Extreme Networks ExtremeSwitching VSP 7254XTQ 52-port Ethernet Switch

Overview:

The Extreme Virtual Services Platform 7200 Series are space-efficient, highperformance Ethernet switches, delivering wire-speed 10 and 40 Gigabit Ethernet connectivity. They are ideally suited to deliver high-speed Ethernet connectivity in a Top-of-Rack (ToR) role. Additionally, they provide a cost-effective 10 Gigabit Ethernet fan-out capability for existing Core Switch deployments, saving valuable ports and slots. Featuring dual, hot-swappable AC or DC power supplies and fans, the VSP 7200 is an important addition to a network manager’s toolkit for creating always-on high-performance solutions.

The VSP 7200 series comes in 2 variants:

• 7254XTQ with 48 x 10BASE-T copper ports, plus 6 x 40 Gigabit QSFP+ ports
• 7254XTQ port-licensed model with 24 x 10GBASE-T ports and 4 x 40GB QSFP+ ports initially enabled for operation

The VSP 7200 port-licensed models have the same physical configuration as nonport licensed models and can later be upgraded to the full port capacity of the unit – offering a flexible pay as you grow option for your deployment. The VSP 7200 also offers both front-to-back and back-to-front airflow options providing flexibility to conform to a variety of hot-aisle/cold-aisle design requirements.

VSP 7254XTQ Overview

The Extreme Virtual Services Platform 7254XTQ Ethernet Switch provides a total of 54 ports, configured as 48 ports of 10 Gigabit Ethernet, presented as RJ45 ports, and 6 ports of 40 Gigabit Ethernet, presented as QSFP+ sockets. The innovative design leverages an advanced chipset, featuring 2.56Tbps of switching and 1,428Mpps of frame forwarding performance.

It should be noted that the 40 Gigabit Ethernet QSFP+ ports support Channelization and can therefore be individual sub-divided into four 10 Gigabit Ethernet channels. Additionally, the 10 Gigabit RJ45 ports also support 100/1000Mbps connectivity.

Features and Capabilities

• Non-blocking, wire-speed switching architecture.
• Integrated design that is optimized for low latency.
• Flexible table architecture delivers MAC, ARP, and IP Routing scalability.
• Feature-rich support for conventional VLAN, Multi-Link Trunking, Spanning Tree technologies.
• Support for IP Routing techniques including Static, RIP, OSPF, eBGP, BGP+, ECMP, DvR/VRRP, PIM-SM/SSM, and VRF. Additionally, supports Static, RIPng, OSPFv3, BGPv6 Peering, ECMP, VRRP, and VRF for IPv6 deployments.
• Extreme Distributed Top-of-Rack technology scales up to 512 nodes: supporting up to 24,576 ports of 10 Gigabit and up to 3,076 ports of 40 Gigabit, and a virtual backbone of up to 122.88Tbps capacity.
• Extreme Networks Fabric Connect technology supports L2 Virtual Service Networks (VSNs), Layer 3 Virtual Service Networks, Inter-VSN Routing, IP Shortcut Routing, IP Multicast-over-Fabric Connect, Fabric Attached Server, Fabric Extend, Switched UNI, and Zero-Touch Fabric Connect.
• Extreme Switch Cluster technology supports Triangle and Square configurations, with both Layer 2 and Layer 3 functionality.
• MACsec and Enhanced Security Mode options.

High-Availability Power and Cooling

• Up to 2 field-replaceable, hot-swappable AC or DC internal Power Supplies
• 3 field-replaceable Fan Modules, with both Front-toBack and Back-to-Front airflow options supported

Software Licensing

• Base Software License, included with hardware purchase, enables most features with the exception of those specifically noted an enabled by the Premier Software License.
• Premier Software License, an optional accessory, enables the following features: Layer 3 Virtual Service Networks, DvR, VXLAN Gateway, >24 VRFs, and – where local regulations permit – MACsec3.
• Port License, an optional accessory, fully enables all 10 and 40 Gigabit Ethernet interfaces on those units originally purchased as Port-Licensed. This license is independent of, and can be used in conjunction with, the Premier Software License.

Features:

Extreme Distributed Top-of-Rack: Creating the LatencyReduced Network

The VSP 7200 is an integral compone

nt of our Fabric Connect strategy for end-to-end Shortest Path Bridgingbased virtualized network. We are able to leverage the Fabric Connect technology to flexibly mesh multiple VSP 7200s to deliver multi-hop, low-latency for deployment scenarios that call for massive scale-out.

Extreme has architected the Distributed ToR solution to scale up to many hundreds of Switches within a single domain, with the current implementation supporting up to 512 Switches networked as a single logic Fabric. This capability delivers scale of up to 24,576 wire-speed 10 Gigabit Ethernet ports, and up to 3,072 ports of 40 Gigabit, equating to a virtual backplane capacity of 122.88Tbps. An agile building-block approach delivers extreme flexibility, with no hard-and-fast topology constraints; blocks can be small or large, and individual Switches easily interconnected with extended-reach copper or fiber cabling.

Extreme Switch Cluster: Improving Resiliency, Enhancing Availability

Extreme Networks’ Switch Cluster is a pioneering highavailability technology. Creating a single, unified, logical Core from two physically independent Switches—clustering them — ensures that no one single point-of-failure can disrupt dual/multi-homed connectivity. The Switch Cluster technology is built using the Split MultiLink Trunking protocol that is unique to our products, yet is fully interoperable with third party Switches, Servers, Appliances, and Routers.

