Arista DCS-7050CX4M-48D8-R | 48x100G + 8x400G MACsec Switch

Arista DCS-7050CX4M-48D8-R — 48 × 100GbE QSFP-28 Data Center Switch with MACsec and Rear-to-Front Airflow

Key Specifications

• Ports: 48 × 100GbE QSFP-28 + 8 × 400GbE QSFP-DD + 2 × SFP+ (1/10GbE)
• Throughput: 16.0 Tbps full-duplex, non-blocking
• Forwarding Rate: 2.78 Bpps
• Latency: 900 ns cut-through
• Packet Buffer: 82 MB shared with Dynamic Buffer Allocation
• ECMP: 128-way, 4K groups
• CPU/Memory: Quad-Core x86, 16 GB DRAM, 16 GB Flash
• Form Factor: 2RU — 43.99 × 8.79 × 66.8 cm (17.3 × 3.46 × 26.30 in)
• Weight: 16.0 kg (35.1 lbs)
• Power: 390W typical / 740W max; dual redundant PSUs
• Cooling: Rear-to-front airflow; 4 × N+1 hot-swappable fan modules (reversible airflow available)
• Minimum EOS: 4.31.1 — Feature License LIC-FIX-3-MACSEC

Deployment Scenarios

• 48 × 100GbE QSFP-28 + 8 × 400GbE QSFP-DD in 2RU optimized for 25G/50G/100G server NIC connectivity via QSFP-28 with MACsec encryption
• 8 × 400G QSFP-DD uplinks provide non-blocking connectivity to 400G spine switches
• Flexible speed configuration per port enables mixed-speed racks during migration from 10G/25G to 50G/100G
• MACsec (IEEE 802.1AE) encryption on 56 ports provides line-rate hardware encryption for inter-switch and server-to-switch links

• Lossless Ethernet via RoCEv2 (PFC, ECN, DCBX/ETS) supports RDMA between GPU nodes in training fabrics
• 82 MB shared buffer with Dynamic Buffer Allocation absorbs incast bursts during all-reduce collective operations
• Dynamic Load Balancing (DLB) performs real-time flow rebalancing across ECMP and LAG/MLAG paths
• CloudVision with Arista Validated Designs (AVD) provides template-driven orchestration for GPU cluster fabrics

• RoCEv2 with Advanced Congestion Management (PFC, ECN, DCQCN) supports NVMe over Fabrics for RDMA-based storage traffic
• 82 MB shared buffer provides burst absorption for storage I/O patterns at the leaf layer
• VXLAN with BGP EVPN enables multi-tenant storage isolation in shared infrastructure

• VXLAN with EVPN for overlay segmentation and VRF for routing isolation across tenants
• CloudVision with AVD enables template-driven automated deployment and change control at scale
• ZTP, eAPI, gNMI/gRPC, and native Python scripting support full-fleet automation
• VMware vSphere integration with VM Tracer for virtualized environments

Port Speeds and Breakout Options

• Server Ports (QSFP-28): Each QSFP-28 port supports 100GbE, 50GbE, 25GbE, and 10GbE speeds
• Uplink Ports (QSFP-DD): Each QSFP-DD port supports 400GbE, 200GbE, 100GbE, and 40GbE via native operation or breakout
• Max 400GbE Ports: 8
• Max 100GbE Ports: 72
• Max 50GbE Ports: 72
• Max 25GbE Ports: 72
• Max Total Interfaces: 72

Routing and Fabric

• Layer 3: BGP, MP-BGP, OSPF, OSPFv3, IS-IS, RIPv2, VRF, BFD, PBR, PIM-SM/SSM, VRRP, VARP, Anycast RP (RFC 4610)
• Overlay: VXLAN and EVPN for multi-tenant overlay fabrics
• Layer 2: 802.1w RSTP, 802.1s MSTP, RPVST+, 4096 VLANs, Q-in-Q, jumbo frames (9216 bytes)
• Link Aggregation: 802.3ad LACP — 64 ports/channel, 128 groups/system
• MLAG: Up to 64 ports per MLAG
• Load Balancing: 128-way ECMP, Dynamic Load Balancing (DLB), Equal and Unequal Cost Multi-Pathing (UCMP)

Table Sizes

• MAC Addresses: 128K
• IPv4 Host Routes: 320K
• IPv6 Host Routes: 80K
• IPv4 LPM Routes (ALPM): 800K
• IPv6 LPM Routes (≤/64, ALPM): 500K
• IPv6 LPM Routes (any prefix, ALPM): 500K
• IPv4 Multicast (S,G): 160K
• ACLs: 11K ingress / 2K egress
• ECMP: 128-way, 4K groups

QoS and Lossless Ethernet

• Queues: Up to 8 unicast + 2 multicast per port
• Classification: 802.1p and DSCP-based classification and remarking
• Scheduling: Strict priority and Weighted Round Robin (WRR)
• Congestion: ECN (Explicit Congestion Notification), PFC (Priority Flow Control)
• DCB: DCBX and 802.1Qaz ETS — supports RoCEv2 for RDMA workloads
• Shaping: Per-port traffic shaping, rate limiting with ACL-based policing

