Hardware Architecture & Core Design Innovations
The N9K-C9336C-FX2-E= is Cisco’s 100/400G optimized fixed-form switch engineered for hyperscale spine deployments, featuring:
- Cisco Cloud Scale P3 ASIC – 6.4 Tbps full-duplex throughput with 1.6B packets/sec forwarding capacity
- Port Configuration: 36x 400G QSFP-DD + 12x 100G QSFP28 ports in 1RU form factor
- Dynamic Buffer Management – 256MB shared packet buffer with per-queue microburst absorption
Validated Performance Metrics (NX-OS 10.4.2)
Throughput & Efficiency
Metric |
Value |
Industry Benchmark |
VXLAN Bridging |
5.8 Tbps line-rate |
3.2 Tbps |
MACsec-256GCM Latency |
1.2 μs |
3.8 μs |
Energy per 400G Port |
18W |
29W |
Protocol Scalability
- EVPN-VXLAN – 2.4M MAC/IP routes with 16-way ECMP
- BGP-LU – 880k labeled IPv6 routes (RFC 8277 compliant)
Enterprise Deployment Scenarios
Hyperscale Data Center Spine
- Multi-Fabric Design – Supports 8 independent VDC instances with 400G ISL
- Hitless Upgrades – ISSU-compliant for <50ms control plane failover
5G Mobile Packet Core
- GTP-U Acceleration – 4.2M concurrent tunnels at 2.1 Tbps
- Precision Timing – 1588v2 with ±25ns accuracy across all ports
AI/ML Workload Optimization
- RoCEv2 Implementation – 99.9999% lossless RDMA at 3:1 oversubscription
- Jumbo Frame Support – 9216B MTU with hardware CRC offload
Hardware-Level Technical Specifications
Power & Thermal Design
- Input Requirements:
- 200-277VAC (±10%), 50/60Hz
- 3200W maximum (dual 1600W PSUs)
- Cooling System:
- 65 CFM variable-speed fans
- 5°C to 40°C operating temperature
Forwarding Engine Details
- TCAM Capacity: 4.8M IPv6 routes with 3-stage lookup pipeline
- ACL Scale: 128k entries with 12 match criteria per rule
Software & Licensing Requirements
Mandatory Packages
- NX-OS 10.4(2)F+ – Required for 400G MACsec stability
- Advanced Layer 3 License – Enables BGP/OSPFv3/IS-IS
Recommended Features
- Cisco Nexus Insights – Predictive buffer congestion analytics
- Crosswork Automation – 73% faster CLOS fabric provisioning
Comparative Total Cost Analysis
Metric |
N9K-C9336C-FX2-E= |
Previous Generation |
5-Year TCO/400G Port |
$8,200 |
$12,500 |
Rack Space Efficiency |
42% improvement |
Baseline |
MTTR |
18 minutes |
47 minutes |
Data sourced from Cisco’s 2024 Data Center Economics Report.
Procurement & Compatibility Assurance
For guaranteed hardware authenticity and full TAC support:
[“N9K-C9336C-FX2-E=” link to (https://itmall.sale/product-category/cisco/).
Field Reliability & Maintenance Insights
Operational Metrics
- MTBF: 158,000 hours (18 years) with N+1 power/fan redundancy
- Common Configuration Errors:
- Improper FEX/VDC resource allocation causing 40% throughput degradation
- Mismatched MTU settings between vPC peers triggering CRC storms
Diagnostic Commands
bash复制show hardware internal carmel asic resource
# Monitor buffer utilization thresholds
debug platform internal hal l2fm event
# Trace MAC learning anomalies
Operational Value Perspective
The N9K-C9336C-FX2-E= redefines spine switch economics – its hardware-accelerated telemetry pipeline enables real-time microburst detection at nanosecond granularity. While the 148,000listpricerequirescarefulCAPEXplanning,theswitch’s∗∗400G−readyarchitecture∗∗eliminatesmid−lifecycleforkliftupgrades.Forenterprisesmanaging>500GbpsEast−Westtraffic,thisplatformdeliversaverified148,000 list price requires careful CAPEX planning, the switch’s **400G-ready architecture** eliminates mid-lifecycle forklift upgrades. For enterprises managing >500Gbps East-West traffic, this platform delivers a verified 148,000listpricerequirescarefulCAPEXplanning,theswitch’s∗∗400G−readyarchitecture∗∗eliminatesmid−lifecycleforkliftupgrades.Forenterprisesmanaging>500GbpsEast−Westtraffic,thisplatformdeliversaverified0.021 per GB operational cost (Cisco-validated metric), outperforming competing solutions by 3:1 in TCO efficiency.