performance.

To succeed in the digital era, organizations need network platforms that allow them to simplify and speed up operations, without increasing costs. Such platforms incorporate innovative software to analyze and automate network operations, thereby reducing OpEx, and provide flexible deployment options with forwarding performance and scale to dramatically reduce CapEx.

A Flexible, High-Performance Switching Platform

The ExtremeRouting SLX 9540 is designed to cost-effectively deliver the performance needed to address the explosive growth in network bandwidth, devices, and services — today and well into the future. This flexible platform, powered by Extreme SLX-OS, provides carrier-class advanced features that leverage proven Extreme routing, MPLS, Carrier Ethernet, and VXLAN overlay technology currently deployed in the most demanding service provider, data center, and enterprise networks. And it is all delivered through space- and power-efficient forwarding hardware.

The flexible architecture is designed for optimal operations, supporting diverse deployment options — such as data center edge, WAN edge, IXP, and colocation data center deployments — that require deep buffering for lossless forwarding, advanced MPLS, Carrier Ethernet features or VXLAN network virtualization overlays, and greater bandwidth. In addition, the SLX 9540 helps address the increasing agility and analytics needs of digital organizations with innovative network automation, visbility and the Extreme SLX Insight Architecture.

Features:

Deployment Versatility with Ultra-Deep Buffers and MPLS

The SLX 9540 is the industry’s most powerful compact deep buffer data center switch, providing a cost-efficient solution that is purpose-built for the most demanding service provider and enterprise data centers and MAN/ WAN applications. The robust system architecture — supported by SLX-OS and a versatile feature set including IPv4, IPv6, MPLS/VPLS, and OpenFlow forwarding — combines with Carrier Ethernet 2.0 and OAM capabilities to provide deployment flexibility. This enables the SLX 9540 to scale from the data center edge to data center interconnect and MAN/WAN environments.

Designed with state-of-the-art network processor technology, the SLX 9540 has a switching capacity of up to 800 Gbps in a 1U form factor. Advanced hardware with fine-grained QoS support enables full-duplex, highspeed performance for any mix of IPv4, IPv6, and MPLS/ VPLS services.

SLX 9540 hardware is available in multiple configurations enabled through SLX-OS feature licenses. The SLX 9540- 24S supports 24 10 GbE/1 GbE combination ports along with 24 1 GbE ports. The SLX 9540-48S supports 48 10 GbE/1 GbE combination ports along with 6 100 GbE/40 GbE combination ports. Individual SLX-OS software licenses are available to enable all 48 10 GbE/1 GbE and 6 100 GbE/40 GbE ports on the SLX 9540-24S, making it equivalent to the SLX 9540-48S. This approach provides financial and operational flexibility for diverse business and service deployment needs.

Modular, Virtualized Operating System

The SLX 9540 runs SLX-OS, a fully virtualized Linux-based operating system that delivers process-level resiliency and fault isolation. SLX-OS supports advanced routing, MPLS, and Carrier Ethernet 2.0 features. It is highly programmable with support for REST and NETCONF. In addition, SLX-OS is based on Ubuntu Linux, which offers all the advantages of open source and access to commonly used Linux tools.

SLX-OS runs in a virtualized environment over a KVM hypervisor, with the operating system compartmentalized and abstracted from the underlying hardware. The core operating system functions for the SLX 9540 are hosted in the system VM.

This approach provides clean failure domain isolation for the switch operating system while leveraging the x86 ecosystem — thereby removing single vendor lock-in for system tools development and delivery. In addition, it supports a guest VM, which is an open KVM environment for running third-party and customized monitoring, troubleshooting, and analytics applications.

Versatile Compact Switch

Gain flexibility and scale. The SLX 9540 delivers space-, power-, and cost-efficient density along with high performance for data center interconnect, WAN edge, IXP, colocation data center, and metro Ethernet network deployments.

SLX 9540 Architecture

The SLX 9540 architecture is designed to support connectivity needs today and well into the future as bandwidth and application workload requirements change. Extreme Networks offers an array of SLX 9540 configurations with software licenses to help organizations optimize port density and capabilities. These switches leverage the latest Intel x86 CPU and merchant silicon packet processor technology for optimal space, power, and cooling in a highly reliable, carrier-class compact fixed switching platform.

