Lenovo ThinkSystem NE2572O RackSwitch

The Lenovo ThinkSystem NE2572O RackSwitch is designed for big data, cloud, and enterprise workloads in the data center, and it provides 10 Gb/25 Gb Ethernet connectivity with 40 Gb/100 Gb Ethernet upstream links. The switch delivers line-rate, low-latency, and high-bandwidth switching, while providing high availability for business sensitive traffic with the hot-swap redundant power supplies and fans.

The NE2572O 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 two 50 GbE (for 100 GbE QSFP28), or four 10 GbE (for 40 GbE QSFP+) or 25 GbE (for 100 GbE QSFP28) connections by using breakout cables.

The NE2572O RackSwitch is shown in the following figure.


Figure 1. Lenovo ThinkSystem NE2572O RackSwitch

With exceptional port density and flexibility with break-out cables, the NE2572O 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 NE2572O RackSwitch includes the Open Network Install Environment (ONIE) which is an open, standards-based boot code that provides a deployment environment for loading certified ONIE networking operating systems onto networking devices.

The NE2572O RackSwitch provides a simple and open 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. The switch is based on industry standards for better data center interoperability, and it enables support of network virtualization, automation, and orchestration applications for tight integration into the data center ecosystem.

The NE2572O RackSwitch is considered particularly suited for the following environments:

• Open networking architectures that are based on the certified ONIE networking operating systems, such as Cumulus Linux.
• Mixed 10 GbE and 25 GbE server and storage connectivity with 40 GbE and 100 GbE upstream aggregation
• Data center interconnect fabric for accelerated, low-latency communications across clustered applications
• Cloud and virtualization solutions
• Web-scale and hyperconverged solutions

The NE2572O RackSwitch offers the following features and benefits:

• High performance

  The 10 Gb/25 Gb Ethernet NE2572O RackSwitch with 40 Gb/100 Gb Ethernet uplinks provides a combination of low latency and non-blocking line-rate switching.

• Lower power and better cooling

  The rear-to-front cooling design of the NE2572O RackSwitch reduces data center air conditioning costs by having airflow match the servers in the rack cabinet. In addition, variable speed fans help reduce power consumption.

• Fault tolerance

  The NE2572O RackSwitch offers redundant hot-swap hardware components to provide availability for network communications across business-critical applications.

• Open Network Install Environment (ONIE)

  The NE2572O RackSwitch provides an open install environment for networking devices without operating systems. ONIE enables a network switch ecosystem for end users to choose among different Network Operating Systems by discovering NOS installer images and loading them onto the switch.

• Seamless interoperability

  Based on industry standards, the NE2572O RackSwitch interoperates seamlessly with other vendors' switches.

The following figure shows the front (port-side) panel of the NE2572O RackSwitch.

Figure 2. Front panel of the NE2572O RackSwitch

The following table lists the NE2572O RackSwitch system hardware specifications.

The following table lists the NE2572O RackSwitch models.

Configuration notes:

• Power cables are not included and must be ordered together with the switch (see Power supplies and cables for details).
• Transceivers and cables are not included and should be ordered for the switch (see Transceivers and cables for details).

With the flexibility of the NE2572O RackSwitch, customers can choose the following connectivity technologies:

• For 10 GbE links, customers can use SFP28 ports with 10 GbE SFP+ direct-attached copper (DAC) cables for distances up to 7 meters or 10 GbE SFP+ active optical cables (AOCs) for distances up to 20 meters. The AOCs and DAC cables have SFP+ connectors on each end, and they do not need separate transceivers. For distances up to 30 meters, the 10GBASE-T SFP+ transceiver can be used with Category 6a or 7 RJ-45 UTP cables.

  For longer distances, the 10GBASE-SR SFP+ transceivers can be used for up to 300 meters on OM3 or up to 400 meters on OM4 multimode fiber optic (MMF) cables. The 10GBASE-LR SFP+ transceivers can support distances up to 10 kilometers on single mode fiber optic (SMF) cables. For extended distances, the 10GBASE-ER SFP+ transceivers can support up to 40 kilometers on SMF cables.

