Arista End of Life and End of Support — Replacement Guide for 7050S, 7150S, 7280SR & 7124

Arista platforms across the 7050S, 7150S, 7124, 7280SR Jericho1, and 7250QX families have entered end-of-sale and end-of-software-maintenance windows over the past several years. Production environments running these platforms face an accelerating cost curve as TAC support expires, RMA windows close, and security patches stop landing on the older EOS branches.

The right answer for most teams is not to stretch the EOL platform. It is to plan a controlled refresh onto current-generation Arista hardware that has already been validated against the workloads the EOL gear was carrying.

BrightStar Systems supplies refurbished Arista platforms across the lineage commonly used as replacement targets for the EOL families above:

• 7050X3 and 7050X4 leaf lines (10G through 400G)
• 7060X family across multiple generations from 100G to 800G AI/ML platforms (7060CX, 7060CX2, 7060X4, 7060X5, 7060X6)
• 7280R3 and 7280R4 carrier-edge and deep-buffer families
• 7160 series for low-latency refurbished supply where buyers are stretching a 7150S deployment

Equipment ships from BrightStar’s warehouse with documented condition reports. Units are tested for boot functionality, hardware operation, and port connectivity. Installed software versions vary by unit and should be confirmed prior to deployment.

Availability on the most recently released generations (7060X6, 7280R4, 7050X4) is currently more limited in the refurbished supply chain than the established earlier generations. Our team can confirm current stock and lead times on a specific SKU.

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EOL / EOS Milestones for Arista Platforms in This Guide

Key end-of-sale and end-of-support dates per Arista’s official advisories. Dates vary by exact SKU and configuration; consult Arista’s end-of-sale advisories page for the milestone applicable to your specific model.

For the complete Arista end of life list across every DCS-series part number, see our dedicated Arista End of Life Dates page.

Platform	EOS Announced	Last Day to Order	EOL / Last Day of Support
7050S / 7050Q (SSD variants)	—	April 15, 2015	Refer to Arista advisory
7050 (selected models)	—	August 9, 2016	Refer to Arista advisory
7050QX2-32S Fiber	—	March 20, 2022	Refer to Arista advisory
7124SX	—	July 30, 2014	Refer to Arista advisory
7150S-24 / 52 / 64	May 31, 2021	December 1, 2021	December 1, 2024 (TAC / RMA)
7160 series (DCS-7160-48YC6, 32CQ, 48TC6)	—	March 28, 2021	EOS 4.27+ no longer supports platform
7170 / 7170B series	June 28, 2024	September 28, 2024	September 28, 2027
7060CX-32S-SSD	—	November 27, 2020	Refer to Arista advisory
Original 7280R / R2 series (selected SKUs)	Various per SKU	Various per SKU	Refer to Arista advisory
7250QX-64	—	Refer to Arista advisory	Refer to Arista advisory
7500R chassis line cards (selected older 40G / first-gen 100G)	Various per card	Various per card	Refer to Arista advisory

Why Running EOL Arista Hardware Creates Real Operational Risk

End-of-life is not a single event. It is a sequence of stepped support reductions that compound over 12 to 36 months.

For Arista platforms specifically, the milestones that matter to operations teams are:

• End-of-sale
• Last-day-of-software-maintenance for the EOS train the platform is locked to
• Last-day-of-security-fixes
• Last-day-of-hardware-warranty
• Last-day-of-support (the date after which TAC will no longer take cases)

The platforms in this list have crossed at least one of those milestones and are heading toward the next.

The practical consequences are operational:

• A CVE published against an older EOS release that no longer receives patches forces an emergency hardware swap.
• A line card failure on an out-of-warranty 7280SR forces sourcing a used spare or a full chassis replacement on a deadline.
• Compliance auditors increasingly flag unsupported network platforms in environments handling regulated data.

The cost of running EOL gear is hidden until the moment something breaks — and then it lands all at once.

Refurbished hardware addresses these risks without the capex profile of new-from-vendor. The platforms are tested, within Arista’s published product lifecycle, and designed to support modern data-center architectures such as EVPN-VXLAN, MLAG, and telemetry. Software version and licensing requirements are governed by Arista’s licensing, entitlement, and support policies. For many teams this is a practical path through an EOL transition.

Current-Generation Replacements We Supply by EOL Platform

7050S-52 and 7050S-64 (10G ToR, 1G/10G aggregation)

Note: Inventory positioning below describes the platforms BrightStar can typically supply as refurbished replacements. Stock and lead times on a specific SKU vary — our team can confirm both for your particular configuration.

