Description
Overview of Cisco WS-SUP720 Catalyst 6500 Supervisor 720
The Cisco WS-SUP720 is a supervisor module designed for the Catalyst 6500 series, specifically the 7600 Supervisor 720. This module plays a crucial role in managing and overseeing the operations of a network switch, providing enhanced performance and features.
Purpose of a Supervisor Module
A supervisor module acts as the brain of a network switch, responsible for making decisions, managing traffic, and ensuring the overall efficiency of the network. The Cisco WS-SUP720 serves this purpose in the Catalyst 6500 series.
Understanding the Technical SpecificationsCatalyst 6500 Compatibility
- Catalyst 6500 Series: The WS-SUP720 is specifically designed for compatibility with the Catalyst 6500 series, ensuring seamless integration and optimal performance within this network switch family.
Fast Ethernet Capability
- 100 Megabits Per Second (MBPS) Fast Ethernet: This supervisor module supports Fast Ethernet, providing a maximum data transfer rate of 100 Megabits per second. Fast Ethernet is a standard that enables quick data transmission within the network.
7600 Supervisor 720
- 7600 Supervisor 720: This designation indicates that the supervisor module is part of the Supervisor 720 family, which is a high-performance series known for advanced features and capabilities.
Fabric MSFC3 and PFC3A
- Fabric MSFC3: Stands for Multilayer Switch Feature Card 3, indicating advanced multilayer switching capabilities.
- PFC3A: Stands for Policy Feature Card 3A, which enhances the module’s ability to handle complex policy-based network configurations.
Expansion Module
- The supervisor module includes expansion capabilities, allowing for additional features, ports, or functionalities to be added as needed.
Importance of Catalyst 6500 Series and Fast Ethernet in NetworkingCatalyst 6500 Series
- The Catalyst 6500 series is renowned for its scalability and versatility, making it a popular choice for large-scale enterprise networks. The WS-SUP720 adds advanced supervisory and management capabilities to this series.
Fast Ethernet
- Fast Ethernet provides a significant improvement in data transfer speeds compared to traditional Ethernet, making it suitable for applications requiring quick and reliable communication within the network.
Application in Network SwitchesCore and Distribution Switches
- The WS-SUP720 is commonly used in the core and distribution layers of network architectures. It provides the intelligence and management capabilities required for handling the flow of data through the network.
Enterprise Networks
- This supervisor module is suitable for deployment in large enterprise networks where scalability, high performance, and advanced features are essential for supporting diverse business operations.
Benefits of Cisco WS-SUP720 Catalyst 6500 Supervisor 720High Performance
- The Supervisor 720 series is known for its high-performance capabilities, ensuring efficient handling of network traffic and reducing latency.
Advanced Features
- Fabric MSFC3 and PFC3A enhance the module’s ability to handle advanced features, policies, and routing functions, making it suitable for complex network configurations.
Scalability
- The Catalyst 6500 series, coupled with the WS-SUP720, offers scalability to accommodate growing network demands and changing business requirements.
Redundancy and High Availability Features
The Cisco Catalyst 6500 Series Supervisor Engine 720 (WS-SUP720) is a powerful and feature-rich supervisor engine that is designed for high-performance and high-availability networks. It provides a number of redundancy and high-availability features to help ensure that the network remains operational even in the face of hardware failures or other disruptions.
Redundancy features of the WS-SUP720 include:
- Dual-core processors: The WS-SUP720 features two independent processing cores that can operate in parallel. This redundancy ensures that even if one core fails, the other can continue to handle network traffic and other tasks.
- Dual Route Processors (RPs): The WS-SUP720 supports the use of dual RPs, which can be used to provide redundancy at the supervisor engine level. In the event that one RP fails, the other can take over and continue to handle network traffic and other tasks.
- Redundant Power Supplies: The WS-SUP720 can be configured with redundant power supplies, which can ensure that the supervisor engine remains operational even if one power supply fails.
- Redundant Clock Modules: The WS-SUP720 can also be configured with redundant clock modules, which can ensure that the supervisor engine remains synchronized with other devices on the network even if one clock module fails.
High-availability features of the WS-SUP720 include:
- In-Service Software Upgrades (ISSUs): The WS-SUP720 supports ISSUs, which can allow network administrators to upgrade the software on the supervisor engine without disrupting network traffic.
- Non-Stop Forwarding (NSF): The WS-SUP720 supports NSF, which can allow the supervisor engine to continue forwarding network traffic even during a software upgrade or other disruption.
- Stateful Switchover (SSO): The WS-SUP720 supports SSO, which can allow the supervisor engine to switch over to a redundant supervisor engine without disrupting network traffic.
- Virtual Switching System (VSS): The WS-SUP720 supports VSS, which can allow two supervisor engines to be configured as a single virtual switch, providing increased capacity and redundancy.
Network Management Features
The WS-SUP720 Cisco Catalyst 6500 Series 100 Mbps Supervisor Engine 720 is a high-performance network module designed to provide advanced network management features to large enterprise networks. Some of the network management features offered by this module include:
- Network Monitoring and Troubleshooting: The WS-SUP720 provides extensive network monitoring capabilities that allow network administrators to detect and troubleshoot network problems quickly. It supports several network management protocols such as Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP), Remote Monitoring (RMON), and NetFlow to provide real-time network visibility.
- Quality of Service (QoS): The module supports QoS features to ensure the delivery of high-quality services to critical applications. It provides advanced traffic shaping, policing, and queuing mechanisms to prioritize network traffic and prevent congestion.