  To increase the number of available 10 GbE ports, customers can split out four 10 GbE ports for each QSFP28 port by using QSFP+ to 4x SFP+ DAC or active optical breakout cables for distances up to 5 meters. The 40GBASE-iSR4 QSFP+ transceivers can be used for distances up to 100 meters on OM3 or up to 150 meters on OM4 MMF MPO-to-LC breakout cables. For longer distances, the 40GBASE-eSR4 transceivers can be used for up to 300 meters on OM3 or up to 400 meters on OM4 MMF MPO-to-LC breakout cables.

• For 25 GbE links, customers can use SFP28 ports with 25 GbE SFP28 DAC cables for distances up to 5 meters or 25 GbE SFP28 active optical cables (AOCs) for distances up to 20 meters. The AOCs and DAC cables have SFP28 connectors on each end, and they do not need separate transceivers.

  To increase the number of available 25 GbE ports, customers can split out four 25 GbE ports for each QSFP28 port by using QSFP28 to 4x SFP28 DAC breakout cables for distances up to 5 meters or active optical breakout cables for distances up to 20 meters. For longer distances, the 100GBASE-SR4 QSFP28 transceivers can be used for up to 70 meters on OM3 or up to 100 meters on OM4 MMF MPO-to-LC breakout cables.

• For 40 GbE links, customers can use QSFP28 ports with QSFP+ to QSFP+ DAC cables for distances up to 7 meters or QSFP+ to QSFP+ active optical cables for distances up to 20 meters. These DAC cables and AOCs have QSFP+ connectors on each end, and they do not need separate transceivers.

  For longer distances, customers can use the 40GBASE QSFP+ bi-directional transceivers or 40GBASE-SR4/iSR4 QSFP+ transceivers for distances up to 100 meters on OM3 or up to 150 meters on OM4 MMF cables. The 40GBASE-eSR4 QSFP+ transceiver can be used for distances up to 300 meters on OM3 or up to 400 meters on OM4 MMF cables. The 40GBASE-LR4 QSFP+ transceiver can be used for distances up to 10 kilometers on SMF cables.

• For 50 GbE links, customers can split out two 50 GbE ports for each QSFP28 port by using the QSFP28-2xQSFP28 DAC breakout cables (not supplied by Lenovo).

• For 100 GbE links, customers can use QSFP28 ports with QSFP28 DAC cables for distances up to 5 meters or QSFP28 active optical cables for distances up to 20 meters. These DAC cables and AOCs have QSFP28 connectors on each end, and they do not need separate transceivers.

  For longer distances, the 100GBASE-SR4 QSFP28 transceivers support distances up to 70 meters on OM3 or up to 100 meters on OM4 MMF cables. The 100GBASE-LR4 QSFP28 transceiver can be used for distances up to 10 kilometers on SMF LC cables.

The following table lists the supported cables and transceivers.

The network cables that can be used with the switch are listed in the following table.

The NE2572O RackSwitch includes the Open Network Install Environment (ONIE) which is a small Linux-based operating system that provides an open install environment for networking devices without operating systems. ONIE enables a network switch ecosystem for end users to choose among different Network Operating Systems by discovering NOS installer images and loading them onto the switch.

The following operating systems are certified for the NE2572O RackSwitch:

• Cumulus Linux

Configuration note: For SFP+/SFP28 ports, Cumulus Linux supports 10 GbE links on the ports 9 through 48 only (the ports 1 through 8 do not support 10 GbE links with Cumulus Linux).

The following table lists ordering information for the Cumulus software license and support options.

Software support: Lenovo does not provide support for third-party software that is certified with the switch. Customers should contact a third-party software vendor directly to submit a software support request, and the software vendor will own the software-related problem resolution until closure.

