Introduction - Nvidia Spectrum SN2000 Hardware User Manual

Introduction

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NVIDIA Spectrum based 1U switch systems are an ideal spine and Top of Rack (ToR) solution,
allowing maximum flexibility, with port speeds spanning from 10Gb/s to 100Gb/s per port, and port
density that enables full rack connectivity to any server at any speed. The uplink ports allow a
variety of blocking ratios that suit any application requirement. Powered by the NVIDIA Spectrum
ASIC, the systems carry whopping switching and processing capacities in a compact 1U form factor.
Keeping with the NVIDIA tradition of setting performance record switch systems, the
NVIDIA Spectrum-based systems introduce the world's lowest latency for 100GbE switching and
routing elements, and do so while having the lowest power consumption in the market. They enable
the use of 10, 25, 40, 50 and 100GbE in a large scale without changing power infrastructure
facilities.
The NVIDIA Spectrum-based 1U switch systems are a part of NVIDIA's complete end-to-end solution,
which provides 10GbE through 100GbE interconnectivity within the data center. Other devices in this
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solution include ConnectX -4 based network interface cards, and LinkX copper or fiber cabling/
transceivers. This end-to-end solution is topped with NEO, a management application that relieves
some of the major obstacles standing in the way when deploying a network. NEO enables a fully
certified and interoperable design, speeds up time to service and RoI. The systems introduce
hardware capabilities for multiple tunneling protocols that enable increased reachability and
scalability for today's data centers. Implementing MPLS, NVGRE and VXLAN tunneling encapsulations
in the network layer of the data center allows more flexibility for terminating a tunnel by the
network, in addition to termination on the server endpoint.
While NVIDIA Spectrum provides the thrust and acceleration that powers the switch systems, they
get yet another angle of capabilities, running with a powerful x86-based processor, which allows
them to not only be the highest performing switch fabric elements, but also grants them the ability
to incorporate a Linux running server into the same device. This opens up multiple application
aspects of utilizing the high CPU processing power and the best switching fabric, to create a
powerful machine with unique appliance capabilities that can improve numerous network
implementation paradigms. The NVIDIA Spectrum-based 1U switch systems support the Open
Network Install Environment (ONIE) for zero touch installations of network operating systems. While
all Ethernet systems can be purchased preloaded with NVIDIA Onyx (MLNX-OS), the SN2000 switches
are offered with Cumulus Linux as well, and support SONiC (Software for Open Networking in the
Cloud) as an alternative operating system.
For a full list of all available ordering options, see .Ordering Information vAdding_SN2201.
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