e Lenovo ThinkSystem NE2572 RackSwitch is designed for the data center and provides 10 Gb/25 Gb Ethernet connectivity with 40 Gb/100 Gb Ethernet upstream links. It is ideal for big data, cloud, and enterprise workload solutions. It is an enterprise class Layer 2 and Layer 3 full featured switch that delivers line-rate, high-bandwidth switching, filtering, and traffic queuing without delaying data. Large data center-grade buffers help keep traffic moving, while the hot-swap redundant power supplies and fans (along with numerous high-availability software features) help provide high availability for business sensitive traffic.

This product guide provides essential technical and pre-sales information on the NE2572 RackSwitch, its key features and specifications, components and options, and configuration guidelines.

This guide is intended for technical specialists, sales specialists, sales engineers, IT architects, and other IT professionals who want to learn more about the NE2572 RackSwitch and consider its use in IT solutions.

Changes in the September 27 update:

• Clarified port speeds on the SFP28/SFP+ ports

Introduction

The Lenovo ThinkSystem NE2572 RackSwitch is designed for the data center and provides 10 Gb/25 Gb Ethernet connectivity with 40 Gb/100 Gb Ethernet upstream links. It is ideal for big data, cloud, and enterprise workload solutions. It is an enterprise class Layer 2 and Layer 3 full featured switch that delivers line-rate, high-bandwidth switching, filtering, and traffic queuing without delaying data. Large data center-grade buffers help keep traffic moving, while the hot-swap redundant power supplies and fans (along with numerous high-availability software features) help provide high availability for business sensitive traffic.

The NE2572 RackSwitch has 48x SFP28/SFP+ ports that support 10 GbE SFP+ and 25 GbE SFP28 optical transceivers, active optical cables (AOCs), and direct attach copper (DAC) cables. The switch also offers 6x QSFP28/QSFP+ ports that support 40 GbE QSFP+ and 100 GbE QSFP28 optical transceivers, active optical cables (AOCs), and direct attach copper (DAC) cables. The QSFP28/QSFP+ ports can also be split out into four 10 GbE (for 40 GbE QSFP+) or 25 GbE (for 100 GbE QSFP28) connections by using breakout cables.

The NE2572 RackSwitch is ideal for latency sensitive applications, such as high-performance computing clusters and financial applications.

The NE2572 RackSwitch is shown in the following figure.


Figure 1. Lenovo ThinkSystem NE2572 RackSwitch

Did you know?

With exceptional port density and flexibility with break-out cables, the NE2572 RackSwitch can support up to 72x 10 GbE / 25 GbE Ethernet connections or a mix of 10 GbE / 25 GbE server and storage connections with 40 GbE or 100 GbE upstream network connections in a 1U rack form factor.

The NE2572 RackSwitch runs the Cloud Networking Operating System (CNOS) that provides a simple, open and programmable network infrastructure with cloud-scale performance. It delivers a software-defined Ethernet solution that is simple to manage and easy to deploy using common management tools, and it enables support of automation and orchestration applications for tight integration into the data center ecosystem.

Key features

The NE2572 RackSwitch runs the Cloud NOS that provides a simple, open and programmable network infrastructure designed to scale for your business needs. Its intelligent, cloud-scale performance delivers a software-defined Ethernet solution that is simple to manage and easy to deploy using common management tools. Cloud NOS is based on open, industry standards for better data center interoperability, and it enables support of automation and orchestration applications for tight integration into the data center ecosystem.

With its high-performance architecture and support for an extensive set of routing protocols, Cloud NOS provides reliable, high-performance fabric for traditional, converged and hyperscale solutions. Cloud NOS can help you consolidate server and storage networks into a single fabric. Converged Enhanced Ethernet delivers value for your iSCSI and NAS enterprise storage environments.

The NE2572 RackSwitch is considered particularly suited for the following environments:

• Mixed 10 GbE and 25 GbE server and storage connectivity with 40 GbE and 100 GbE upstream aggregation
• Cloud and virtualization solutions with VM-aware network automation and integration into Lenovo and third-party IT and cloud infrastructure management tools
• Converged SAN and LAN network via NAS and iSCSI storage connectivity
  • Reduced I/O cost (CAPEX) with fewer adapters and cables to purchase
  • Reduced complexity (OPEX) with fewer components to manage and lower energy cost
• Web-scale and hyperconverged solutions
• Applications demanding better performance and lower latency

The NE2572 RackSwitch offers the following features and benefits:

• High performance

  The 10 Gb/25 Gb Ethernet NE2572 RackSwitch with 40 Gb/100 Gb Ethernet uplinks provides a combination of low latency, non-blocking line-rate switching, and ease of management with 3.6 Tbps throughput.

• Lower power and better cooling

  The front-to-rear or rear-to-front cooling design of the NE2572 RackSwitch reduces data center air conditioning costs by having airflow match the servers in the rack. In addition, variable speed fans help reduce power consumption.

• Layer 3 functionality

  The NE2572 RackSwitch includes Layer 3 functionality, which provides security and performance benefits, as inter-VLAN traffic stays within the switch. This switch also provides the full range of Layer 3 protocols from static routes for technologies, such as Open Shortest Path First (OSPF) and Border Gateway Protocol (BGP) for enterprise customers.

• Converged fabric

  The NE2572 RackSwitch supports Converged Enhanced Ethernet (CEE) which helps enable customers to combine storage, messaging traffic, VoIP, video, and other data on a common data center lossless Ethernet infrastructure. As a result, customers can deploy a single server interface for multiple data types, which can simplify the deployment and management of server network connectivity while maintaining the high availability and robustness that is required for storage transactions.

• Fault tolerance

  The NE2572 RackSwitch offers redundant hot-swap hardware components, learns alternate routes automatically, and performs faster convergence if there is a link, switch, or power failure.

• Seamless interoperability

  RackSwitch switches perform seamlessly with other vendors' upstream switches.

• Automated VM-aware network provisioning

  The Lenovo CNOS Network Policy Agent, a ThinkAgile Network Orchestrator feature, gives increased visibility of the virtual infrastructure, including VM and virtual network information. It provides automated VM-aware provisioning by automatically configuring VLANs in the physical network based on the auto-discovered virtual network topology. The agent also performs ongoing dynamic updates to the physical network configuration in response to new VMs, updated VMs, and deleted VMs and virtual networks, eliminating errors with manual configuration.
  Note: The Network Policy Agent works with the Nutanix Acropolis Hypervisor (AHV) and Nutanix Acropolis software version 5.0.2 or higher.

• Pro-active congestion monitoring

  Telemetry enables continuous monitoring of networking devices to detect potential congestion problems, such as packets dropped by the switch when ports are being used close to their line rate or switch buffers are being temporarily overflown (for example, in case of microbursts).

• Zero Touch Provisioning

  Zero Touch Provisioning (ZTP) enables a switch to automatically provision itself using the resources available on the network, without manual intervention. ZTP automatically handles the process of upgrading the switch software image and installing configuration files.

• Python Scripting

  Network administrators can create and execute local Python scripts on switches to make small programs that allow a switch to automatically provision itself, perform fault monitoring, upgrade the image files, or auto-generate configuration files. Administrators can also implement version control systems, automatically generate alerts, create custom logging tools, and automate the management of network devices.

• REST API Programming

  The Lenovo REpresentational State Transfer (REST) Application Program Interface (API) enables network administrators to remotely configure and manage a Lenovo switch using REST and HyperText Transfer Protocol (HTTP). It also allows switch management integration into management applications, such as Lenovo xClarity.