Release Notes

Cisco Nexus 3500 Series NX-OS Release Notes, Release 6.0(2)A6(7)
Introduction
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Introduction
Several new hardware and software features are introduced for the Cisco Nexus 3548 switch to improve the
performance, scalability, and management of the product line. Cisco NX-OS Release 6.0 also supports all hardware and
software supported in Cisco NX-OS Release 5.1 and Cisco NX-OS Release 5.0.
Cisco NX-OS offers the following benefits:
■ Cisco NX-OS runs on all Cisco data center switch platforms: Cisco Nexus 7000, Nexus 5000, Nexus 4000,
Nexus 3000, Nexus 2000, and Nexus 1000V Series switches.
■ Cisco NX-OS software interoperates with Cisco products that run any variant of Cisco IOS software and also
with any networking operating system that conforms to common networking standards.
■ Cisco NX-OS modular processes are triggered on demand, each in a separate protected memory space.
Processes are started and system resources are allocated only when a feature is enabled. The modular
processes are governed by a real-time preemptive scheduler that helps ensure timely processing of critical
functions.
■ Cisco NX-OS provides a programmatic XML interface that is based on the NETCONF industry standard. The
Cisco NX-OS XML interface provides a consistent API for devices. Cisco NX-OS also provides support for
Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP) Versions 1, 2, and 3 MIBs.
■ Cisco NX-OS enables administrators to limit access to switch operations by assigning roles to users.
Administrators can customize access and restrict it to the users who require it.
This section includes the following topics:
■ Cisco Nexus 3500 Series Switches
■ Cisco Nexus 3548 Switch
■ Cisco Nexus 3524 Switch
Cisco Nexus 3500 Series Switches
The Cisco Nexus 3500 platform is an extension of the Cisco Nexus 3000 Series of 100M, 1, 10, and 40 Gigabit Ethernet
switches built from a switch-on-a-chip (SoC) architecture. Switches in the Cisco Nexus 3500 series include Algorithm
Boost (or Algo Boost) technology that is built into the switch application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC). Algo Boost
allows the Cisco Nexus 3548 switch to achieve Layer 2 and Layer 3 switching latencies of less than 200 nanoseconds
(ns). In addition, Algo Boost contains several innovations for latency, forwarding features, and performance visibility,
including two configurable modes for low latency:
■ Normal mode: This mode is suitable for environments needing low latency and high scalability.
■ Warp mode: This mode consolidates forwarding operations within the switching ASIC, lowering latency by up to
an additional 20 percent compared to normal operation.
Active buffer monitoring accelerates the collection of buffer utilization data in hardware, allowing significantly faster
sampling intervals. Even on the lowest-latency switches, data packets can incur a millisecond or more of latency during
periods of congestion. Previous buffer utilization monitoring techniques were based entirely on software polling
algorithms with polling with higher polling intervals that can miss important congestion events.