Cisco Nexus N9364E-SG2-Q Switch

The Cisco Nexus 9364E-SG2 series represents a significant advancement in data center switching, specifically engineered to meet the rigorous demands of modern artificial intelligence and machine learning workloads. As data centers evolve to support next-generation cloud architectures, these switches provide the high-performance, power-efficient, and compact infrastructure necessary for high-density 800G fabrics.

By integrating advanced hardware with robust software capabilities, these platforms offer the low latency, precise congestion management, and deep telemetry required for complex network environments. They are designed to serve as a reliable foundation for leaf and spine designs, ensuring that networking teams can effectively manage, troubleshoot, and analyze their IT infrastructure while maintaining high levels of security and automation.

Product overview

The Cisco N9364E-SG2 is a 2-Rack-Unit (2RU) fixed switch that delivers 64 ports of 800 Gigabit Ethernet, utilizing Cisco’s proprietary Silicon One technology. These switches are available in both QSFP-DD and OSFP form factors, providing the flexibility to support various port speeds, including 400, 200, and 100 Gbps. With a total switching bandwidth of 102.4 Tbps and a 256MB on-die packet buffer, the hardware is built to handle massive data throughput.

Beyond raw performance, these switches are designed for seamless integration with management tools like Cisco Nexus Dashboard Insights and the Cisco Nexus Dashboard Fabric Controller. This ecosystem allows for comprehensive visibility, analytics, and automated operations. The platform also emphasizes high availability through redundant, hot-swappable power supplies and fan modules, ensuring continuous operation in critical data center environments.

Features and benefits

• Architectural Flexibility: Supports standards-based VXLAN EVPN fabrics, multi-site hierarchies, and three-tier BGP architectures for scalable, non-blocking IPv6/IPv4 network fabrics.
• Extensive Programmability: Features Day-0 automation via POAP, support for DevOps tools like Ansible, and industry-standard model-driven telemetry (gNMI/NETCONF/RESTCONF) for enhanced observability.
• AI/ML Optimization: Includes advanced congestion management tools such as Dynamic Load Balancing (DLB), Priority Flow Control (PFC), Explicit Congestion Notification (ECN), and intelligent buffer management to prioritize traffic flows.
• Lossless Transport: Enables RoCE (RDMA over Converged Ethernet) with Data-Center-Bridging (DCB) protocols, including ETS and DCBX, to ensure reliable data delivery.
• High Scalability and Security: Offers flexible forwarding tables supporting up to 512,000 shared entries and robust ingress/egress ACL management.
• Operational Resilience: Utilizes 128-way Equal-Cost Multipath (ECMP) routing to prevent bottlenecks and supports Software-Maintenance Upgrades (SMUs) for rapid defect resolution without full system downtime.
• Integrated Management: Includes access to the Cisco Nexus Dashboard platform, which simplifies operations through integrated automation, analytics, and orchestration services.