The 7050S family was Arista’s workhorse 10G top-of-rack switch through the mid-2010s. Most production deployments today are looking at a 25G refresh, both to align with current server-side NIC speeds and to gain headroom for east-west traffic.

End-of-sale dates across the 7050S / 7050Q lineup vary by exact SKU. Selected SSD-equipped models had last day to order as early as April 15, 2015; later 7050 models had last day to order in August 2016; additional sub-variants followed through 2022. Consult Arista’s end-of-sale notices for the dates that apply to your specific SKU.

For continued 25G leaf and ToR deployments, the Arista DCS-7050SX3-48YC8 (48 × 25GbE + 8 × 100GbE uplink) is the standard answer with the same operational simplicity teams expect from the 7050 family. The platform supports the same core data-center architectures (forwarding, MLAG, EVPN-VXLAN) commonly deployed across modern Arista environments, subject to software version and licensing requirements.

For deployments where 10GbE is still the right server-side speed and the customer is buying for compatibility rather than refresh, the 7050SX3 ports speed-shift down to 10G cleanly.

For customers refreshing forward to 100/200/400G leaf and looking at the newest generation, the Arista 7050X4 family (DCS-7050DX4-32S, DCS-7050PX4-32S, DCS-7050DX4M-32S with MACsec, DCS-7050CX4-24D8, DCS-7050CX4M-48D8) provides 12.8 Tbps throughput with flexible 100G/200G/400G port configurations and is the current-generation 7050 series platform.

For higher-density 100G aggregation roles where the 7050S-64 was previously serving, the Arista DCS-7060CX2-32S (32 × 100GbE) is the established refurb-supply path. For customers building toward 400G or 800G consolidation, the 7060X5 and 7060X6 families are the newer-generation alternatives (see the 7050QX section below for the full 7060 generation breakdown).

7050QX-32S (10/40G high-radix)

The 7050QX-32S was the 40G upgrade for fabrics that had outgrown the 7050S. Arista has issued staged end-of-sale notices for the 7050QX family, with the 7050QX2-32S Fiber and related variants reaching last-day-to-order in March 2022.

Most deployments today are migrating either to 25/100G leaf or to 400G/800G spine depending on whether the role was leaf or spine.

The 7060 series spans multiple generations and BrightStar supplies refurbished inventory across the lineage. The right choice depends on the target port speed, density, and how aggressively the customer wants to refresh forward:

• DCS-7060CX-32S (7060X, 100G) — established refurb-supply path for 32 × 100GbE high-radix aggregation. Lowest cost per port, proven at scale.
• DCS-7060CX2-32S (7060X2, 100G) — second-generation 32 × 100GbE platform, similar role to 7060CX with newer silicon and longer remaining lifecycle.
• DCS-7060DX4-32 or DCS-7060PX4-32 (7060X4, 400G) — 32 × 400GbE platform with 25.6 Tbps throughput, flexible 100/200/400G interface options, latency from 700ns for 400G.
• 7060X5 family (400/800G) — current-generation platforms with per-SKU specifications: DCS-7060DX5-32 (12.8 Tbps, 32 × 400G QSFP-DD in 1RU), DCS-7060DX5-64S (25.6 Tbps, 64 × 400G QSFP-DD in 2RU), DCS-7060DX5-64E and DCS-7060PX5-64E (32 × 800G QSFP-DD or OSFP800 in 1RU), DCS-7060CX5-56D8 (56 × QSFP100 plus 8 × QSFP-DD 400G). Best fit for new hyperscale builds where current-generation hardware is specified.
• DCS-7060X6-32PE, DCS-7060X6-64PE (7060X6, 800G AI/ML) — newest generation, 51.2 Tbps throughput, 64 ports of 800G in 2RU, purpose-built for AI/ML clusters with RoCEv2, packet spraying, advanced DCQCN, and integrated AI Analyzer.

For most general 100G hyperscale and large enterprise refreshes, the 7060CX2 or 7060X4 generations are the practical refurbished-supply target. For new fabric builds where the customer is specifying current-generation hardware, the 7060X5 (400/800G) or 7060X6 (AI/ML 800G) is the path.

Availability on the X5 and X6 generations in the refurbished supply chain is more limited than the established earlier generations — lead times may be longer for current-generation SKUs.

7150S-24 / 52 / 64 (10G low-latency)

The 7150S was Arista’s first low-latency 10G ToR with sub-microsecond cut-through forwarding, used heavily in financial colocation, market-data fanout, and HFT-adjacent topologies.

Per Arista’s end-of-sale notice, the 7150S series was announced for end-of-sale on May 31, 2021, with last day to order December 1, 2021, and end-of-support / RMA / TAC on December 1, 2024. EOS software release 4.27 and later do not support the platform per Arista’s end-of-software-support notice.