The NE2572O RackSwitch supports the following Ethernet standards:

• IEEE 802.1Q VLAN tagging
• IEEE 802.3 10BASE-T Ethernet (Ethernet management port only)
• IEEE 802.3ab 1000BASE-T copper twisted pair Gigabit Ethernet (Ethernet management port only)
• IEEE 802.3ae 10GBASE-SR short range fiber optics 10 Gb Ethernet
• IEEE 802.3ae 10GBASE-LR long range fiber optics 10 Gb Ethernet
• IEEE 802.3ae 10GBASE-ER extended range fiber optics 10 Gb Ethernet
• IEEE 802.3an 10GBASE-T copper twisted pair 10 Gb Ethernet
• IEEE 802.3ba 40GBASE-SR4 short range fiber optics 40 Gb Ethernet
• IEEE 802.3ba 40GBASE-CR4 copper 40 Gb Ethernet
• IEEE 802.3ba 100GBASE-LR4 long range fiber optics 100 Gb Ethernet
• IEEE 802.3bj 100GBASE-CR4 copper 100 Gb Ethernet
• IEEE 802.3bm 100GBASE-SR4 short range fiber optics 100 Gb Ethernet
• IEEE 802.3by 25GBASE-CR copper 25 Gb Ethernet
• IEEE 802.3by 25GBASE-SR short range fiber optics 25 Gb Ethernet
• IEEE 802.3u 100BASE-TX Fast Ethernet (Ethernet management port only)
• SFF-8431 10 Gb SFP+ Direct attach copper cable
• 25G/50G Ethernet Consortium

The NE2572O RackSwitch ships with six variable speed, hot-swap fan assemblies that provide N+1 cooling redundancy.

The NE2572O RackSwitch supports up to two load-sharing, redundant hot-swap 770 W AC Platinum power supplies (two power supplies come standard with the switch).

The NE2572O RackSwitch ships without any power cables. The part numbers and feature codes to order the power cables (two power cables are required per switch) are listed in the following table.

The NE2572O RackSwitch ships with the 2-post rack mount kit. For 4-post rack installations, the NE2572O RackSwitch supports the optional adjustable 19-inch, 4-post rail kit and the air inlet duct (optional for the 4-post rail kit).

The following table lists rack installation options for the NE2572O RackSwitch switches with rear to front and front to rear airflow.

The NE2572O RackSwitch has the following physical specifications:

• Height: 44 mm (1.7 in.)
• Width: 441 mm (17.3 in.)
• Depth: 487 mm (19.2 in.)
• Maximum weight: 11.4 kg (25.1 lb)

The NE2572O RackSwitch is supported in the following operating environment:

• Temperature: 0 - 40 ºC (32 - 104 ºF).
• Relative humidity: 10 - 90% (non-condensing)
• Altitude: Up to 2000 m (6,561 feet)
• Acoustic noise: Less than 90 dB
• Airflow: Rear-to-front cooling with variable speed fans for reduced power draw
• Electrical input: 50 / 60 Hz, 100 - 240 V AC auto-switching
• Power consumption (maximum): 500 W
• Heat dissipation (maximum): 1706 BTU/hour

The NE2572O RackSwitch comes with a 3-year Customer Replaceable Unit (CRU) hardware limited warranty with 9x5 Next Business Day (NBD) parts delivered. The hardware options that are installed in the switch assume the switch’s base warranty and any Lenovo warranty service upgrade for the switch.

Software support: Lenovo does not provide support for third-party software that is certified with the switch. Customers should contact a third-party software vendor directly to submit a software support request, and the software vendor will own the software-related problem resolution until closure.

Lenovo’s additional support services provide a sophisticated, unified support structure for a customer's data center, with an experience consistently ranked number one in customer satisfaction worldwide.

