Brocade Communications Systems VDX 6940 Datasheet

DATA SHEET
Brocade VDX 6940 Switches
HIGHLIGHTS
•
Transforms networks to deliver cloud
scale, agility, and operational efficiency
with Brocade data center fabrics
•
Offers the market's highest 10, 40, and
100 GbE density in a fixed form factor
•
Meets today's application demands with
high performance and low latency
•
Delivers line-rate throughput for all ports
and packet sizes
•
Fits into any data center design by
leveraging 40 GbE/100 GbE uplinks
and Ports on Demand (PoD)
•
Maximizes network availability with
efficiency and resiliency
•
Supports storage environments with
advanced flexibility
Advanced Features Enable Data Center Transformation
The data center is evolving, driving requirements for infrastructure that
can support dynamic growth in Virtual Machines (VMs), distributed
applications, and Big Data, as well as the transition to cloud-based
computing—without compromising performance. The Brocade
6940 and the Brocade VDX family of switches deliver the performance,
flexibility, scale, and efficiency essential to modern data centers, including
cloud and highly virtualized environments.
Optimizes Scale-Out
Architecture
Brocade VDX switches are designed
to help organizations stay ahead of
application-driven network change by
enabling agile growth through a scale-
out architecture. This approach offers
three key benefits. First, it enables
network expansion as a business grows
over time. Data center administrators
can horizontally scale spine switches as
the number of leaf switches increases.
Second, scale-out architecture also
enables the creation of resilient network
fabrics, eliminating a single point of failure
and potential downtime. Third, and most
important, scale-out network architecture
delivers a compelling economic benefit.
Unlike scale-up, a scale-out model
reduces upfront investment. And by using
high-density fixed switches, it lowers the
Total Cost of Ownership (TCO), reducing
power, cooling, and data center space.
®
Brocade VDX 6940 Switches
The Brocade VDX 6940-36Q is a fixed
40 Gigabit Ethernet (GbE)-optimized
switch in a 1U form factor. It offers
36 40 GbE QSFP+ ports and can be
deployed as a spine or leaf switch (see
Figure 1). Each 40 GbE port can be
broken out into four independent
10 GbE SFP+ ports, providing a total of
144 10 GbE SFP+ ports. Deployed as
a spine, it provides options to connect
either 40 GbE or 10 GbE uplinks from
leaf switches. By deploying this high-
density, compact switch, data center
administrators can reduce their TCO
through savings on power, space,
and cooling.
In a leaf deployment, 10 GbE and
40 GbE ports can be mixed, offering
flexible design options to cost-effectively
support demanding data center and
service provider environments. As
in other Brocade VDX platforms, the
VDX
®