N6004EF-4FEX-10G Cisco 24 Ports L3 Managed Switch Chassis

Cisco Nexus N6004EF-4FEX-10G Managed Switch Chassis

Product Identity and Classification

• Brand: Cisco
• Model / SKU: N6004EF-4FEX-10G
• Category: Enterprise-grade Layer 3 managed switch chassis
• Designed for scalable data center and high-density network environments

Hardware Architecture and Physical Design

Chassis and Form Factor

• Rack-optimized 4U enclosure suitable for data center deployment
• Modular construction supporting flexible expansion
• Built for continuous operation with redundant internal components

Installed Components

• 4 × Cisco Nexus 2232PP 10 Gigabit Fabric Extenders
• 64 × 10G SFP+ transceivers (FET-10G)
• High-speed interconnects optimized for low-latency switching

Switching Capacity and Performance Metrics

Throughput and Forwarding Capabilities

• Maximum switching performance up to 7.68 Tbps
• Optimized packet forwarding for demanding workloads
• Engineered to support virtualized and cloud-ready infrastructures

Frame Handling

• Jumbo frame support up to 9216 bytes
• Enhanced efficiency for large data transfers

Port Configuration and Connectivity Options

High-Speed Network Interfaces

• 24 × 40 Gigabit Ethernet QSFP+ ports
• Optimized for spine-leaf and aggregation architectures
• 40GbE subtype ensuring high-bandwidth data flow

Management and Auxiliary Interfaces

• Dedicated management Ethernet port
• Integrated USB interface for local administration

Virtualization, Tables, and Network Scaling

Layer 2 and Layer 3 Scalability

• VLAN support up to 4096 virtual networks
• MAC address table capacity of 256,000 entries
• ACL database accommodating up to 4000 rules

Multicast and Routing Tables

• IPv4 multicast entries: up to 8000
• IGMP snooping entries: 8000
• VRF instances supported: 4000

Advanced Routing Protocol Support

Dynamic and Static Routing Features

• BGP-4 and RIP-2 for wide-area routing control
• OSPFv2 and OSPFv3 for fast-converging internal routing
• EIGRP for IPv4 and IPv6 environments

Multicast Routing Capabilities

• PIM-SM, PIM-SSM, and Bidirectional PIM
• IGMPv2 and IGMPv3 support
• MSDP for multicast source discovery

Additional Network Services

• HSRP and VRRP for gateway redundancy
• Static routing for both IPv4 and IPv6 traffic

Industry Standards and Protocol Compliance

IEEE Networking Standards

• IEEE 802.3 and 802.3ae Ethernet specifications
• IEEE 802.1Q VLAN tagging and 802.1p traffic prioritization
• IEEE 802.3ad for link aggregation (LACP)

Enhanced Traffic Management

• IEEE 802.1w rapid spanning tree
• IEEE 802.1s multiple spanning tree
• IEEE 802.1Qbb and 802.1Qaz for data center bridging

Expansion Slots and Module Flexibility

Slot Availability

• Total module slots: 8
• Pre-installed modules: 2
• Open expansion slots: 6

Maximum Expansion Capability

• Supports full population of all eight slots
• Designed to grow with evolving network demands

Power Architecture and Reliability

Power Supply Design

• Internal hot-swappable power supply units
• Total installed PSUs: 6
• Maximum supported PSUs: 6

Redundancy and Electrical Specifications

• N+N power redundancy for high availability
• Power output per unit: 1100 watts
• Input voltage range: AC 120–230V
• Frequency compatibility: 50/60 Hz

Enterprise-Class Modular Switching Architecture for Scalable Networks

The Cisco N6004EF-4FEX-10G N6004 24 Ports Layer 3 Managed Switch Chassis represents a powerful and flexible switching category designed for organizations that demand scalability, resilience, and consistent high-performance networking. This category focuses on modular Ethernet fabric extenders and chassis-based switching solutions that integrate seamlessly into modern data center, enterprise core, and distribution-layer environments. Built on Cisco’s proven Nexus 6000 Series platform, these switches emphasize predictable latency, advanced Layer 3 routing capabilities, and support for high-density 10 Gigabit Ethernet connectivity, enabling enterprises to build networks that grow with evolving workloads.

