Cisco ACI Hardware Lab on Sandbox

[Va.8427]

Hi there.

It's been a while since the ACI Hardware Lab on Devnet Sandbox was unavailable. An explanation is given as "Contains a resource(s) that is currently unavailable". 

I haven't found any ACI hardware Lab elsewhere. Does anyone know how long it will take for this lab to reactivate?

I have a session about two weeks later.

[Sergiu.Daniluk]

Hi,

I doubt there are any available ACI hardware labs since these are difficult to maintain. Plus, there are so many N9K leaf/spine switches platforms that will be difficult to please everyone. Is there a specific reason why you need the hw? 

On https://dcloud.cisco.com/ you have a lot of labs, but all of them are using APIC simulator.

Cheers,

Sergiu

[Va.8427]

Hi.

Yes I know Cisco dCloud platform and I've worked with ACI Labs already on there. As you said, Unfortunately all of them use ACI Simulator, which means you will not be able to have a real test with them. For instance, After you have integrated APIC and vCenter together, You need to configure Fabric access policies and then APIC will be able to learn Virtual machines dynamically as Endpoints within user-defined EPGs. Now, you can test Contracts, Implementing L4-L7 Service graph, PBR and so on.

As far as I know, With ACI Simulator you can only be familiar with ACI Technology. 

[Va.8427]

The INE offers ACI Hardware lab but unfortunately does not have a variety of rental conditions. (Only weekly rent with 850 tokens). That's possible only if you are sure there will be nothing else to do all around the week, Otherwise your money is wasted. 

[Claudia de Luna]

Hi @Va.8427 

I also often find I need a physical lab rather than a simulator and did a fair amount of research on this.  The link below has more informations.

https://gratuitous-arp.net/the-hunt-for-a-cisco-aci-lab/

[Claudia de Luna]

HI Sergiu,

This is a pretty common issue.  The simulators are great and I'm very appreciative of the Sandbox and DCloud but without a data plane the simulators are not suitable for actual testing.  That is made very clear so no issue there but at some point you need to test out actual endpoints, endpoint learning, contracts (not creating them which the simulators do very well but using them), etc.  If you are an enterprise trying to determine if a design will work for you the way you need it to before investing in ACI, or a consultant (like me) who wants to show say a hitless fabric upgrade to a client while maintaining pings across the fabric from endpoints, or test VPC connections or actual routing you need the hardware.  

I list a handful of providers in the link I shared that I would use.   I have actually used two and been pretty pleased.  There are others which I listed for completeness but they seem sketchy and have been non-responsive.

I've looked at the lab kits and a mini but those are still out of my price range so I periodically look around to see who might be offering labs.

[Sergiu.Daniluk]

Hi Claudia,

I read the article you wrote and, I totally agree with you. For a consultant (I include myself in this category) who needs to demonstrate different features/scenarios and show how the technology actually works in practice, you absolutely need the hardware and traffic passing through the fabric. I must admit, myself I was quite lucky and privileged to have the hardware available at my job, and not being in the need to search for a ACI LAB provider. So yes, kudos for listing up the table with providers and share your feedback about each of them. I am sure a lot of people will find it super helpful. ^_^

On the other hand, for someone who is new to ACI and just want to get familiar or learn the technology, the available dCloud or devnet sandbox labs, where ACI simulator is being used, is more then enough. You can learn anything from basics of the ACI constructs, to advanced features, integrations and automation.

For an enterprise interested in buying ACI, they will always get demos and/or POCs at their local Cisco team.

Cheers,

Sergiu

[Va.8427]

Hi.

I've ordered Cisco ACI for Our Company and we are going to implement ACI Multi-Site. Naturally, it is necessary to perform real tests on how to implement this technology before the equipment arrives. 

[Claudia de Luna]

Hi @Va.8427   For multi site I would suggest starting with Blue Sodium. If you want to reach out to me privately I can give you some contact information.  I am not affiliated with them nor have I rented their labs but they were quite responsive, asked the right questions, and indicated they could support MultiSite.

[Sergiu.Daniluk]

Hi @Va.8427 

Niceee! I am sure you will have a lot of fun with your new Multi-Site fabric! (in the good way)

Well, have you tried asking your local Cisco account team? They will most likely help you with some real hardware :-) If you don't have any success there, you should check Claudia's blog.

If you face any challenges with the Multi-Site or you find something interesting, let us know!! 

Cheers,

Sergiu