The Cisco Nexus^® 3264Q Switch is a Low Latency, ultra-high-density, power-efficient, 40-Gbps switch designed for the data center. This compact, two-rack-unit (2RU) model offers wire-rate Layer 2 and Layer 3 switching on all ports with latency between 515-700ns. It runs the same modern Cisco^® NX-OS image that also supports the Cisco Nexus 9000 Series Switches. It provides a comprehensive feature set and simplifies image management. The robust programmability features help enable organizations to run today’s applications while also preparing them for demanding and changing application needs such as big data, cloud services, and virtualization.

The Cisco Nexus 3264Q (Figure 1) is a 40-Gbps Quad Small Form-Factor Pluggable (QSFP) based switch with 64 Enhanced QSFP (QSFP+) ports.

Figure 1.      Cisco Nexus 3264Q Switch

Main Benefits

The Cisco Nexus 3264Q provides the following benefits:

• Wire-rate Layer 2 and 3 switching on all ports^[1]up to 5.12 terabits per second (Tbps) and up to 3.8 billion packets per second (bpps)
• Robust programmability,with support for Cisco NX-API, Linux containers, XML and JavaScript Object Notation (JSON) APIs, OpenStack plug-in, Python, and Puppet and Chef configuration and automation tools
• High performance and scalabilitywith a two-core CPU with 8 GB DRAM making it excellent for massively scalable data centers and big data applications
• Flexibility

◦     Cisco QSFP 40-Gbps bidirectional (BiDi) transceiver technology allows the reuse of existing 10-Gbps cabling, for a smooth transition from 10 to 40 Gigabit Ethernet infrastructure in data centers.

◦     Both fiber and copper cabling solutions are available for 40-Gbps connectivity, including 40G BiDi, 40G active optical cable (AOC), 40G twinax cable, and 40G LR4 optics as well as QSA for 10G connectivity.

• High availability

◦     Virtual PortChannel (vPC) technology provides Layer 2 multipathing through the elimination of Spanning Tree Protocol. It also enables fully utilized bisectional bandwidth and simplified Layer 2 logical topologies without the need to change the existing management and deployment models.

◦     The 64-way equal-cost multipath (ECMP) routing enables the use of Layer 3 fat-tree designs. This feature allows organizations to prevent network bottlenecks, increase resiliency, and add capacity with little network disruption.

◦     Advanced reboot capabilities include hot and cold patching and fast reboot capabilities.

◦     The solution uses hot-swappable power-supply units (PSUs) and fans.

• Modern NX-OS operating system with comprehensive, proven innovations

◦     PowerOn Auto Provisioning (POAP) enables touchless bootup and configuration of the switch, drastically reducing provisioning time.

◦     Cisco Embedded Event Manager (EEM) and Python scripting enable automation and remote operations in the data center.

◦     Advanced buffer monitoring reports real-time buffer utilization per port and per queue, which allows organizations to monitor traffic bursts and application traffic patterns.

◦     EtherAnalyzer is a built-in packet analyzer for monitoring and troubleshooting control-plane traffic and is based on the popular Wireshark open-source network protocol analyzer.

◦     Complete Layer 3 unicast and multicast routing protocol suites are supported, including Border Gateway Protocol (BGP), Open Shortest Path First (OSPF), Enhanced Interior Gateway Routing Protocol (EIGRP), Routing Information Protocol Version 2 (RIPv2), Protocol Independent Multicast sparse mode (PIM-SM), Source-Specific Multicast (SSM), and Multicast Source Discovery Protocol (MSDP).

Configuration

The Cisco Nexus 3264Q has the following configuration:

• 64 fixed 40 Gigabit Ethernet QSFP+ ports
• 2x1/10G SFP+ port
• Locator LED
• Environment LED
• Status LED
• Dual redundant power supplies
• Redundant (3+1) fans
• Lane-selected LED
• One 10/100/1000-Mbps management port
• One RS-232 serial console port
• Two USB ports

Transceiver and Cabling Options

The Cisco Nexus 3264Q has 64 QSFP+ ports. QSFP+ technology allows a smooth transition from 10 to 40 Gigabit Ethernet infrastructure in data centers. This switch supports both fiber and copper cabling solutions.

For low-cost cabling, copper-based 40-Gbps Twinax cables can be used, and for longer cable reaches, short-reach optical transceivers are excellent.

