Cisco Enhanced EtherSwitch Service Module
Q&A
Q. What are the Cisco
®
Enhanced EtherSwitch® Service Modules?
A. These integrated switching modules for the Cisco integrated services routers expand router capabilities by
integrating Layer 2 and Layer 3 switching with feature sets identical to those found in Cisco Catalyst® 3560-E
and Catalyst 2960 Switches. The new modules also provide a 1-Gbps connection to the multigigabit fabric
(MGF) for intermodule communication that does not burden the router CPU.
Q. What are the benefits of using the Cisco Enhanced EtherSwitch Service Modules?
A. Integrated switching and routing provides:
●
Lower cost of ownership: It allows network administrators to manage a single device using the router
command-line interface (CLI) or Cisco management tools for LAN and WAN management needs.
●
Lower mean time to repair (MTTR): One vendor means one support center to decrease troubleshooting
time and eliminate blaming among vendors.
●
Software parity: Cisco Catalyst 2960 and Catalyst 3560-E software parity enables IT to certify and deploy
the same services at the main and branch offices.
●
Single maintenance contract: A Cisco SMARTnet® contract covers both the router and the Cisco
EtherSwitch module.
●
Feature, schedule, and roadmap alignment: The features, schedule, and roadmap of the Cisco Enhanced
EtherSwitch Service Module and Cisco Catalyst 2960 and Catalyst 3560-E Switches are aligned to provide a
consistent user experience and to help ensure that no new hardware is required to support the latest
innovations.
●
Easy upgrades: Cisco Enhanced EtherSwitch Service Modules run their own Cisco IOS® Software image
and can be upgraded independently of the Cisco IOS Software release on the host router.
●
Fewer components: Fewer power supplies, fans, etc. results in fewer failures and less downtime.
●
Mean time before failure (MTBF): The MTBF is at least double that of a standalone switch.
Q. What platforms support the Cisco Enhanced EtherSwitch Service Module, and how many service
modules can I install in each platform?
A. Table 1 lists the platforms that support the new service module and the maximum number of modules you can
install in each platform.
Table 1. Platform Support
Model Maximum
Cisco 2911 24 X
Cisco 2921 50 X X
Cisco 2951 50 X X X
Cisco 3925 74 X X X X X
Cisco 3945 98 X X X X X X X
ES2/ES3
Ports
© 2009 Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved. This document is Cisco Public Information. Page 1 of 1
1 Single 1 Double 2 Single 1 Single + 1
Double
2 Single + 1
Double
3 Single 4 Single
Q&A
Q. Are there any feature differences between the ES3 and ES2?
A. The ES3 performs Layer 2/3 switching in hardware and offers full feature parity with the Cisco Catalyst 3560-E
IP Base and IP Services universal feature sets. The ES2 service module is based on the Cisco Catalyst 2960
Series desktop switches; it performs Layer 2 switching in hardware and offers full feature parity with the Cisco
Catalyst 2960 LAN Base image.
Table 2. Differences Between ES2 and ES3 EtherSwitch Service Modules
Cisco Enhanced EtherSwitch
Service Module
Cisco ES2 Enhanced EtherSwitch
Service Module
Cisco ES3 Enhanced EtherSwitch
Service Module
Description
●
Entry-level, lower-cost solution
●
Layer 2 switching in hardware
●
Full feature parity with the Cisco Catalyst 2960 LAN Base image
●
Power over Ethernet; up to 1014 watts per chassis on Cisco 3900 Series router
IEEE 802.3af PoE support, up to 15.4 watts per port
◦
◦
Cisco Prestandard PoE
●
Best-of-class Ethernet switching
●
High-density Gigabit Ethernet support
●
Layer 2/3 switching in hardware
◦
Multicast routing
◦
IPv6 routing, and access control list (ACL) in hardware
●
Full feature parity with the Cisco Catalyst 3560-E IP Base and IP Services Universal images
IP Base feature set, which includes advanced quality of service (QoS), a suite of security features, rate
◦
limiting, ACLs, basic static and Routing Information Protocol (RIP) routing capability, and Hot Standby
Router Protocol (HSRP)
◦
The IP Services feature set, which provides a richer set of enterprise-class features, including
advanced hardware-based IP Unicast and IP Multicast routing; Enhanced Interior Gateway Routing
Protocol (EIGRP), Open Shortest Path First (OSPF), Border Gateway Protocol (BGP), Protocol
Independent Multicast (PIM), and IPv6 routing; OSPFv3; EIGRPv6; IP Service-Level Agreement
(IPSLA) packet monitoring; Cisco Port Security; and Virtual Route Forwarding Lite (VRF Lite)
●
Cisco EnergyWise technology, an innovative architecture that promotes companywide sustainability by
reducing energy consumption across an entire corporate infrastructure; Cisco EnergyWise technology
can help your company measure the power consumption of network infrastructure and network-attached
devices and manage power consumption with specific policies, reducing power consumption to realize
increased cost savings; potentially any powered device is affected
●
Power over Ethernet; up to 1014 watts per chassis on a Cisco 3900 Series router
Cisco Enhanced PoE (ePoE), up to 20 watts per port
◦
◦
IEEE 802.3af PoE support, up to 15.4 watts per port
◦
Cisco Prestandard PoE
Q. Can I upgrade from the ES2 to the ES3 module with software?
A. No, the ES3 service module performs Layer 2/3 switching in hardware and ES2 service module performs Layer
2 switching in hardware and cannot be upgraded with software.
