Licensing Requirements
For a complete explanation of Cisco NX-OS licensing recommendations and how to obtain and apply licenses, see the Cisco NX-OS Licensing Guide.
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This chapter contains information about Cisco's IP fabric for media solution.
For a complete explanation of Cisco NX-OS licensing recommendations and how to obtain and apply licenses, see the Cisco NX-OS Licensing Guide.
Today, the broadcast industry uses a serial digital interface (SDI) router and SDI cables to transport video and audio traffic. The SDI cables can carry only a single unidirectional signal. As a result, many cables, frequently stretched over long distances, are required, making it difficult and time-consuming to expand or change an SDI-based infrastructure.
Cisco’s IP fabric for media solution helps transition from an SDI router to an IP-based infrastructure. In an IP-based infrastructure, a single cable can carry multiple bidirectional traffic flows and can support different flow sizes without requiring changes to the physical infrastructure.
The IP fabric for media solution consists of a flexible spine and leaf architecture or a single modular switch topology. The solution uses Cisco Nexus 9000 Series switches with the Cisco non-blocking multicast (NBM) algorithm (an intelligent traffic management algorithm) and with or without the Cisco Data Center Network Manager (DCNM) Media Controller. Using open APIs, the Cisco DCNM Media Controller can integrate with various broadcast controllers. The solution provides a highly reliable (zero drop multicast), highly visible, highly secure, and highly available network.
Cisco’s IP fabric for media solution supports the following types of deployments:
Spine-leaf topology with DCNM Media Controller—Flexible architecture for large-scale deployments that are typically seen in an IP studio.
Spine-leaf topology without DCNM Media Controller—Single or multi-spine deployment method with variable flow size without the DCNM Media Controller.
Note |
Cisco NX-OS Release 7.0(3)I7(3) supports only this deployment method. |
Single modular switch with DCNM Media Controller—Architecture suitable for fixed deployments, with the controller providing features such as flow visibility, security, and monitoring.
Single modular switch without DCNM Media Controller—Simple deployment method for environments such as outside broadcasting (OB) vans.
Cisco's IP fabric for media solution supports a spine-leaf topology that consists of multiple spine and leaf switches and the DCNM Media Controller. The topology supports any combination of leaf switches, including using just one type of leaf switch.
Media sources and receivers connect to the leaf switches, and receivers initiate IGMP join requests to the leaf switches in order to receive the media traffic.
Beginning with Cisco NX-OS Release 7.0(3)I7(3), Cisco's IP fabric for media solution supports a spine-leaf topology that consists of spine and leaf switches without the DCNM Media Controller. This topology provides multicast flow setup intelligence within the fabric.
Cisco's IP fabric for media solution supports a single modular switch topology that consists of one Cisco Nexus 9500 Series switch that runs Cisco NX-OS Release 7.0(3)F2(2) or a later release or Cisco NX-OS Release 7.0(3)I6(1) or a later release and uses the DCNM Media Controller.
Cisco's IP fabric for media solution supports a single modular switch topology that consists of one Cisco Nexus 9500 Series switch that runs Cisco NX-OS Release 7.0(3)F2(1) or a later release or Cisco NX-OS Release 7.0(3)I6(1) or a later release and does not use the DCNM Media Controller.
The following Cisco Nexus 9000 Series switches are used to transport video and audio traffic through the IP fabric:
Cisco Nexus 9000 Series Switch |
Number and Size of Ports |
Initial Cisco NX-OS Release |
Role in Topology |
---|---|---|---|
Cisco Nexus 9236C switch |
36 x 40/100-Gbps ports |
7.0(3)I4(5)* |
Spine or leaf in spine-leaf topology with or without DCNM Media Controller |
Cisco Nexus 9272Q switch |
72 x 40-Gbps ports |
7.0(3)I4(5)* |
Spine or leaf in spine-leaf topology with or without DCNM Media Controller |
Cisco Nexus 92160YC-X switch |
48 x 1/10/25-Gbps ports |
7.0(3)I4(5)* |
Leaf in spine-leaf topology with or without DCNM Media Controller |
Cisco Nexus 9348GC-FXP switch |
48 x 100-Mbps/1-Gbps ports |
7.0(3)I7(3) |
Leaf in spine-leaf topology with or without DCNM Media Controller |
Cisco Nexus 9364C switch |
64 x 40/100-Gbps ports |
7.0(3)I7(3) |
Spine in spine-leaf topology with or without DCNM Media Controller |
Cisco Nexus 93108TC-EX switch |
48 x 1/10-Gbps ports |
7.0(3)I4(5)* |
Leaf in spine-leaf topology with or without DCNM Media Controller |
Cisco Nexus 93108TC-FX switch |
48 x 10-Gbps ports |