Table 1.       Cisco Nexus 3264Q QSFP Transceiver Support Matrix

^* Coming soon with software release

For more information about the transceiver types, see http://www.cisco.com/en/US/products/hw/modules/ps5455/prod_module_series_home.html.

Cisco QSFP 40-Gbps Bidirectional Short-Reach Transceiver

The Cisco QSFP 40-Gbps BiDi transceiver is a short-reach pluggable optical transceiver with a duplex LC connector for 40 Gigabit Ethernet short-reach data communications and interconnect applications using multimode fiber (MMF). The Cisco QSFP 40-Gbps BiDi transceiver offers customers a solution that uses existing duplex MMF infrastructure for 40 Gigabit Ethernet connectivity. Unlike other existing 40 Gigabit Ethernet solutions on the market, with the Cisco QSFP 40-Gbps BiDi transceiver customers can upgrade their network from 10 Gigabit Ethernet to 40 Gigabit Ethernet without incurring any fiber infrastructure upgrade cost. The transceiver can enable 40 Gigabit Ethernet connectivity in a range of up to 100 meters over OM3 fiber, which meets most data center reach requirements. It complies with the Multiple Source Agreement (MSA) QSFP specification, enabling customers to use it on all Cisco QSFP 40-Gbps platforms and achieve high density in a 40 Gigabit Ethernet network. It can be used in data centers, high-performance computing (HPC) networks, enterprise and distribution layers, and service provider transport applications.

Cisco NX-OS Software Overview

NX-OS is a data center purpose-built operating system designed for performance, resiliency, scalability, manageability, and programmability at its foundation. NX-OS provides a robust and comprehensive feature set that meets the demanding requirements of virtualization and automation in present and future data centers.

The Cisco Nexus 3264Q uses an enhanced version of NX-OS with a single binary image that supports the switch in the both modular (Cisco Nexus 9500 platform) and fixed-port (Cisco Nexus 9300 platform) switches, simplifying image management. The operating system is modular, with a dedicated process for each routing protocol, a design that isolates faults while increasing availability. In the event of a process failure, the process can be restarted without loss of state. The operating system supports hot and cold patching and online diagnostics.

Main switch features include the following:

• POAP automates the process of upgrading software images and installing configuration files on Cisco Nexus switches that are being deployed in the network for the first time.
• Intelligent API (NX-API) provides operators with a way to manage the switch through remote procedure calls (RPCs; JSON or XML) over HTTP/HTTPS infrastructure including NX-API.
• Patching allows NX-OS Software to be upgraded and patched without any interruption in switch operations.
• Line-rate overlay support provides Virtual Extensible LAN (VXLAN) bridging at full line rate, facilitating and accelerating communication between virtual and physical servers as well as between multiple data centers in a campus environment.

Cisco NX-OS Features and Benefits

The software packaging for the Cisco Nexus 3264Q offers flexibility and a comprehensive feature set while being consistent with Cisco Nexus access switches. The default system software has a comprehensive Layer 2 security and management feature set and base-level Layer 3 feature set. To enable advanced Layer 3 IP unicast and IP multicast routing functions, you must install additional licenses. Table 2 lists the software packaging and licensing available to enable advanced features.

Table 2.       Software Packaging and Licensing^*

^* Nexus 3264Q uses Nexus 9000 Licensing scheme. Please refer to http://www.cisco.com/c/en/us/td/docs/switches/datacenter/sw/nx-os/licensing/guide/b_Cisco_NX-OS_Licensing_Guide/b_Cisco_NX-OS_Licensing_Guide_chapter_01.html#con_24753

Product Specifications

Table 3 lists the specifications for the Cisco Nexus 3264Q, Table 4 lists software features and management standards and support.

Table 3.       Specifications

^* Denotes Asic Capabilities. Please refer to Cisco Nexus 3000 Series Verified Scalability Guide documentation for exact scalability numbers validated for specific software releases: http://www.cisco.com/en/US/products/ps11541/products_installation_and_configuration_guides_list.html.

Software Features

Table 4 summarizes the Cisco Nexus 3264Q platform features.

Table 4.       Main Features

Regulatory Standards Compliance

Table 5 summarizes regulatory standards compliance for the Cisco Nexus 3200 platform.

Table 5.       Regulatory Standards Compliance: Safety and EMC

Ordering Information

Table 6 provides ordering information for the Cisco Nexus 3264Q.

Table 6.       Ordering Information

 Nexus 3264Q Switch with 64 ports of QSFP # N3K-C3264Q