Network traffic has grown exponentially over the last several years, and this trend is expected to continue into the foreseeable future. By 2016, there will be 19 billion networked devices, up from 10 billion in 2011. Business IP traffic is expected to reach 13.1 exabytes per month in 2016^[1]. Networks must be capable of scaling well beyond the needs of today to deal with the traffic of tomorrow while at the same time providing investment protection.

With this in mind, Cisco is introducing the Cisco^® Catalyst^® 6807-XL Modular Switch for the next-generation campus. The Cisco Catalyst 6807-XL Modular Switch is built on the rich Cisco DNA of the Cisco Catalyst 6500 Series Switch and provides high levels of scalability and performance. The Cisco Catalyst 6807-XL Modular Switch provides unprecedented investment protection for migrations and upgrades from the Cisco Catalyst 6500-E Series Switch.

The Cisco Catalyst 6807-XL chassis (Figure 1) is built to be capable of delivering up to 11.4 Terabits per second (Tbps) of system bandwidth capacity and up to 440 Gigabits per second (Gbps) of per-slot bandwidth. In a system configured for VSS, this translates to a system capacity of up to 22.8 Tbps. With the Supervisor Engine 6T and latest generation of line cards, the 6807-XL chassis supports a maximum of 160 Gigabits per second (Gbps) of per slot bandwidth. The Cisco Catalyst 6807-XL Modular Switch is optimized for high-density 10 Gigabit Ethernet and capable of supporting 40 Gigabit Ethernet.

The Cisco Catalyst 6807-XL chassis provides superior investment protection by supporting the Supervisor Engine 6T, Supervisor Engine 2T and associated line cards and service modules. Refer to Table 2 for the complete list of modules supported.

The Cisco Catalyst 6807-XL chassis offers integrated resiliency by providing 1+1 supervisor engine redundancy, redundant fans, and N+1 power supply redundancy, thereby limiting network downtime and making sure of workforce productivity, customer satisfaction, and profitability.

Figure 1.           

Cisco Catalyst 6807-XL chassis

Features and Benefits

The Cisco Catalyst 6807-XL Modular Switch is ideally suited for enterprise core and aggregation environments and offers industry-leading Gigabit Ethernet, 10 Gigabit Ethernet. The platform is also ready to support 40 Gigabit Ethernet.

The Cisco Catalyst 6807-XL Modular Switch is built on the Cisco Catalyst 6500 Cisco DNA and runs the same Cisco IOS^® Software operating system as the Cisco Catalyst 6500 Series Switches. At FCS the switch will support all the features supported on the Cisco Catalyst 6500-E Series Switch.

At 10 rack unit, the Cisco Catalyst 6807-XL chassis is smaller than the Cisco Catalyst 6506-E chassis while providing an extra slot. This coupled with support for the Supervisor Engine 6T, Supervisor Engine 2T and its family of line cards means upgrading the campus backbone can be done with simplicity, speed, and full investment protection.

Table 1 lists the Cisco Catalyst 6807-XL chassis features and benefits.

Table 1.             Cisco Catalyst 6807-XL Chassis Features and Benefits

Product Specifications

Table 2 lists the Cisco Catalyst 6807-XL product specifications.

Table 2.          Product Specifications

Ordering Information

Table 3 lists the ordering information for the Cisco Catalyst 6807-XL chassis. To place an order, visit the Cisco ordering homepage.

Table 3.          Ordering Information

 2 of 6807XL, 20 to 40 of 3850, up to 80 of 10G Optics # C6807-3850-10G-BUN