The chassis contain 16 ports of 10-Gigabit Ethernet SFP+ or 100BASE-FX fiber-optic transceiver modules. All ports support 1-Gigabit SFP, 10-Gigabit SFP+, or 100BASE-FX fiber-optic SFP modules.

The ports also support Cisco Trust Security (CTS) and virtual switch link (VSL) and can operate as an Instant Access (AI) Parent in both 1-Gigabit and 10-Gigabit modes.

The SFP and SFP+ transceiver modules provide copper or fiber-optic connections to other devices. These transceiver modules are field-replaceable and provide the uplink interfaces when installed in an SFP module slot. The SFP transceiver modules have LC connectors for fiber-optic connections or RJ-45 connectors for copper connections.

For a list of supported SFP and SFP+ modules, see the switch data sheet: http:/​/​www.cisco.com/​c/​en/​us/​products/​collateral/​switches/​catalyst-6880-x-switch/​data_​sheet_​c78-728228.html.

The ports are numbered from 1 to 16 with odd-numbered ports on the upper row and even-numbered ports on the lower row. The following figure shows how the ports and LEDs are numbered.

Figure 2. Numbering of Ports on the Chassis

The chassis has four half-wide modular slots that accept pluggable, port cards that can expand the capability of the switch. For more detailed information about the modular port cards and their installation, see the "Installing the Modular Port Card" chapter. The chassis is delivered with modular slot blank covers already installed, which must remain installed if the port cards are not used. The slots are numbered as shown in the following figure.

Figure 3. Numbering of the Port Card Slots

Each chassis supports up to four hot-swappable modular port cards that provide uplink ports to connect to other devices. The chassis should only be operated with either a modular port card installed or a blank module installed in the half-modular slots.

Figure 4. Modular Port Card (C6880-X-LE-16P10G and C6880-X-16P10G)

For a list of supported SFP and SFP+ modules, see the switch data sheet:http:/​/​www.cisco.com/​c/​en/​us/​products/​collateral/​switches/​catalyst-6880-x-switch/​data_​sheet_​c78-728228.html .

The chassis has two power supply slots that accept either two 3000 W AC-input or two 3000 W DC-input power supplies, or one of each. The chassis is delivered with power supplies pre-installed in the power supply slots. If only one power supply is ordered, then a blank cover is installed in the empty power supply slot, which must remain installed if a power supply is not installed.

The management port is a 10/100/1000 copper Ethernet port directly connected to the route processor. It supports TFTP image downloading, network management, SNMP, Telnet, and SSH connections. Flexible NetFlow export is not supported on the management port. The management port is isolated from other ports in the system in a dedicated management VRF; it is not part of the EARL forwarding logic. The management port provides direct access to the CPU, even when the system is heavily loaded.

The management port is a Layer 3 port in host mode, and only accepts traffic that terminates on the router. This port does not route packets between itself and other ports. The port processes only the following packet types and properly enqueues them:

• Address Resolution Protocol (ARP)

• IPv4 unicast

• IPv6 unicast

• Cisco Discovery Protocol (CDP)

• Link Layer Discovery Protocol (LLDP)

The USB 2.0 port Type B serves as a second console connection to the route processor. The USB console port connection uses a USB Type A to Type B cable. The USB console interface speeds are the same as the RJ-45 console interface speeds. Windows PCs need a driver for the USB port.

The USB-prefer mode is the default, but it can be overridden using the command-line interface (CLI). When this port is in USB-prefer mode, the RJ-45 console port will be disabled if both ports are connected. For more information on using the CLI to configure the USB console interface, see the Catalyst 6500 software guide.

The USB 2.0 Type A port (disk0) is the only external storage interface for this switch. The port is connected to the route processor, which allows the Cisco IOS software to access the port. The port supports Cisco USB flash drives with capacities from 128 MB to 8 GB (USB devices with port densities of 128 MB, 256 MB, 1 GB, 4 GB, and 8 GB are supported). Cisco IOS software provides standard file system access to the flash device: read, write, erase, and copy. The software also provides the ability to format the flash device with a FAT file system (FAT32 and FAT16).

The console port is an RJ-45 port that provides universal asynchronous receiver/transmitter (UART) support to access the route processor with a serial console running at 9600 baud rate with 8 bits for data, no parity bit, and 1 stop bit.

This recessed access button is used to reset the system. Pressing the button brings down the route processor and all port card modular slots.

The fan tray is responsible for cooling the entire chassis and interfacing with environmental monitors to trigger alarms when conditions exceed thresholds. The fan tray supports Online Insertion and Removal (OIR).

The fan tray contains four high-efficiency fans with variable speed settings and thermal sensors. If one fan fails, the speed of the others is increased and a minor alarm is triggered. If a major fan tray failure occurs, the system is shut down. The individual fans are not field replaceable; the entire fan tray must be replaced in the event of a major fan tray failure. See Removing the Fan Tray for additional information about the fan.

You can use the switch LEDs to monitor switch activity and performance. You can also monitor the status of each port on the fixed slot port card, the fan tray assembly, and the power supplies.

Modules inserted in the port card module slots include their own LEDs.