A multi chassis group enables multiple chassis to be managed as if they were a single chassis. A PowerEdge MX Scalable Fabric enables multiple chassis to behave like a single chassis from a networking perspective.
A Scalable Fabric consists of two main components: the Z9432F-ON FSE and the MX8116n FEM. Configurations include a single MX8116n or pair of MX8116n FEMs in each chassis for each fabric slot in use, for up to four FEMs per chassis. Each MX8116n FEM connects to the Z9432F-ON FSE.
There are four deployment options for a Scalable Fabric with the Z9432F-ON FSE. Each option supports a different number of chassis in a single Scalable Fabric. Also, each option supports a different number of chassis based on the number of fabrics used in each chassis to a single pair of Z9432F-ON.
100 GbE deployment
- Single fabric
- All chassis comprised of compute sleds with 100 GbE dual port NICs on either Fabric A or Fabric B.
- Dual fabric
- All chassis comprised of compute sleds with 100 GbE dual port NICs using both Fabrics A and B.
Dual port 25 GbE deployment
- Single fabric
- All chassis comprised of compute sleds with 25 GbE dual port NICs on either Fabric A or Fabric B.
- Dual fabric
- All chassis comprised of compute sleds with 25 GbE dual port NICs using both Fabrics A and B.
Quad port 25 GbE deployment
- Single fabric
- All chassis comprised of compute sleds with 25 GbE quad port NICs on either Fabric A or Fabric B.
- Dual fabric
- All chassis comprised of compute sleds with 25 GbE quad port NICs using both Fabrics A and B.
Mixed deployment
Comprised of a combination of chassis that include 100 GbE dual port NICs, 25 GbE dual ports NICs, or 25 GbE quad port NICs. Each chassis can be deployed with single or dual fabrics.
Starting with OME-M 2.20.00 and later versions, a mix of NICs such as 100 GbE NICs and 25 GbE NICs is supported on the same MX8116n FEM in the same Chassis on a PowerEdge MX platform.
The following table lists the maximum number of chassis supported for each deployment option:
Deployment option | Maximum number of chassis supported | |
100 GbE | Single fabric | 14 |
Dual fabric | 7 | |
25 GbE dual port | Single fabric | 14 |
Dual fabric | 7 | |
25 GbE quad port | Single fabric | 8 |
Dual fabric | 4 | |
Mixed deployment | N/A, depends on type of NICs used in chassis |