Table of Contents
Introduction
The 64-port 200G data center switch adopts the Marvell Teralynx chip as well as the Enterprise SONiC Distribution, which has high-speed 12.8Tbps switching capacity with low-latency forwarding and advanced telemetry capabilities to meet the demands for AI/ML, cloud, as well as edges, and next-generation data centers.
This FAQ covers the most asked questions across hardware design, software capabilities, and real-world deployment scenarios, helping IT leaders and architects make informed network upgrade decisions.
Hardware Capabilities
Q: What is the switching capacity of this 200G switch?
A: The 200G data center switch delivers 12.8Tbps non-blocking throughput using a single ASIC, supporting full line-rate forwarding on all 64×200G ports. The single ASIC forwarding path of a box-type device is shorter and has lower latency.
Q: What form factor and port type are used?
A: This 200G data center switch features QSFP56 ports, each supporting 200G. It does not support OSFP or QSFP-DD.
Q: Does the CX664D-N switch support mixed-speed environments (e.g., 100G / 50G / 25G)?
A: It supports both 100G and 50G data rates. Since the Serdes is 50G, 200G needs to be downgraded to 100G to breakout into 4×25G.
Q: Is the data center switch compatible with mainstream 200G optical modules (e.g., SR4, FR4, LR4, DR4)?
A: Since our product is designed and manufactured according to standard specifications, it is theoretically compatible with mainstream 200G optical modules on the market. However, hardware debugging is required. Please visit this page to explore: https://cloudswit.ch/product-category/optical-transceivers/
Q: What is the 64x200G switch’s minimum latency?
A: Latency is sub-microsecond, typically around 500ns, and remains consistent even with mixed traffic (small + large packets).
Q: Does the data center switch support a large buffer capacity to handle bursty traffic scenarios?
A: The packet buffer of this series of switch chips is 70MB, providing sufficient buffering capacity for both data-intensive applications (such as distributed storage and big data processing) and real-time applications (such as video streaming and VoIP).
Q: Is it compatible with 100G and 400G optics?
- ✅ Compatible with 100G (via breakout)
- ❌ Not compatible with 400G optics due to QSFP56 port design
Q: What power and cooling features are included?
A: It features:
- Efficient airflow design
- Hot-swappable fans and dual redundant PSUs
- Lower power consumption per port compared to competitors
Q: Does it support lossless interconnection with AI accelerator servers from vendors like NVIDIA and AMD?
A: Supported.
Software Features (Enterprise SONiC)
Q: What makes Asterfusion Enterprise SONiC different from the community SONiC version?
A: Our Enterprise SONiC Distribution is based on open-source SONiC and has been deeply optimized for AIDC and enterprise scenarios. Compared to the community version of SONiC, it offers significant advantages in management interfaces (Rest API, NetConf/YANG, gNMI…), control plane features (Packet Spray, WCMP, INT Driven Routing, Anycast Gateway WiFi Roaming, EVPN-MH), hardware compatibility (Marvell Teralynx, Prestera; Broadcom Tomahawk III, Trident III), and production stability. For details, refer to the comparison list.
Q: Does the switch support containerized applications (e.g., PB, INT, ZTP)? Is it based on the FRR routing stack?
A: Yes. Our AsterNOS inherits SONiC’s containerized architecture, fully supporting containerized applications. Such as:
- Packet Broker
- In-Band Telemetry (INT)
Additionally, based on the FRRouting (FRR) routing stack, it provides robust and reliable control plane functionality.
Q: Are automation interfaces such as gNMI, gRPC, REST API, and NetConf supported? Can the switch be integrated with OpenStack, Kubernetes, and Ansible?
A: Our AsterNOS fully supports these automation interfaces, providing flexible network management and configuration capabilities and enabling integration with mainstream automation and orchestration platforms, including OpenStack, Kubernetes, and Ansible.
Q: Does the solution support BGP EVPN / VXLAN overlay architecture, and does it support EVPN multi-homing?
A: Our AsterNOS provides BGP-EVPN and VXLAN Overlay support to meet the needs of modern data centers for flexible and efficient large-scale Layer 2 networks, and supports EVPN multi-homing to provide high availability and redundancy.
Q: Does the system support custom control plane plugins or BGP policies?
A: Thanks to its flexible containerized architecture and FRR stack, our AsterNOS supports custom control plane plugins and BGP policies.
Application Scenarios
Q: Does the switch support RoCEv2? What specific ECN, PFC, and DCB features are supported?
Yes. It supports RoCEv2, ECN/PFC/DCBX, and Easy RoCE, and configures the above parameters with one click.
Q: Does the switch support In-band Telemetry (INT) for network visibility? Can it be used for visualizing training traffic?
A: The INT collector can collect and report network status information in real time on the data plane. Our switches can provide training traffic with the following services: microburst detection, latency monitoring, and queue congestion reporting, etc.
Q: In financial trading systems, does the switch support nanosecond-level time synchronization (e.g., via PTP v2)?
A: Due to limitations in hardware clock precision and processing capabilities, the TL7 series currently cannot achieve the time synchronization accuracy required for financial trading systems. Our Falcon series switches, equipped with high-precision hardware clocks and optimized PTP implementation, can provide approximately 20ns time synchronization accuracy.
Q: Has the switch been certified for compatibility with major GPU vendors such as NVIDIA, AMD, or Intel?
A: Our switches have successfully passed compatibility verification with the NVIDIA H20 GPU.
Q: How is the 200G Data Center Switch Optimized for AI/ML Workloads?
A: Our switches integrate advanced intelligent flow control technologies to ensure efficient operation of AI/ML workloads, including INT Driven Routing, Flowlet-based ALB, WCMP, etc.
TCO & Commercial Considerations
Q: Compared to Arista and NVIDIA (Mellanox), where does Asterfusion offer a better price-performance ratio?
Asterfusion’s 200G switch offers: The cost-performance ratio is reflected in hardware procurement cost, power consumption, software licensing model, and overall TCO (Total Cost of Ownership).
Q: What is the average delivery time? Is custom optical module selection or pre-configuration service supported?
A: The average delivery time is one week. Optical module selection requires hardware debugging. Customization is supported, but subject to meeting the MOQ (Minimum Order Quantity).
Q: What is the general supply delivery time? Are customized modules or system integration services available?
A: The average delivery time is one week; for orders over 100 units, it is approximately 4 to 8 weeks.
Q: Is PoC (Proof of Concept) testing support available? Can testing or initial setup be done remotely?
A: We proudly offer Proof of Concept (PoC) testing support to validate our solution’s seamless fit for your needs. For the most hands-on evaluation, we highly recommend acquiring a sample unit – available at a specially discounted rate exclusively for PoC testing. Our expert team also provides comprehensive remote setup and testing assistance to ensure a smooth, efficient start.
Conclusion
The Asterfusion 64-Port 200G Data Center Switch strikes the perfect balance between performance, port flexibility, and TCO-efficiency. Built on Marvell Teralynx silicon and running production-grade Enterprise SONiC, it is ready for AI clusters, multi-tenant clouds, and high-speed edge data centers.
Still have questions or want to test it yourself? Contact our team or request a trial unit today.