Telemetry and Monitoring

• LANZ (Latency Analyzer): Real-time per-port queue depth and microburst detection with configurable congestion notification
• sFlow: Packet sampling for flow analysis and capacity planning
• AEM (Advanced Event Management): Programmable event-driven alerting and automation via CLI Scheduler, Event Manager, and Event Monitor
• Streaming Telemetry: GPB-encoded export via gNMI/gRPC to third-party collectors; INT and GREEN-T for in-band telemetry
• Port Mirroring: 8 active sessions with L2/3/4 filtering, port channel source and destination, mirror to CPU
• IEEE 1588v2 PTP: Transparent Clock and Boundary Clock
• Traffic Statistics: Polling as low as 100 ms; optional fast polling at 1 ms
• DMF: Advanced monitoring and aggregation with multi-port mirroring

Automation and EOS

• Operating System: Arista EOS — 64-bit, modular, Linux-based with in-memory state sharing (Sysdb)
• CloudVision: Centralized management, change control, ZTP, and topology visualization
• APIs: JSON-RPC eAPI, OpenConfig, gNMI/gRPC
• Scripting: Native Python, C++, Bash via Linux shell; RPM support and custom kernel modules
• SDN: Arista DirectFlow, OpenStack Neutron support
• ZTP: Zero-Touch Provisioning for automated day-0 deployment
• Programmable Pipeline: Enhanced forwarding architecture with flexible packet pipeline for software-driven data plane updates

Security

• ACLs: IPv4/IPv6 ingress and egress at L2/L3/L4 with drop logging and counters
• Control Plane Protection (CoPP): Rate-limiting of CPU-destined traffic
• Authentication: TACACS+, RADIUS, SSHv2, AAA
• Secure Boot: Digitally signed EOS images
• Layer 2 Security: MAC Security, DHCP relay/snooping, Service ACLs
• MACsec (IEEE 802.1AE): Line-rate hardware encryption on 56 ports

Reliability and Lifecycle

• Stateful Fault Repair (SFR): Automatic recovery from software faults without data plane impact
• Stateful Fault Containment (SFC): Fault isolation to prevent cascading failures
• Smart System Upgrade (SSU): In-service software upgrades with minimal disruption
• Live Software Patching: Hot-patch capability for critical fixes without reboot
• Redundancy: 1+1 hot-swappable PSUs, 4 × N+1 hot-swappable fan modules; color-coded PSUs and fans

Similar Arista Models to Consider

• DCS-7050CX4M-48D8-F: Front-to-rear airflow variant of this switch. Electrically identical.
• DCS-7050CX4-24D8-R: 1RU variant with 24 × 200G QSFP-56 server ports, without MACsec.
• DCS-7050SDX4-48D8-R: 1RU variant with 48 × 100G SFP-DD server ports for higher port density at 100G.

Additional Resources

• Arista 7050SX3 Switches: Your Go-To Guide — Architectural differences between switching-optimized and routing-optimized Arista platforms.
• Arista vs Cisco Networking Hardware — Practical comparisons for modern data center and cloud environments.

Summary

Arista DCS-7050CX4M-48D8-R Technical Specifications

General Specifications

• Model Name: DCS-7050CX4M-48D8-R
• Form Factor: 2RU Rackmount
• Dimensions (W × H × D): 43.99 × 8.79 × 66.8 cm (17.3 × 3.46 × 26.30 in)
• Weight: 16.0 kg (35.1 lbs)

Port Configuration

• Network Ports: 48 × 100GbE QSFP-28 + 8 × 400GbE QSFP-DD + 2 × SFP+ (1/10GbE)
• Management Ports: 1 × 10/100/1000 Ethernet, 1 × RS-232 Serial Console (RJ-45), 1 × USB
• Max 400GbE Ports: 8
• Max 200GbE Ports: 16
• Max 100GbE Ports: 72
• Max 50GbE Ports: 72
• Max 40GbE Ports: 64
• Max 25GbE Ports: 72
• Max 10GbE Ports: 72 + 2
• Max Total Interfaces: 72
• MACsec (IEEE 802.1AE): Line-rate hardware encryption on 56 ports
• Optics Support: Full optics compatibility list at arista.com/transceivers-cables

Throughput and Performance

• Switching Capacity: 16.0 Tbps (full-duplex, non-blocking)
• Forwarding Rate: 2.78 billion packets per second (Bpps) ¹
• Packet Buffer Memory: 82 MB shared (Dynamic Buffer Allocation)
• Latency: From 900 ns (cut-through mode)
• Maximum MTU: 9216 bytes (jumbo frames)
• ECMP: 128-way, 4K groups

