what do they mean by "720"

[banajahm]

hi,

i have been reading about the sup720 for catalyst 6500 switches. i know that the backplane bandwidth can reach 720Gbps. BUT where is this bandwidth distributed (among the line cards that is)? do the cards share this bandwidth or is there a certain amount dedicated to each slot.

any clarification is appreciated.

cheers

[mhussein]

Each line card can get up to 40Gbps of bandwidth depending on whether the card is switch fabric enabled or not. Some cards have one connection to the switch fabric and one connection to the data bus (32Gbps), the 2nd-generation fabric cards have 2 connection to the switch fabric.

Check the switch fabric architecture:

http://www.cisco.com/en/US/products/hw/switches/ps700/products_tech_note09186a00801c6652.shtml#SFM_arch

Keep in mind that the 720 is a combination of MSFC3, PFC3, and a 720Gbps crossbar switch fabric:

http://www.cisco.com/en/US/products/hw/switches/ps708/products_data_sheet09186a0080159856.html

Regards

Mustafa