Data Sheet
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Configurable: Separately, simplifying the addition of new services
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Interoperable: In the same chassis, providing flexible design options
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Interchangeable: Among Cisco Catalyst 6500 Series systems, simplifying sparing and
network expansion
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Hot-Swappable: Without requiring a chassis to be powered off, providing fast upgrade
and repair
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Upgradable: As newer modules come along, providing investment protection
Cisco Catalyst 6500 Series Hardware-Forwarding Architectures
Cisco Catalyst 6500 Series modules use one of three forwarding technologies, each having a
different architecture with different characteristics and capabilities:
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Cisco Express Forwarding: Scaling to 30 mpps, this technology uses a central Cisco
Express Forwarding engine located on the supervisor engine’s policy feature card (PFC)
daughter card and Cisco Express Forwarding tables located on the supervisor engine. The
supervisor engine makes all forwarding decisions for all interface modules centrally.
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Distributed Cisco Express Forwarding: Suited for the most demanding environments,
this technology uses the distributed Cisco Express Forwarding engine located on the
interface module’s distributed forwarding card (DFC) daughter card and the distributed
Cisco Express Forwarding table, a local copy of the supervisor engine’s central Cisco
Express Forwarding table located on the interface module’s DFC. The interface module
makes all forwarding decisions locally, and provides maximum performance and scalability.
Cisco Catalyst 6500 Series Switching Architectures
Cisco developed the following switching architectures for Cisco Catalyst 6500 Series modules to
allow platforms to scale in any deployment:
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32-Gbps Bus: Allowing access to a central shared bus
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256-Gbps Switch Fabric: Located on the switch fabric module (SFM)
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720-Gbps Switch Fabric: Located on the Cisco Catalyst 6500 Series Supervisor
Engine 720
Cisco Catalyst 6500 Series Modules
Cisco Catalyst 6500 Series interface modules support the following forwarding technology and
switch-fabric combinations.
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Classic Interface Modules: Use the centralized Cisco Express Forwarding engine located
on the supervisor engine’s PFC, connect to the 32 Gbps switching bus only, and forward
packets at up to 15 mpps
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CEF256 Interface Modules: Use the centralized Cisco Express Forwarding engine located
on the supervisor engine’s PFC, connect to both the 256-Gbps fabric located on the
supervisor engine with a single 8-Gbps full-duplex fabric connection and the 32-Gbps
switching bus, and forward packets at up to 30 mpps
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dCEF256 Interface Modules: Use the distributed Cisco Express Forwarding engine on the
DFC (located on the interface module), connect to a 256-Gbps fabric located on the
supervisor engine or a switch fabric module with 16-Gbps full-duplex fabric connections,
and forward packets at up to 210 mpps
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