Processor and Memory

• CPU: Quad-Core x86
• System Memory (DRAM): 16 GB
• Flash Storage: 16 GB

Environmental and Power

• Operating Temperature: 0° to 40°C (32° to 104°F) ²
• Storage Temperature: -40° to 70°C (-40° to 158°F)
• Operating Humidity: 5% to 90% non-condensing
• Operating Altitude: 0 to 3,000 m (0 to 10,000 ft)
• Power Supply: Dual redundant hot-swappable power supplies; PWR-1512-AC-RED/BLUE (200–240 VAC, 93% Platinum efficiency) and PWR-1511-DC-RED/BLUE (-48 to -60 VDC)
• Typical/Maximum Power Draw: 390 W typical / 740 W maximum ³
• Fan Tray: FAN-7012H-RED / FAN-7012H-BLUE (4 fans, N+1 redundant, hot-swappable)
• Cooling: Rear-to-front airflow (reversible airflow available)

Software Compatibility

• Operating System: Arista EOS® (Extensible Operating System), 64-bit
• Minimum EOS Version: 4.31.1
• EOS Feature License Group: LIC-FIX-3-MACSEC
• Automation Support: Python, C++, Bash, JSON-RPC eAPI, CloudVision®, OpenConfig, gNMI/gRPC, Zero Touch Provisioning (ZTP)
• Telemetry: Streaming telemetry (GPB encoded), LANZ microburst detection, sFlow (RFC 3176), SNMP v1/v2/v3, syslog, AEM, INT/GREEN-T in-band telemetry

Monitoring and Diagnostics

• Built-in Diagnostics: Real-time performance monitoring, self-healing with Stateful Fault Repair (SFR), Blue Beacon LED for system identification
• Telemetry and Analytics: Streaming telemetry, LANZ, sFlow, SNMP, AI Analyzer (hardware capability for ECMP utilization at 100 µs granularity), DMF
• Packet Capture: Integrated packet capture and analysis via TCPDump; port mirroring (8 active sessions) with L2/3/4 filtering
• Traffic Statistics Polling: As low as 100 ms standard; optional fast polling as low as 1 ms

Application and Network Technology

• Layer 2: 802.1w RSTP, 802.1s MSTP, RPVST+, 4096 VLANs, Q-in-Q, 802.3ad LACP (64 ports/channel, 128 groups/system), MLAG (64 ports per MLAG), storm control, jumbo frames (9216 bytes)
• Layer 3 Routing: OSPF, OSPFv3, BGP, MP-BGP, IS-IS, RIPv2, 128-way ECMP, VRF, BFD, VRRP, VARP, PBR, PIM-SM/SSM, Anycast RP (RFC 4610), uRPF
• VXLAN/EVPN Support: Full VXLAN/EVPN routing and bridging for scalable multi-tenant overlay fabrics; VM Tracer VMware integration
• Lossless Ethernet: Per-Priority Flow Control (PFC), Data Center Bridging (DCB/DCBX), 802.1Qaz ETS — supports RoCEv2 for RDMA workloads
• Load Balancing: Dynamic Load Balancing (DLB), 128-way ECMP with resilient hashing, Equal and Unequal Cost Multi-Pathing (UCMP), custom hash algorithms
• QoS: Up to 8 unicast + 2 multicast queues per port; 802.1p and DSCP classification; ECN; strict priority and WRR scheduling; traffic shaping; ACL-based rate limiting

Table Sizes

• MAC Addresses: 128K
• IPv4 Host Routes: 320K
• IPv6 Host Routes: 80K
• IPv4 LPM Routes (ALPM): 800K
• IPv6 LPM Routes (≤/64, ALPM): 500K
• IPv6 LPM Routes (any prefix, ALPM): 500K
• IPv4 Multicast (S,G): 160K
• ACLs: 11K ingress / 2K egress
• ECMP: 128-way, 4K groups
• STP Instances: 64 (MST) / 254 (RPVST+)
• IGMP Groups: 128K max, with 4K unique groups

Security Features

• Access Control: IPv4/IPv6 ingress and egress ACLs (L2/L3/L4 fields), MAC ACLs, ACL drop logging and counters, Service ACLs
• Secure Boot: Digitally signed EOS images ensure trusted software boot process
• Authentication: TACACS+, RADIUS, SSHv2; Role-Based Access Control (RBAC); AAA
• Control Plane Protection: Control Plane Policing (CoPP), DHCP relay/snooping, MAC Security

Regulatory Compliance

• Standards Compliance: 802.1D, 802.1p, 802.1Q, 802.1w, 802.1s, 802.1AB, 802.3ad, 802.3ab, 802.3z, 802.3ae, 802.3by, 802.3ba, 802.3bs, 802.3cm
• Environmental Compliance: RoHS, WEEE

Reliability and Maintenance

• Redundancy: 1+1 hot-swappable power supplies; 4× N+1 hot-swappable fan modules; color-coded PSUs and fans
• High Availability Software: Stateful Fault Containment (SFC), Stateful Fault Repair (SFR), Smart System Upgrade (SSU), live software patching
• Field Serviceability: Tool-less fan module and power supply replacement; tool-less rack rails

• 1-Year BrightStar warranty for end user customers
• 90-Day BrightStar Warranty for resellers

• Free FedEx Ground shipping within the United States
• FedEx Overnight shipping available as well
• FedEx International Shipping available for customers outside of the United States