7.0(3)I7(3) |
Leaf in spine-leaf topology with or without DCNM Media Controller |
Cisco Nexus 93180LC-EX switch |
32 x 40/100-Gbps ports |
7.0(3)I6(1) |
Leaf in spine-leaf topology with or without DCNM Media Controller |
Cisco Nexus 93180YC-EX switch |
48 x 1/10/25-Gbps ports |
7.0(3)I4(5)* |
Leaf in spine-leaf topology with or without DCNM Media Controller |
Cisco Nexus 93180YC-FX switch |
48 x 10/25-Gbps ports |
7.0(3)I7(3) |
Leaf in spine-leaf topology with or without DCNM Media Controller |
Cisco Nexus 9504 or 9508 switch with the following line cards:
|
36 x 100-Gbps ports (for N9K-X9636C-R line cards)** 36 x 40-Gbps ports (for N9K-X9636Q-R line cards)** |
7.0(3)F2(1) |
Spine in spine-leaf topology with DCNM Media Controller Single modular switch without DCNM Media Controller, beginning with Cisco NX-OS Release 7.0(3)F2(1) Single modular switch with DCNM Media Controller, beginning with Cisco NX-OS Release 7.0(3)F2(2) |
Cisco Nexus 9500 Series switches with the following line cards:
|
32 x 40-Gbps ports (for N9K-X9732C-EX line cards) 36 x 40-Gbps ports (for N9K-X9736C-EX line cards) 48 x 10/25-Gbps ports (for N9K-X97160YC-EX line cards) |
7.0(3)I6(1) |
Single modular switch with or without DCNM Media Controller |
*Leaf switches must run Cisco NX-OS 7.0(3)I6(1) or a later release when used with spine switches that are running Cisco NX-OS Release 7.0(3)F2(1) or a later release.
**For the latest breakout and optics support, see https://www.cisco.com/c/en/us/support/interfaces-modules/transceiver-modules/products-device-support-tables-list.html.
Through open APIs, the Cisco DCNM Media Controller seamlessly integrates with the broadcast controller and provides a similar operator workflow with all the benefits of an IP-based infrastructure. The DCNM Media Controller features an intuitive GUI that enables you to configure your IP fabric using predefined templates that are designed for media networks.
The DCNM Media Controller enables you to do the following:
Configure secure generic or multicast-specific policies for individual hosts and allow or deny hosts based on their role.
Configure secure multicast-specific policies for multiple hosts and flows.
View the traffic flow and bandwidth utilization to identify problem areas (such as link failures or oversubscriptions) in your fabric.
Use flow analytics to measure and store bit rates and to display the details for individual traffic flows.
View an audit log of actions that are performed on the fabric.
The following software releases are recommended for deployments with or without the DCNM Media Controller.
Deployment Method |
Recommended Release |
---|---|
With the DCNM Media Controller |
NX-OS 7.0(3)I7(2) or 7.0(3)F3(3) DCNM 10.4(2) |
Without the DCNM Media Controller |
NX-OS 7.0(3)I7(3) |
Cisco's IP fabric for media solution supports deterministic failure handling.
During a link or switch failure, the affected flows are moved to alternate links, provided sufficient bandwidth is available. With SMPTE 2022-7, redundancy is built on the endpoints, which ensures that the link or switch failure does not affect production traffic.
Cisco's IP fabric for media solution provides the following benefits:
Replaces specialized hardware (SDI routers) with a general-purpose switching infrastructure.
Supports various types and sizes of broadcasting equipment endpoints with port speeds up to 100 Gbps.
Supports the latest video technologies, including 4K and 8K ultra HD.
Scales horizontally. When you need more capacity, you can add a leaf switch to support more endpoints.
Provides a deterministic network with zero packet loss, ultra low latency, and minimal jitter.
Capable of synchronizing all media sources and receivers.
Provides deterministic failure handling that sends traffic to the receiver when a link fails between a leaf and the spine.
Supports the coexistence of live and file-based traffic flows for postproduction work.
Offers increased network security.
Provides a non-blocking network design to prevent the oversubscription of links.
Requires no changes to the existing operator workflow.
Related Topic |
Document Title |
---|---|
IP fabric for media |
|
Cisco DCNM Media Controller |
|
Cisco NX-OS release information |
Cisco Nexus 9000 Series NX-OS IP Fabric for Media Release Notes |
Cisco NX-OS software upgrades |
Cisco Nexus 9000 Series NX-OS Software Upgrade and Downgrade Guide |
IGMP snooping and PIM |
Cisco Nexus 9000 Series NX-OS Multicast Routing Configuration Guide |
OSPF |
Cisco Nexus 9000 Series NX-OS Unicast Routing Configuration Guide |
PTP |
Cisco Nexus 9000 Series NX-OS System Management Configuration Guide |
QoS |
Cisco Nexus 9000 Series NX-OS Quality of Service Configuration Guide |
TCAM carving |
|
VLANs |
Cisco Nexus 9000 Series NX-OS Layer 2 Switching Configuration Guide |