The migration path depends on whether the customer still needs the low-latency profile, or whether the 7150S was being used as a general ToR where the latency was not critical.

Stretching a low-latency 7150S deployment with the 7160 family. The Arista 7160 family is available in our refurbished inventory as a practical option for customers stretching a 7150S deployment another 12 to 24 months on a comparable low-latency profile (DCS-7160-48YC6 at 48 × 25GbE + 6 × 100GbE, DCS-7160-32CQ at 32 × 100GbE).

Important caveat: the 7160 itself had last day to order on March 28, 2021, so this is a refurbished-supply option rather than a long-horizon refresh path.

The Arista 7170 series (Intel Tofino programmable silicon) was positioned as the next-generation successor but has also entered end-of-sale: end-of-sale announced June 28, 2024, last day to order September 28, 2024, end-of-life September 28, 2027.

General 10G ToR replacement (latency profile not critical). The migration is to the modern 25G ToR line: the DCS-7050SX3-48YC8 for 25/100G leaf, the 7050X4 family for customers refreshing forward to 100/400G, or the DCS-7060CX-32S or DCS-7060CX2-32S for 100G leaf-tier consolidation. All are cut-through architectures with microsecond-range latency — not 7160-grade, but well within tolerance for most modern data center workloads at lower cost per port.

Extreme-low-latency HFT order paths. For the narrow segment running 7150S in extreme-low-latency HFT order paths or market-data fanout, the migration is typically to Arista 7130 (Metamako FPGA-based Layer 1/2), Cisco Nexus 3550-F (Algo Boost successor), or kernel-bypass NICs that move latency-critical work out of the switch path entirely.

7124SX / 7124FX (10G low-latency, earlier generation)

Predecessor to the 7150S, fully end-of-life since the late 2010s. Same migration logic as 7150S applies.

The 7160 family (DCS-7160-48YC6 or DCS-7160-32CQ) is available in our refurbished inventory for customers extending the low-latency deployment timeline, with the caveat that the 7160 had last day to order March 28, 2021. The next-generation Tofino-based 7170 series has also entered end-of-sale (announced June 28, 2024, last day to order September 28, 2024, EOL September 28, 2027).

For general 25G ToR replacement at lower cost per port where the latency profile is not operationally critical, the DCS-7050SX3-48YC8 is the standard answer. For deployments where extreme sub-microsecond latency is the requirement, the Arista 7130 (Metamako Layer 1/2) is the typical path.

7280SR / 7280SE / 7280CR (earlier 7280R / 7280R2 generations)

The earlier 7280R / R2 generations (7280R, 7280RA, 7280R2, 7280R2A, 7280R2K) were Arista’s deep-buffer answer for carrier edge, internet exchange, content peering, and data center interconnect roles where shallow-buffer leaf-spine switches would drop microbursts.

The 7280R is the original generation; the 7280R2 / R2A / R2K is a later generation in the same family. These platforms have entered late lifecycle and selected SKUs are formally end-of-sale per Arista’s EOS notices (dates vary per specific variant).

The 7280R3 and 7280R4 generations have since superseded them with deeper buffers, higher throughput, and modern feature support.

The direct replacement for most 7280SR deployments is the Arista DCS-7280SR3-48YC8 — same 48 × 25GbE + 8 × 100GbE form factor with deep packet buffers (capacity varies by exact 7280R3 SKU; refer to the per-platform Arista datasheet for the buffer value applicable to your model), virtual output queues, and modern EOS support.

For higher-bandwidth 400G roles, the broader 7280R3 series covers fixed-config 400G platforms (7280PR3 and 7280DR3 at 24 × 400G, 7280CR3 at up to 96 × 100G, 7280TR3) appropriate for carrier-edge, DCI, and large-scale internet exchange roles. BrightStar carries most of the 7280R3 line.

For customers refreshing forward to current-generation deep-buffer routing, the 7280R4 series is Arista’s seventh-generation deep-buffer platform. Key specifications:

• Up to 32 × 800GbE
• 25.6 Tbps line-rate throughput
• Ultra-deep packet buffer up to 32GB
• Dedicated QSFP-Line system ports
• 400G/800G ZR/ZR+ support
• MACsec / IPsec / VXLANsec encryption
• Full carrier-grade features including LDP, RSVP-TE, SR-TE, PTP, and SyncE

The 7280R4 is the strongest fit for new carrier and AI/ML build-outs. Refurbished availability is more limited than the 7280R3 since the platform is more recently released.