- Security: The WS-SUP720 provides robust security features to protect the network from unauthorized access and attacks. It supports several security protocols, such as Secure Shell (SSH), Secure Sockets Layer (SSL), and Virtual Private Network (VPN) technologies to encrypt data transmissions and secure remote access.
- High Availability: The module is designed to ensure high availability of network services. It supports Hot Standby Router Protocol (HSRP) and Virtual Router Redundancy Protocol (VRRP) for failover redundancy, and it also features redundant power supplies and fans to provide hardware redundancy.
- Traffic Engineering: The WS-SUP720 supports traffic engineering features to optimize network traffic and ensure efficient network utilization. It supports Multiprotocol Label Switching (MPLS) to create virtual private networks (VPNs), traffic engineering, and Quality of Service (QoS) capabilities.
- Layer 2 and Layer 3 Services: The module provides Layer 2 and Layer 3 services such as VLANs, Spanning Tree Protocol (STP), and routing protocols such as OSPF, BGP, and EIGRP.
Competitive Landscape and Market Trends
Competitive Landscape:
The WS-SUP720 Cisco Catalyst 6500 Series 100 Mbps Supervisor Engine 720 is a product in the network switches market. This market is highly competitive, with several established players vying for market share. Some of the key players in the network switches market include Cisco Systems, Juniper Networks, Arista Networks, Hewlett Packard Enterprise, Huawei Technologies, and Dell Technologies.
Among these players, Cisco Systems is the market leader, with a dominant market share. The company’s extensive product portfolio and brand recognition have helped it maintain its leadership position in the market. Juniper Networks is another major player in the network switches market, with a strong focus on high-performance networking solutions. Arista Networks is a relatively new entrant in the market but has gained significant market share due to its focus on software-defined networking solutions.
Market Trends:
The network switches market is constantly evolving, driven by advancements in technology and changing customer needs. Some of the key market trends for the WS-SUP720 Cisco Catalyst 6500 Series 100 Mbps Supervisor Engine 720 include:
- Shift towards higher speeds: There is a growing demand for higher network speeds, driven by the increasing use of data-intensive applications such as video streaming and online gaming. The WS-SUP720 supports speeds of up to 100 Mbps, which is suitable for small and medium-sized enterprises. However, there is a growing demand for faster speeds, and vendors are developing products that support speeds of 1 Gbps, 10 Gbps, and beyond.
- Emphasis on security: Security is a top priority for enterprises, and vendors are developing network switches that incorporate advanced security features such as firewalls, intrusion detection, and encryption. The WS-SUP720 supports several security features such as access control lists and port security, but there is a growing demand for more advanced security solutions.
- Adoption of cloud computing: Cloud computing is gaining popularity, and many enterprises are shifting their IT infrastructure to the cloud. This trend is driving the adoption of cloud-managed network switches, which offer greater flexibility and scalability. The WS-SUP720 is not a cloud-managed switch, but Cisco offers a range of cloud-managed switches that are suitable for cloud environments.
- Focus on automation: Network automation is becoming increasingly important, as enterprises look for ways to streamline their IT operations and reduce costs. Vendors are developing network switches that incorporate automation features such as self-configuration and self-healing. The WS-SUP720 does not support automation features, but Cisco offers a range of switches that incorporate automation capabilities.
- Growth of software-defined networking (SDN): SDN is a new approach to networking that separates the network control plane from the data plane, allowing for greater flexibility and programmability. The WS-SUP720 is not an SDN switch, but Cisco offers a range of SDN-enabled switches that are suitable for SDN environments.
General Information about this Cisco WS-SUP720
- Manufacturer: Cisco
- Model Number or SKU# WS-SUP720
- Product Model: 720
- Product Name: Supervisor Engine 720
- Product Type: Supervisor Engine
Technical Information:
- Application/Usage: Data Networking
Interfaces/Ports
- Interfaces/Ports Details: 1 x RJ-45 10/100/1000Base-T Uplink
- Interfaces/Ports Details: 1 x RJ-45 Console Management
Media & Performance
- Data Transfer Rate: 10 Mbps Ethernet
- Data Transfer Rate: 100 Mbps Fast Ethernet
- Data Transfer Rate: 1 Gbps Gigabit Ethernet
I/O Expansions
- Expansion Slots: 2 x SFP (mini-GBIC)
- Expansion Slots: 2 x PCMCIA
Memory
- Memory: 512 MB DRAM Supervisor Engine Installed
- Memory: 1 GB DRAM Supervisor Engine Upgradeable
- Memory: 512 MB DRAM Installed
- Memory: 128 MB CompactFlash (CF) Card Supported
- Memory: 256 MB CompactFlash (CF) Card Supported
- Memory: 512 MB CompactFlash (CF) Card Supported
- Memory: 1 GB CompactFlash (CF) Card Supported
- Memory: 64 MB Boot Flash Installed
Environmental Conditions
- Temperature: 32°F (0°C) to 104°F (40°C) Operating
- Temperature: -40°F (-40°C) to 167°F (75°C) Storage
- Humidity: 10% to 90% Non-condensing Relative Humidity
Miscellaneous
- Compatibility:
- 6503
- 6506
- 6509
- 6509-NEB
- 6509-NEB-A
- 6513
- 7603
- 7606
- 7609
- OSR-7609
- 7613
In summary, the Cisco WS-SUP720 Catalyst 6500/100 Megabits Per Second (MBPS) Fast Ethernet 7600 Supervisor 720 Fabric MSFC3 PFC3A Expansion Module stands as a critical component in network switches, especially within the Catalyst 6500 series. Its compatibility, fast Ethernet support, and advanced features make it a valuable asset for large-scale enterprise networks requiring high performance and scalability.