Q. What are the differences between the Cisco Enhanced EtherSwitch Service Modules and the existing
network modules (NME-X-23ES-1G-P, NME-X-23ES-1G, NME-16ES-1G-P, NME-16ES-1G)?
A. The Cisco Enhanced EtherSwitch Service Modules are based on Cisco Catalyst 3560-E desktop switches, and
they offer the same features and software as these switches. Also, the new Cisco Enhanced EtherSwitch
modules provide a 1-Gbps connection to the MGF for intermodule communication that does not burden the
router CPU.
The existing Cisco EtherSwitch Network Modules (NME-X-23ES-1G-P, NME-X-23ES-1G, NME-16ES-1G-P, and
NME-16ES-1G) offer the same features and software as the Cisco Catalyst 3750 Series desktop switches.
Q. Do the Cisco Enhanced EtherSwitch Service Modules interoperate with the existing Cisco EtherSwitch
Network Modules?
A. Yes, a service-module adapter card provides backward compatibility with the existing network modules;
therefore, both the new and NME-16ES-1G-P, NME-16ES-1G,NM-16ESW, and NM-16ESW-1GIG network
modules can coexist in the ISR G2 integrated services routers.
© 2009 Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved. This document is Cisco Public Information. Page 2 of 7
Q&A
Q. Should I expect the current Cisco EtherSwitch Network Modules to reach end-of-sale status soon?
A. No plan for end of sale of either of these cards currently exists. The existing Cisco EtherSwitch Network
Modules provide a switching option to the installed base of Cisco 2811, 2821, 2851, 3825, and 3845 Integrated
Services Routers.
Q. What are the part numbers and details?
A. For information regarding part numbers, please consult the Cisco Enhanced EtherSwitch Service Modules data
sheet at:
553980_ps10537_Products_Data_Sheet.html
http://www.cisco.com/en/US/prod/collateral/routers/ps10536/data_sheet_c78-
Q. What Small Form-Factor Pluggables (SFPs) are supported?
A. For information regarding the supported SFPs, please consult the Cisco Enhanced EtherSwitch Service
Modules data sheet at:
553980_ps10537_Products_Data_Sheet.html
http://www.cisco.com/en/US/prod/collateral/routers/ps10536/data_sheet_c78-
Q. What is the function of the Multi Gigabit Fabric Interface (MGFI)?
A. The MGFI provides direct high-performance connectivity between enhanced high-speed WAN interface cards
(EHWICs), Cisco High-Density Packet Voice Digital Signal Processor Modules (PVDM3s), service modules, and
Cisco Service Ready Engine (SRE) Internal Services Modules (ISMs) through the backplane without CPU
involvement. It is not backward-compatible with the (HWIC-4ESW, HWIC-9ESW or NM-16ESW). The MGF
switch supports frames sizes up to 9K, and it supports shaping of traffic going to a service module.
Q. What is the function of High-speed Intra chassis Module (HIMI)?
A. HIMI provides the capability to establish a 1-Gbps aggregate connection between two switch modules over the
MGF. Any service module, ISM, and EHWIC can be interconnected through HIMI. A high-speed WAN interface
card (HWIC) cannot participate in HIMI. Each HIMI connection could have up to 1-Gbps throughput.
Q. Which platforms support HIMI and how many HIMI connections can be supported in each platform?
A. Table 2 lists the platforms that support HIMI.
Table 3. Platforms that Support HIMI
Model Cisco 29211 Cisco 2921 Cisco 2951 Cisco 3925 Cisco 3945
HIMI Connection 1 1 1 2 2
Q. What is the function of VLAN Connect, and how many Connect VLAN can be supported in each
platform?
A. VLAN Connect enables traffic in a certain VLAN from one module to be directed to another module through the
MGF. This feature should be enabled if traffic within a VALN needs to be sent from one module to another;
therefore the traffic can be monitored on a particular port or VLAN. This feature is supported only with EHWICs
and service modules.
Table 4. Table 4: Platforms that support VLAN connect
Model 1941 2901 Cisco 29211 Cisco 2921 Cisco 2951 Cisco 3925 Cisco 3945
VLAN connection 3 3 5 5 7 7 11
Q. Can I mix ES2 and ES3 modules in the same chassis and insert them into any slots?
A. Yes.
Q. Can I mix POE and non-POE modules in the same chassis and insert them into any slots?
A. Yes.
© 2009 Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved. This document is Cisco Public Information. Page 3 of 7
Loading...