Cisco ASA 5585-X SSP-10 Full Official Product Description

1. Product Overview & Model Definition

Official Full Name

Model Naming Breakdown

1. ASA: Adaptive Security Appliance, Cisco next-generation firewall platform
2. 5585-X: High-end 2RU modular two-slot chassis for enterprise & data center security
3. SSP: Security Services Processor, main computing module responsible for firewall, VPN, routing and application security
4. 10: Base performance tier of the SSP family, the entry-level compute module for ASA 5585-X chassisCisco

Core Positioning

2. Chassis, Hardware & I/O Specifications

Chassis Form Factor

• Rack unit size: 2RU standard EIA rack-mount chassis
• Chassis slot layout: Dual hot-swappable module slots (Slot 0 = Main SSP; Slot 1 = Optional IPS SSP / I/O expansion modules)
• Built-in fixed base I/O on SSP-10 module: 8 × 10/100/1000BASE-T copper Gigabit Ethernet ports + 2 × SFP+ 10 Gigabit Ethernet uplink portsCisco
• Expansion capability: Additional high-density Gigabit/10G I/O modules can be installed in Slot 1 for scalable port density (max 50 × GbE or 20 × 10GbE total ports)Cisco

Memory & Storage Hardware

• System DRAM: 6 GB dedicated memory on standalone SSP-10; expands to 12 GB when paired with a secondary IPS SSP moduleCisco
• Onboard flash storage: 2 GB internal flash for ASA OS firmware, configuration files, and system logs; dual-module configuration upgrades to 4 GB flash capacityCisco
• Crypto acceleration: Dual embedded dedicated hardware crypto accelerators for AES, 3DES, RSA, and elliptic curve encryption to offload VPN traffic without consuming general-purpose CPU resourcesCisco

Power & Thermal Design

• Standard configuration: Single AC power supply + single hot-swappable fan tray
• Redundancy support: Secondary redundant AC power supply can replace the fan tray to achieve fully redundant power input for high-availability deployments
• Cooling architecture: Front-to-back forced airflow, compatible with standard data center hot/cold aisle rack layouts

3. Key Performance Benchmarks (SSP-10 Base Tier)

1. Stateful firewall throughput: Up to 1.5 Gbps (64-byte packet testing)Cisco
2. AVC + FirePOWER NGIPS combined throughput: 2 Gbps; standalone AVC application control throughput: 4.5 GbpsCisco
3. 3DES/AES IPsec VPN throughput: 1 Gbps
4. Maximum concurrent TCP/UDP connections: 500,000 simultaneous sessions
5. New connection establishment rate: Up to 40,000 new sessions per secondCisco
6. Supported VLAN interfaces: 1,024 logical VLANs for network segmentation
7. Maximum IPsec site-to-site VPN tunnels: 10,000 tunnels
8. Supported Cisco AnyConnect remote SSL VPN peers: Up to 7,500 concurrent mobile/remote worker usersCisco
9. Application identification database: Recognizes over 3,000 distinct network applications for granular AVC policy enforcement

4. Integrated Security & Networking Feature Set

Stateful Firewall Core Functions

• Full stateful packet inspection (SPI) for TCP, UDP, ICMP and all standard IP protocols
• Multi-context virtual firewall mode: Partition single physical appliance into multiple independent virtual firewalls for multi-tenant environments
• Access control lists (ACL), object-group policy management, and time-based access rules
• NAT services: Static NAT, dynamic PAT, carrier-grade large-scale NAT (LSN), NAT64 for IPv4/IPv6 dual-stack transition

VPN Encryption Services

• IPsec site-to-site VPN tunnels with AES-256, 3DES, SHA-256 encryption/hashing
• Cisco AnyConnect Secure Mobility SSL VPN for remote workforce, supporting Windows, macOS, iOS, Android endpoints
• Dynamic multipoint VPN (DMVPN) for hub-spoke enterprise WAN architectures
• Hardware-accelerated crypto offload to eliminate CPU bottlenecks for high-volume VPN traffic

Application Visibility & Threat Defense

• Cisco AVC (Application Visibility and Control): Deep packet inspection to identify thousands of applications, with bandwidth shaping, blocking, logging per application
• Optional FirePOWER Next-Generation IPS (NGIPS): Install matching IPS SSP-10 module in Slot 1 to add intrusion prevention, malware protection, URL filtering (80+ URL categories, 280 million classified websites), and advanced threat analyticsCisco
• Cloud Web Security integration to forward web traffic to Cisco cloud-based security scanning

Routing & Network Integration

• Support for static routing, RIP v1/v2, OSPF, EIGRP, BGP dynamic routing protocols
• Integrated routing and bridging (IRB) for transparent firewall mode deployments
• IPv4 / IPv6 dual-stack full protocol support for seamless network transition