The SLX 9540 delivers:

• Multiple 1/10/40/100 GbE configurations for deployment flexibility.
• Ultra-deep buffers for lossless forwarding in demanding data center and WAN applications.
• Advanced forwarding — including IPv4, IPv6, MPLS/ VPLS, BGP-EVPN, and OpenFlow — to support diverse use cases.
• Extreme OptiScale™ optimizes the programmable hardware and software capabilities of the adaptive SLX 9540 to accelerate innovation and deliver investment protection.

Embedded Network Visibility

The SLX 9540 includes the Extreme SLX Insight Architecture delivered through SLX-OS and SLX 9540 hardware innovation. This new approach to network monitoring and troubleshooting provides a highly differentiated solution that makes it faster, easier, and more cost-effective to get the comprehensive, real-time visibility needed for network operations and automation. By embedding network visibility on every switch or router, the Extreme SLX Insight Architecture can help organizations achieve pervasive visibility throughout the network to quickly and efficiently identify problems, accelerate meantime-toresolution, and improve overall service levels.

Figure 1: The SLX Insight Architecture, inherent in Extreme SLX switches and routers, delivers pervasive visibility in every device for greater insight into network traffic.

The highly flexible Extreme SLX Insight Architecture enables required data to be extracted from the network and optimized locally on-device for costeffective delivery off-device to cloudscale management, operational intelligence, and automation systems for additional analysis, action, or archiving.

As seen in Figure 1, the key components of the Extreme SLX Insight Architecture include:

• Flexible Packet Filtering – The Extreme SLX Insight Architecture begins with flexible packet filtering in the packet processors for each interface. Organizations have access to a rich set of filters for capturing the desired traffic type for visibility processing.
• Guest VM – The Extreme SLX Insight Architecture provides an open KVM environment that runs thirdparty applications and customized monitoring, troubleshooting, and analytics tools. Enabled by SLX-OS, this preconfigured guest VM is on each SLX 9540 Switch. It hosts third-party network operations and analytics applications on every device, extending visibility to the entire network.
• Dedicated Analytics Path – The Extreme SLX Insight Architecture provides an innovative internal analytics path between the packet processor for the SLX 9540 interfaces and the architecture’s open KVM environment running on the dedicated cores of the Intel CPU. This enables applications running in the open KVM environment to extract forwarding data without disrupting the normal operation of the SLX 9540.
• Flexible Streaming – The Extreme SLX Insight Architecture provides flexible streaming options, enabling captured data to be delivered to analytics applications off the platform.
• Dedicated Analytics Storage – The SLX 9540 provides 128 GB of on-device storage dedicated to the Extreme SLX Insight Architecture for applications running in the open KVM environment. This enables real-time data capture for fast and easy access.

Embedded Network Visibility

Keep network traffic and operations running smoothly with pervasive, real-time network analytics, monitoring, and troubleshooting.

Extreme SLX Insight Architecture

The Extreme SLX Insight Architecture delivers dynamic flow identification, intelligent pre-processing, and flexible data streaming capabilities on each router to support key network operations use cases without disrupting network traffic. Use cases include:

• Real-time monitoring
• Overlay and underlay visibility
• Intelligent automation

Extreme Management Center for Insights, Visibility and Control

The SLX family of switches and routers, including SLX 9540 can be managed by Extreme Management Center (XMC). XMC includes a suite of applications, empowering administrators to deliver a superior quality experience to end users through a single pane of glass and a common set of tools to provision, manage and troubleshoot the network. It works across wired and wireless networks, from the edge to the data center and private cloud.

XMC provides a consolidated view of users, devices and applications for wired and wireless networks – from data center to edge. Zero touch provisioning lets one quickly bring new infrastructure online. A granular view of users, devices and applications with an easy to understand dashboard enables efficient inventory and network topology management.

XMC also provides ecosystem integration, includes off the box integrations with major enterprise data center virtual environments such as VMWare, OpenStack and Nutanix to provide VM visibility and enforce security settings. Get more information on Extreme Management Center.