This category is particularly relevant for environments where network consolidation, simplified management, and high availability are critical. By combining a compact chassis footprint with enterprise-grade features, the Cisco N6004EF-4FEX-10G class of switches enables organizations to deploy robust network infrastructures while maintaining operational efficiency and long-term investment protection.

Design Philosophy and Modular Chassis Advantages

The modular design philosophy behind the Cisco N6004EF-4FEX-10G category allows network architects to balance density, performance, and expandability within a single platform. The chassis-based form factor supports multiple fabric extenders and uplink configurations, ensuring that network growth does not require disruptive hardware replacements. Instead, organizations can scale by adding compatible modules or extending connectivity to downstream devices while preserving centralized control.

This modularity also contributes to improved fault isolation and maintenance flexibility. Components can be serviced or upgraded without affecting the entire switching system, which is especially valuable in mission-critical enterprise and data center environments. The category emphasizes uptime, maintainability, and lifecycle efficiency, making it suitable for organizations that operate 24/7 networks.

Compact Footprint with High Port Density

Despite its modular capabilities, the Cisco N6004EF-4FEX-10G switching category maintains a compact physical footprint. This is particularly beneficial in space-constrained data centers or wiring closets where rack efficiency is essential. High port density within a relatively small chassis allows organizations to connect numerous servers, storage systems, and access-layer switches without excessive rack consumption.

The focus on 24-port 10 Gigabit Ethernet configurations ensures that this category supports bandwidth-intensive applications while minimizing the need for additional aggregation hardware. As workloads continue to demand higher throughput, this balance of density and efficiency becomes increasingly important.

Energy Efficiency and Thermal Optimization

Energy efficiency is a defining characteristic of the Cisco N6004EF-4FEX-10G category. The chassis and internal components are engineered to optimize airflow and reduce power consumption without compromising performance. Intelligent cooling mechanisms adapt to real-time thermal conditions, ensuring stable operation even under sustained heavy traffic loads.

This emphasis on efficient power and cooling aligns with modern data center sustainability goals. Organizations deploying switches from this category benefit from lower operational costs and improved environmental performance over the lifecycle of the network infrastructure.

Layer 3 Switching and Advanced Routing Capabilities

The Cisco N6004EF-4FEX-10G category is built to deliver comprehensive Layer 3 switching and routing features, making it suitable for core and distribution-layer roles. Advanced routing protocols, hardware-based forwarding, and low-latency packet processing ensure that traffic is handled efficiently across complex network topologies.

This category supports enterprise and data center routing requirements, enabling seamless communication between VLANs, subnets, and external networks. The integration of Layer 3 functionality within the switching fabric reduces the need for separate routing devices, simplifying network design and management.

High-Performance Hardware Forwarding

At the heart of this category is a hardware-accelerated forwarding architecture designed to handle large volumes of traffic with minimal latency. By offloading forwarding decisions to specialized ASICs, the Cisco N6004EF-4FEX-10G class of switches ensures consistent performance even during traffic spikes.

This approach is particularly valuable for latency-sensitive applications such as virtualization, real-time analytics, and storage networking. Predictable performance allows network administrators to design architectures that meet strict service-level requirements.

Support for Dynamic Routing Protocols

The category includes robust support for dynamic routing protocols commonly used in enterprise and data center networks. These protocols enable automatic route discovery, failover, and traffic optimization, reducing the complexity of manual configuration.

By supporting scalable routing designs, the Cisco N6004EF-4FEX-10G switching category helps organizations adapt to changing network demands while maintaining high availability and resilience.

Fabric Extender Integration and Unified Management

A defining feature of the Cisco N6004EF-4FEX-10G category is its seamless integration with fabric extenders. Fabric extenders allow organizations to extend the parent switch’s fabric to remote access-layer devices while maintaining a single point of management. This architecture simplifies network operations by treating multiple physical devices as logical extensions of the main chassis.