5. Carrier-Grade High Availability Features

1. Active/Standby & Active/Active Firewall Failover
   Supports dual ASA 5585-X appliances deployed in HA pairs for zero downtime during hardware failure, firmware upgrades, or maintenance. Session stateful failover preserves active user sessions during switchover.
2. OIR Online Insertion and Removal
   All SSP compute modules, IPS modules, power supplies, and fan trays support hot swap without full chassis power shutdown; traffic forwarding remains uninterrupted during component replacement.
3. ISSU In-Service Software Upgrade
   Non-disruptive ASA OS firmware upgrades across HA firewall clusters, avoiding full network security outage during version updates.
4. Synchronized Configuration & Logging
   Automatic configuration sync between HA paired firewalls; centralized event logging support for syslog servers, Cisco Security Manager, and FireSIGHT Management Center for unified policy control and threat reporting.

6. Physical & Environmental Specifications

• Overall dimensions (SSP-10 module): 43.7 cm (W) × 39.6 cm (D) × 4.3 cm (H)
• Net module weight: 5.2 kg per SSP-10 compute module
• Standard operating temperature range (data center): 5°C to 40°C (41°F ~ 104°F)
• Short-term extended operating temperature: -5°C to 55°C (23°F ~ 131°F), maximum continuous run time 96 hours, annual cumulative limit 15 days
• Operating relative humidity: 10% – 85% non-condensing; storage/transport humidity: 5% – 95% non-condensing
• Storage & transit temperature range: -40°C to 70°C (-40°F ~ 158°F)

7. Regulatory & Compliance Certifications

1. Electrical Safety: UL 60950-1, CSA C22.2 No.60950-1, IEC 60950, EN 60950-1
2. Laser Safety: IEC/EN 60825 for SFP+ 10G optical transceivers
3. EMC & EMI Compatibility: FCC Part 15 Class A, ICES-003 Class A, VCCI Class A, CISPR 22 (EN55022) Class A, CISPR 24, full EN 61000 series ESD, surge, radiated & conducted immunity compliance
4. Telecom Industry Standards: NEBS Level 3 (GR-63-Core environmental protection, GR-1089-Core EMC and safety specifications)
5. Cryptographic Compliance: FIPS 140-2 validated cryptographic module for government and regulated industry deployments
6. Environmental Directives: EU RoHS hazardous substance restriction compliance, EU WEEE waste electrical equipment recycling directive compliant

8. Key Deployment Advantages

1. Converged All-in-One Security Platform
   Consolidates separate firewall, VPN, application control, and optional IPS threat defense onto a single 2RU rack appliance, drastically reducing physical rack space, power consumption, and multi-device management overhead compared to discrete standalone security hardware.
2. Modular Scalable Architecture
   The dual-slot chassis design allows incremental capacity expansion: add IPS SSP modules for threat prevention, or high-density I/O expansion modules to scale Ethernet port counts as network traffic and user volume grow, without replacing the core SSP compute hardware.
3. Hardware Crypto & Application Offloading
   Dedicated encryption accelerators and multi-core compute architecture offload resource-intensive VPN and deep packet inspection workloads from general-purpose CPUs, maintaining consistent forwarding throughput even under full security policy enforcement.
4. Flexible Multi-Tenant Virtualization
   Multi-context virtual firewall mode enables service providers and large enterprises to partition one physical ASA appliance into isolated security domains for different business units, customers, or network zones, maximizing hardware asset utilization.
5. Comprehensive Unified Management
   Compatible with Cisco Security Manager for centralized firewall policy administration and FireSIGHT Management Center for unified NGIPS threat visibility, event correlation, and compliance reporting across distributed ASA firewall fleets.
6. Full Lifecycle Investment Protection
   Fully interoperable with the complete ASA 5585-X accessory ecosystem including IPS SSP modules, 1G/10G I/O expansion cards, redundant power supplies, and SFP/SFP+ optical transceivers; existing compatible hardware components can be reused during network security capacity upgrades.

9. Standard Factory Packaging Contents

1. ASA 5585-X chassis pre-installed with SSP-10 main security services processor module
2. ESD anti-static protective transport bag for SSP modules
3. Standard 19-inch rack mounting brackets and installation screws
4. Blank filler panels for unused chassis slots and empty SFP/SFP+ ports
5. Hardware installation quick start guide (covers rack mounting, module OIR hot-swap, LED status alarm troubleshooting)
6. Global regulatory compliance documentation packet (safety, EMC, NEBS, FIPS, RoHS certification documents)
7. Dual ejector lever assemblies pre-installed on the SSP module front panel for easy chassis slot insertion and removal

Supplementary UNSPSC Classification Code

Standard Hardware Warranty