Extreme’s Switch Cluster technology delivers a level of network resiliency that also facilitates in-service maintenance. The deterministic nature of Switch Cluster empowers network operators to compartmentalize the network, making essential services even more resilient, and allowing for individual failures to be repaired in real-time, without service restoration work impacting on collateral components or applications.

Extreme Fabric Connect: Replacing Complexity with Capability

Traditionally, to provision new services or to change existing ones, engineers are required to touch every device in the service path, configuring every device to enable both the active and redundant links. The bigger the network the more complex and risky this becomes.

The Extreme Fabric Connect technology is based on an extended implementation of the Shortest Path Bridging (SPB) standards of IEEE 802.1aq and IETF RFC 6329, augmented with custom enhancements that deliver Enterprise-specific optimization. It offers the ability to create a simplified network that can dynamically virtualize elements to empower efficient provisioning and utilization of resources. This can reduce the strain on the network and IT personnel.

Fabric Connect has garnered a well-earned reputation for simplifying how networks are built and improving how they are run. Independent research reports that Fabric Connect deployments feature up to 91% less implementation time, up to 66% change less wait time, and an 85% reduction in both configuration and troubleshooting times. Similarly, Fabric Connect delivers enhanced resiliency, with failover times more than 2,500x better, and outages caused by human error virtually eliminated.

Extreme Fabric Attach: The Missing Link for Service Automation

Extreme has developed Fabric Attach, a standards-based capability that facilitates the automatic attachment of endpoint devices. Businesses can leverage Fabric Attach to dynamically deploy end-points.

Fabric Attach streamlines the deployment of networking devices, compute resources and Internet of Things (IoT) end-point devices delivering substantial operational benefits. End-point devices can be deployed in realtime, without the need for IT intervention and manual configuration. Replacing static network device configuration with dynamic programming reduces overall complexity in the network and has a corresponding benefit in reducing the risk of outage.

Extreme Fabric Extend: Taking Benefits to a Broader Audience

With Extreme’s Fabric Extend technology, businesses can fully integrate remote locations with the Fabric Connect cloud. Fabric Extend enables Fabric Connect connectivity across IP-based topologies such as MPLS and Optical Ethernet. Fabric Extend is a versatile technology that can deliver VLAN and VRF extension, Layer 2 and Layer 3 Huband-Spoke networking, and site interconnect for dispersed Campus and Data Center locations.

Fabric Extend is supported natively on VSP 7200, 8200 and 8400 Series products, as well as on the VSP 4000 Series when deployed in combination with the Extreme Open Networking Adapter. It provides flexible and scalable Fabric Connect extension over both private and provider IP infrastructures.

Management

The Extreme Networks VSP 7200 Series can be managed in a variety of ways. Simple on-box management functions are delivered by a web-based GUI and a generic CLI is also available for manual configuration. For centralized management of multiple devices, the Extreme Management Center delivers a comprehensive unified management capability.

This powerful appliance-based solution offers the following functionality:

• Single Pane-of-Glass – A fully integrated suite of tools working together to provide a comprehensive, unified view of the network, streamlining workflows and reducing operational costs.
• Discovery and Visualization – Providing rich network and device discovery and visualization capabilities. Includes the ability to discover network-attached devices, including servers, storage servers, switches, routers, phones, virtual machines and their hosts, plus Extreme Aura applications.
• Fault and Diagnostics – Leverages information collected from the network to determine the most likely cause of network outages, and correlates events to determine affected devices and services.
• Configuration and Orchestration – Facilitates even the most complex of network configurations through simplified, intuitive wizards and easy-to-use templates. Configuration templates are created once, stored, and then conveniently applied in order to accelerate timeto-service and reduce the risk of human error.
• Virtualization Management – Provides insight into the complete lifecycle of virtual machines – activation, migration, and retirement – including the automatic provisioning of those companion networking services needed to parallel VM migrations.
• Performance Management – Delivers tools to monitor, analyze and report application behaviors and their bandwidth utilization trends. Collected data gives valuable insight into traffic patterns, application behaviors, and top talkers. Performance management tools enable capacity planning and change monitoring.

Embedded Network Visibility

The SLX Insight Architecture and SLX Visibility Services deliver a new approach to network monitoring and troubleshooting that makes it faster, easier, and more costeffective to obtain the comprehensive, real-time visibility needed for network operations and automation. This innovative approach provides comprehensive visibility from the network to the workload, and triggers action on the network. These actions can address end-user application or service needs, and provide context-rich data for additional analysis, automation, and reporting. For details, read Visibility in the Modern Data Center with Extreme Networks Switches and Routers.

SLX Visibility Services help simplify network operations with embedded visibility from the physical network to application workloads. By combining physical and virtual network traffic data with overlay and workload information across multiple network layers, this solution enables diverse, rule-based actions to maintain performance and mitigate risk. Other key functions include:

System Compatibility

From a software perspective, the VSP 7200 Series was introduced with the VOSS 4.2 software release; this is, therefore, the minimum level of software available to operate the Switch. The recent VOSS 7.1 release delivers the following enhancements:

• Application Telemetry
• VXLAN Hardware VTEP Configuration and Management using OVSDB

Application Telemetry
Application Telemetry is a unique feature of ExtremeAnalytics that enables the ExtremeSwitching infrastructure to participate in the forwarding and analysis of network application flows. By combining packet flow information from the VSP switch along with deep packet inspection abilities of ExtremeAnalytics, it provides actionable insights into network and application performance. This all without the need for expensive sensors or collectors. With this release, an Application Telemetry agent on the VSP can now work in tandem with ExtremeAnalytics to deliver this granular visibility into application performance, users, locations and devices.