Unified management reduces configuration complexity, minimizes the risk of inconsistencies, and accelerates deployment. Network administrators can apply policies, monitor performance, and troubleshoot issues from a centralized interface, improving overall operational efficiency.

Scalable Access Layer Connectivity

By leveraging fabric extenders, this category enables scalable access-layer connectivity without the overhead of managing multiple independent switches. This is particularly useful in environments with a large number of servers or endpoints that require consistent configuration and policy enforcement.

The ability to scale horizontally while maintaining centralized control makes the Cisco N6004EF-4FEX-10G category a strong choice for growing enterprises and data centers.

Simplified Operations and Reduced Complexity

Operational simplicity is a key advantage of fabric-based architectures. The Cisco N6004EF-4FEX-10G category reduces the number of control planes in the network, streamlining troubleshooting and minimizing configuration errors.

This simplification translates into faster deployment times, lower operational costs, and improved reliability, all of which are critical factors for modern IT teams managing complex infrastructures.

High Availability and Resilience Features

Network resilience is a core consideration in the design of the Cisco N6004EF-4FEX-10G switching category. Redundant components, intelligent failover mechanisms, and non-disruptive maintenance capabilities ensure continuous operation even in the event of hardware or link failures.

This category is well-suited for environments where downtime can have significant business impact, such as financial services, healthcare, and large-scale enterprise operations.

Redundant Power and Cooling Architecture

The chassis supports redundant power supplies and cooling components, allowing the system to continue operating if a single component fails. This redundancy enhances overall system reliability and supports maintenance activities without requiring network outages.

Such design considerations are essential for organizations that require uninterrupted network services.

Fast Convergence and Failover

Fast convergence mechanisms ensure that traffic is quickly rerouted in the event of a link or device failure. This minimizes packet loss and maintains application performance during network disruptions.

The Cisco N6004EF-4FEX-10G category’s focus on rapid failover aligns with the needs of high-availability network designs.

Security and Traffic Control Capabilities

Security is an integral aspect of the Cisco N6004EF-4FEX-10G switching category. Advanced traffic control features, access control mechanisms, and integration with broader network security frameworks help protect critical data and infrastructure.

By enforcing policies at the switching layer, organizations can reduce attack surfaces and ensure consistent security posture across the network.

Granular Access Control and Segmentation

The category supports granular access control mechanisms that allow administrators to define and enforce security policies based on traffic type, source, or destination. Network segmentation capabilities further enhance security by isolating sensitive workloads.

These features are essential for compliance-driven industries and multi-tenant environments.

Quality of Service and Traffic Prioritization

Quality of Service capabilities within this category enable organizations to prioritize critical applications and ensure consistent performance. By classifying and managing traffic flows, the Cisco N6004EF-4FEX-10G switches help maintain service quality even during periods of congestion.

This is particularly important for unified communications, real-time collaboration tools, and latency-sensitive workloads.

Use Cases Across Enterprise and Data Center Environments

The Cisco N6004EF-4FEX-10G category is versatile enough to support a wide range of deployment scenarios. In enterprise networks, it can function as a core or distribution-layer switch, aggregating traffic from access layers and providing robust routing capabilities.

In data center environments, this category supports server aggregation, virtualization, and storage networking, offering the performance and scalability required for modern workloads.

Enterprise Core and Distribution Deployments

As part of an enterprise core or distribution layer, the Cisco N6004EF-4FEX-10G category delivers high throughput, resilience, and advanced routing features. This enables organizations to build reliable backbone networks that support diverse applications and services.

The modular design ensures that the network can adapt to growth and changing requirements over time.

Data Center Aggregation and Virtualization Support

In data centers, this category provides the bandwidth and low-latency performance needed to support virtualized environments and east-west traffic patterns. Integration with fabric extenders simplifies server connectivity and management.

This makes the Cisco N6004EF-4FEX-10G category a strong foundation for modern, scalable data center architectures.