7250QX-64 (10/40G high-radix)

Aggregation-tier predecessor to the 7060 line. Replacement options align with the 7060 generation breakdown above:

• DCS-7060CX-32S or DCS-7060CX2-32S for continued 100G high-radix aggregation at lowest cost per port
• DCS-7060DX4-32 (7060X4 at 400G) for customers consolidating toward 400G
• 7060X5 / 7060X6 families for new fabric builds at current-generation 400G/800G or AI/ML scale

7500R chassis line cards (selected EOL items)

Customers running 7500R chassis with line cards in late lifecycle (older 1G/10G or 40G cards) have two main paths:

• Refresh card-by-card with newer 7500R3 line cards
• Evaluate whether the fabric role would be better served by fixed-config alternatives like the 7280R3 or 7280R4 series

For most modern carrier-edge and DCI workloads, the fixed-config platforms have closed the gap on chassis-class density at a fraction of the operational complexity. For higher-scale spine and AI/ML build-outs, the Arista 7800R3 and 7800R4 modular chassis platforms are also available. We’d recommend a specific evaluation per deployment.

Why Refurbished Current-Gen Instead of New from Vendor

Current-generation Arista hardware purchased new from the vendor carries capex and lead-time exposure that is worth factoring against a refurbished option for many roles.

Refurbished current-gen platforms address both: tested units priced below new-from-vendor list (exact discount varies by SKU and quantity), with stock typically available for 2 to 4 business day delivery in cases where customers face multi-month lead times on new-vendor orders.

The platforms in this list (7050SX3, 7050X4 family, 7060CX/CX2/X4/X5/X6, 7280R3, 7280R4) remain within Arista’s currently supported hardware portfolio, and the hardware itself is identical to new units.

Refurbished here means previously deployed, returned through a documented lease-end or decommissioning process, tested for boot functionality, hardware operation, and port connectivity, and recertified for resale. Cosmetic grade is disclosed at sale and a condition report ships with the unit. Installed EOS versions vary by unit.

Software licensing, software update eligibility, and manufacturer support are governed by Arista’s licensing, entitlement, and support policies and are not provided by BrightStar unless explicitly stated in writing. Customers should confirm their software entitlement, support eligibility, and licensing requirements directly with Arista or an authorized Arista partner before deployment.

Hardware Testing Before Shipment

Every unit runs through a documented hardware test sequence before crating:

• Power-on and boot verification using the EOS image present on the device at the time of inspection
• Port-level link verification across the rated port count, at the rated speed, with appropriate optics
• PSU and fan tray verification under load, including airflow direction confirmation (front-to-back vs back-to-front)
• Serial number and asset tag recorded against the unit’s condition report
• Configuration wipe before crating

Anything outside the cosmetic grade specified at sale gets flagged before the unit leaves the warehouse. Installed software versions vary by unit and should be confirmed prior to deployment.

For procurement teams requiring additional pre-deployment validation, extended burn-in (typically 24 to 72 hours) with documented test logs is available as a paid pre-purchase service.

Three-Tier Replacement Strategy

Most EOL migration projects fall into one of three patterns, and the right BrightStar offer depends on which one applies:

• Full refresh. Customer is retiring an entire fabric or pod and rebuilding with current-generation hardware. This is where refurbished current-gen at scale is most attractive — capex compression vs new-from-vendor is meaningful on multi-unit purchases, and lead-time control matters when the new fabric has a cutover date.
• 1:1 replacement. Customer is replacing failed or end-of-warranty units one at a time as they break. Refurbished current-gen is the right answer here even more than in full refresh because the customer is not adding a new platform to the operations team’s burden — they’re consolidating onto the gen-3 family they were already going to standardize on.
• Mixed deployment. Customer is running legacy EOL platforms in less-critical fabric segments (development, lab, secondary path) while modernizing the production fabric. Refurbished current-gen handles the production refresh; we generally recommend planning the legacy-side retirement on a defined timeline rather than running parallel architectures indefinitely.

Software and Support Notice

Frequently Asked Questions From Network Engineers Planning the Transition

Get a Quote on Your Replacement Hardware

If you’re scoping an Arista refresh off the 7050S, 7050QX, 7150S, 7124, earlier 7280SR / SE / CR (R / R2 generations), or 7250QX families, our team can help size the replacement platform and confirm availability, condition grade, and lead time. Quotes typically return within 24 hours during US business days. For multi-unit refresh projects, we can also discuss freight consolidation and staged delivery windows aligned with your cutover schedule.

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End-of-sale, end-of-software-support, and last-day-of-support dates cited on this page are sourced from Arista’s official end-of-sale and end-of-support notices. Dates can be revised by Arista at any time — consult the Arista support advisories pages for the most current information on a specific platform variant.