100G between Dell and Cisco SW using QSFP-40/100-SRBD

[gthota2342]

We are designing new lab with 100G network Cisco at core level and Dell Switches having either 100G or 40G uplinks at TOR level.  And, want to check if Cisco QSFP 40/100 Gb dual-rate BiDi transceiver  "QSFP-40/100-SRBD=100G and 40GBASE SR-BiDi QSFP Transceiver, LC, 100m OM4 MMF" is compatible with transceivers of below Dell switches I have from Dell so I have either 100G or 40G established between based on the Dell Switch I connect

Core switch: 

N9K-C9336C-FX2 have below transceivers

QSFP-40/100-SRBD=100G and 40GBASE SR-BiDi QSFP Transceiver, LC, 100m OM4 MMF

DELL TOR SWITCHES:

1. S4048T-ON Switch has 40G uplinks and using below transceivers

Part number 407-BBYC

Dell Networking, Transceiver, 40GbE QSFP+ Bidi, 850/900nm, LC duplex, 100m on
OM3 / 150m on OM4

2. S4148T-ON, S5248F-ON, S4148F-ON switches have 100G Uplinks and use below transceivers

Part number is 407-BBYN

Networking,Transceiver,100GbE QSFP28, BIDI, 850/900nm, LC Duplex MMF

* Our Patch panels are LC Type

[balaji.bandi]

i do not see any issue here high level based on technical details, if the cisco port is 40/100G, if you looking to connect 40G, if not working you may need to hard code speed on the port here to work. test wit auto, if not set speed.

[Reza Sharifi]

BiDi optics usually works for connecting only Cisco switches together or FEXs to parent switches. That said, I found this article that describes BiDi as not being proprietary. For testing, I would purchase a couple and test them before getting more, as I am not sure if they will work will Dell servers.

As for the LC patch panel, that is fine, Bidi is LC-based.

● 40-Gbps performance is no longer a luxury. Your servers need it, your applications and users demand it,
and your competitors are working to deliver it.
● You do not have to rewire your data center to get the next level of capacity and performance. Cisco
BiDi technology can deliver 40 Gbps using your existing cable plant.
● Upgrading capacity without having to upgrade cabling is a huge cost savings. You can quadruple the
capacity of a standard server rack with a quarter of the cabling: a savings of $550,000 per rack.
● Those 40-Gbps signals are not proprietary. Cisco BiDi technology produces a normal 40-Gbps signal,
fully compliant with ratified standards and interoperable with any standards-compliant equipment.
● You do not have to get special budget approval or wait until your next major upgrade cycle to get
40-Gbps performance. Cisco BiDi optical connectors cost about the same as standard 10-Gbps optics and
will work with the top-of-rack switches and cable plant you are using right now.

https://www.cisco.com/c/dam/en_us/solutions/data_center/udc/dc-offers/assets/pdf/dc-02-bidi-top-5-article-cte-wp-cmp-en.pdf

[gthota2342]

Hi balaji,

Thanks for the reply. We don't have these combinations in our current labs to test till now. We are planning to buy the cisco switches/transcievers and due to global part shortage, it would be 6 months by the time they arrive. So, if there is a mismatch, we will not have time to rectify.

Cisco Sales cannot commit for other vendors.

Hence, posted the reason to confirm this. 

[manirulislam]

Hi,

Have you faced any issues with compatibility? In my case, it is between Dell Switch Model S5248 with Dell 40G BIDI module did not work with the N9K NXOS mode with Dell 40G BIDI module but it did not work (even with the 'service unsupported-transciever' command in the NXOS mode switches). Now I am trying to arrange 40G BIDI module of Cisco to plug it in the N9K switch to test the compatibility.