The following Lenovo support services are available:

• Premier Support provides a Lenovo-owned customer experience and delivers direct access to technicians skilled in hardware, software, and advanced troubleshooting, in addition to the following capabilities:  
  • Direct technician-to-technician access through a dedicated phone line.
  • 24x7x365 remote support.
  • Single point of contact service.
  • End to end case management.
  • 3rd Party collaborative software support. 
  • Online case tools and live chat support.
  • On-demand remote system analysis.
• Warranty Upgrades (Preconfigured Support) are available to meet the on-site response time targets that match the criticality of customer's systems:
  • 3, 4, or 5 years of service coverage.
  • 1-year or 2-year post-warranty extensions.
  • Foundation Service: 9x5 service coverage with next business day onsite response.
  • Essential Service: 24x7 service coverage with 4-hour onsite response or 24-hour committed repair (available only in select regions).
  • Advanced Service: 24x7 service coverage with 2-hour onsite response or 6-hour committed repair (available only in select regions).
• Managed Services

  Lenovo Managed Services provide continuous 24x7 remote monitoring (plus 24x7 call center availability) and proactive management of a customer's data center using state of the art tools, systems, and practices by a team of highly skilled and experienced Lenovo services professionals.

  Quarterly reviews check error logs, verify firmware and operating system device driver levels, and software as needed. Lenovo will also maintain records of latest patches, critical updates, and firmware levels, to ensure customer's systems are providing business value through optimized performance.

• Technical Account Management (TAM)

  A Lenovo Technical Account Manager helps customers optimize operations of their data centers based on a deep understanding of customer's business. Customers gain direct access to a Lenovo TAM, who serves as their single point of contact to expedite service requests, provide status updates, and furnish reports to track incidents over time. Also, a TAM helps proactively make service recommendations and manage service relationship with Lenovo to make certain that customer's needs are met.

• Health Check

  Having a trusted partner who can perform regular and detailed health checks is central to maintaining efficiency and ensuring that customer systems and business are always running at their best. Health Check supports Lenovo-branded server, storage, and networking devices, as well as select Lenovo-supported products from other vendors that are sold by Lenovo or a Lenovo-Authorized Reseller.

Some regions might have different warranty terms and conditions than the standard warranty. This is due to local business practices or laws in the specific region. Local service teams can assist in explaining region-specific terms when needed. Examples of region-specific warranty terms are second or longer business day parts delivery or parts-only base warranty.

If warranty terms and conditions include onsite labor for repair or replacement of parts, Lenovo will dispatch a service technician to the customer site to perform the replacement. Onsite labor under base warranty is limited to labor for replacement of parts that have been determined to be field-replaceable units (FRUs). Parts that are determined to be customer-replaceable units (CRUs) do not include onsite labor under base warranty.

If warranty terms include parts-only base warranty, Lenovo is responsible for delivering only replacement parts that are under base warranty (including FRUs) that will be sent to a requested location for self-service. Parts-only service does not include a service technician being dispatched onsite. Parts must be changed at customer’s own cost and labor and defective parts must be returned following the instructions supplied with the spare parts.

Lenovo support services are region-specific. Not all support services are available in every region. For information about Lenovo support services that are available in a specific region, refer to the following resources:

• Service part numbers in Data Center Solution Configurator (DCSC):
  http://dcsc.lenovo.com/#/services
• Lenovo Services Availability Locator
  https://lenovolocator.com/

For service definitions, region-specific details, and service limitations, refer to the following documents:

• Lenovo Statement of Limited Warranty for Infrastructure Solutions Group (ISG) Servers and System Storage
  http://pcsupport.lenovo.com/us/en/solutions/ht503310
• Lenovo Data Center Services Agreement
  http://support.lenovo.com/us/en/solutions/ht116628

Lenovo Services is a dedicated partner to customer success. Lenovo's goal for customers is to reduce capital outlays, mitigate IT risks, and accelerate time to productivity.

Here is a more in-depth look at what Lenovo can do for their customers:

• Asset Recovery Services

  Asset Recovery Services (ARS) helps customers recover the maximum value from their end-of-life equipment in a cost-effective and secure way. On top of simplifying the transition from old to new equipment, ARS mitigates environmental and data security risks associated with data center equipment disposal. Lenovo ARS is a cash-back solution for equipment based on its remaining market value, yielding maximum value from aging assets and lowering total cost of ownership for customers. For more information, see the ARS page, http://lenovopress.com/lp1266.

