Cisco DS-X9608 Full Official Product Description
1. Part Number & Naming Definition
Commercial Full Name
Cisco MDS 9500 Series 8-Port 8Gbps Fibre Channel Switching Module
SKU:DS-X9608
Naming Breakdown
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DS: Cisco MDS Storage Area Network Director platform identifier
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X96: MDS 9500 Generation 3 Fibre Channel line card hardware platform
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08: Eight physical SFP ports for Fibre Channel connectivity
Core Product Positioning
The Cisco DS-X9608 is a hot-swappable 8-port line-rate 8 Gbps Fibre Channel switching module designed exclusively for Cisco MDS 9500 multilayer storage directors. Built for enterprise and data center Fibre Channel SAN environments, it delivers lossless, wire-speed storage traffic forwarding for servers, disk arrays, tape libraries and inter-switch links (ISLs). It supports full MDS SAN operating feature sets including virtual SANs, zoning, advanced security and traffic monitoring, enabling scalable, highly available block storage fabric deployments.
2. Hardware Compatibility
Supported Chassis
Cisco MDS 9506, MDS 9509, MDS 9513 Multilayer Storage Directors
Supported Supervisor Modules
DS-X9530-SF1-K9, DS-X9530-SF2-K9
Supported Fabric Modules
DS-X9500-FAB1, DS-X9500-FAB2 crossbar fabric modules
Supported Operating System
Cisco SAN-OS / Cisco NX-OS for MDS
Unsupported Platforms
MDS 9700 series directors, MDS 9100 / MDS 9200 fixed SAN switches, Nexus Ethernet switches
3. Physical & Performance Specifications
Form Factor
Hot-swappable line card supporting OIR (Online Insertion and Removal)
Front Panel Interfaces
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8 × SFP slots for Fibre Channel transceivers
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LED status indicators for port link activity, traffic and fault alarms
Port Performance
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Native speed: 8 Gbps Fibre Channel; auto-negotiate backward compatibility for 4 Gbps, 2 Gbps, 1 Gbps FC
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Wire-speed non-blocking forwarding across all active ports
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Supports buffer credits for long-distance ISL connections
Supported Transceiver Types
DS-SFP-FC8G-SW, DS-SFP-FC8G-LW, DS-SFP-FC8G-MR Fibre Channel SFPs
Environmental Operating Parameters
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Operating Temperature: 0°C ~ 40°C (32°F ~ 104°F)
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Storage Temperature: -40°C ~ 70°C (-40°F ~ 158°F)
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Relative Humidity: 10% – 90%, non-condensing
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Maximum operating altitude: 3000 meters
Typical Power Consumption
4. Supported Functional Capabilities
Fibre Channel Fabric Protocols
FSPF fabric routing protocol, ISL trunking, PortChannel aggregation for FC links
SAN Virtualization
VSAN (Virtual Storage Area Network), Inter-VSAN Routing (IVR)
SAN Security Features
Hardware-enforced zoning, port security, FC-SP authentication, VSAN ACLs
Traffic Management & Diagnostics
SAN SPAN (port mirroring), real-time interface statistics, frame tracing, Call Home event alerting
High Availability Functions
OIR support, non-disruptive module replacement, incremental firmware upgrades, fabric path redundancy
Operations & Management
NX-OS / SAN-OS CLI, SNMP v2c/v3, Syslog, DCNM (Data Center Network Manager) centralized SAN orchestration
5. Typical Deployment Scenarios
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Enterprise Fibre Channel SAN connectivity for storage arrays and physical servers
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Inter-switch Link (ISL) connections to scale MDS 9500 storage fabrics
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Virtualized data center block storage networking deployments
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Tape backup infrastructure integration within mission-critical SAN environments
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Spare replacement and hardware upgrade for legacy MDS 9500 director infrastructure
6. Regulatory & Compliance Certifications
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Safety Standards: UL 60950-1, IEC/EN 60950-1, CSA C22.2 No.60950-1
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EMC Compliance: CE Mark, FCC Part 15 Class A, ICES-003 Class A, VCCI Class A
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Environmental: RoHS compliant, WEEE directive compliant
7. Standard Factory Package Contents
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Cisco DS-X9608 8-Port 8G Fibre Channel Line Card
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Hardware installation documentation
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Safety and regulatory compliance guides
Note: Fibre Channel SFP transceivers are sold separately.
End-of-Sale Status
The DS-X9608 module has reached Cisco End-of-Sale. Spare hardware is available through authorized spare distributors and secondary markets. Recommended migration: MDS 9700 series 16G / 32G Fibre Channel line cards.
UNSPSC Classification Code
43222622 – Cisco DS-X9608 8-port 8G Fibre Channel line card for MDS 9500 storage directors, wire-speed Fibre Channel switching module for enterprise block storage SAN fabric deployments.
Hardware Warranty
Original factory hardware carries Cisco limited hardware warranty; refurbished stock follows reseller commercial warranty terms.
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