• Assessment Services

  An assessment helps solve customer IT challenges through an onsite, multi-day session with a Lenovo technology expert. Lenovo performs a tools-based assessment which provides a comprehensive and thorough review of a company's environment and technology systems. In addition to the technology-based functional requirements, the consultant also discusses and records the non-functional business requirements, challenges, and constraints. Assessments help organizations, no matter how large or small, get a better return on their IT investment and overcome challenges in the ever-changing technology landscape.

• Design Services

  Professional Services consultants perform infrastructure design and implementation planning to support customer's strategy. The high-level architectures provided by the assessment service are turned into low level designs and wiring diagrams, which are reviewed and approved prior to implementation. The implementation plan will demonstrate an outcome-based proposal to provide business capabilities through infrastructure with a risk-mitigated project plan.

• Basic Hardware Installation

  Lenovo experts can seamlessly manage the physical installation of customer's server, storage, or networking hardware. Working at a time convenient for the customer (business hours or off shift), the technician will unpack and inspect the systems on customer site, install options, mount in a rack cabinet, connect to power and network, check and update firmware to the latest levels, verify operation, and dispose of the packaging, allowing customers to focus on other priorities.

• Deployment Services

  When investing in new IT infrastructures, customers need to ensure that their business will see quick time to value with little to no disruption. Lenovo deployments are designed by development and engineering teams who know Lenovo products and solutions better than anyone else, and Lenovo technicians own the process from delivery to completion. Lenovo will conduct remote preparation and planning, configure and integrate systems, validate systems, verify and update appliance firmware, train on administrative tasks, and provide post-deployment documentation. Customer’s IT teams leverage Lenovo skills to enable IT staff to transform with higher level roles and tasks.

• Integration, Migration, and Expansion Services

  Integration, Migration, and Expansion Services allow to move existing physical and virtual workloads easily, or to determine technical requirements to support increased workloads while maximizing performance. These services include tuning, validation, and documenting ongoing run processes, and they leverage migration assessment planning documents to perform necessary migrations.

Some service options may not be available in every region. For more information about Lenovo service offerings that are available in a specific region, contact a local Lenovo sales representative or business partner.

The NE2572O RackSwitch conforms to the following regulations:

• Argentina IEC60950-1
• AS/NZS CISPR 22, Class A
• Canada ICES-003, Issue 4, Class A
• CE Mark (EN55022 Class A, EN60950-1, EN55024, EN61000-3-2, and EN61000-3-3)
• China CCC GB4943, GB9254 Class A, GB17625.1
• CISPR 22, Class A
• CSA C22.2 No. 60950-1
• FCC: Verified to comply with Part 15 of the FCC Rules, Class A
• IEC 60950-1 (CB Certificate and CB Test Report)
• Japan VCCI, Class A
• Korea KN22, Class A; KN24
• NOM-019
• Russia/GOST ME01, IEC-60950-1, GOST R 51318.22, 51318.24, 51317.3.2, and 51317.3.3
• Taiwan BSMI CNS13438, Class A; CNS14336-1
• TUV-GS (EN60950-1/IEC60950-1, EK1-ITB2000)
• UL/IEC 60950-1
• Reduction of Hazardous Substances (ROHS)

For more information about the NE2572O RackSwitch, see the following resources:

• Lenovo RackSwitch InfoCenter
  http://systemx.lenovofiles.com/help/topic/com.lenovo.systemx.common.nav.doc/
  overview_rack_switches.html
  • Lenovo ThinkSystem NE2572O RackSwitch Installation Guide
  • Lenovo ThinkSystem NE2572O ONIE User Guide
• Lenovo Data Center Support:
  http://datacentersupport.lenovo.com
• Cumulus Linux User Guide
  http://docs.cumulusnetworks.com/display/DOCS/Cumulus+Linux+User+Guide