Which Aruba CX switch series provides full Layer 3 support with advanced routing features?

The Aruba CX 9300 Switch Series is a family of high-performance data center switches designed for core and spine roles. These roles demand robust and scalable routing capabilities. The CX 9300 series provides a comprehensive suite of advanced Layer 3 features, including full support for Border Gateway Protocol (BGP), Open Shortest Path First (OSPF), Virtual Routing and Forwarding (VRF), and IPv6. This feature set is essential for building modern, scalable, and resilient data center networks, making it the correct choice for a switch with "full Layer 3 support with advanced routing features."

A. Aruba CX 10000: While it has advanced L3 capabilities, its primary role is a Distributed Services Switch with an integrated stateful firewall, not purely a core routing platform.

B. Aruba CX 6200: This is an access layer switch series with basic Layer 3 features like static routing and limited OSPF, lacking advanced protocols such as BGP.

C. Aruba CX 4100i: This is a ruggedized access switch with limited Layer 3 functionality (static, OSPF), not intended for complex or advanced routing requirements.

1. Aruba CX 9300 Switch Series Data Sheet (Document ID: DSCX9300R11EN.pdf): Page 1 states

"The Aruba CX 9300 Switch Series is a next-generation... data center switch family designed for core/spine deployments... with advanced Layer 2 and 3 features

including support for BGP

OSPF

VRF

and IPv6."

2. Aruba CX 6200 Switch Series Data Sheet (Document ID: DSCX6200SeriesSKEN.pdf): Page 4

under "Layer 3 Services

" lists "Static routing

Routing Information Protocol (RIP)

OSPF." This confirms its limited

non-advanced L3 feature set compared to the 9300.

3. Aruba CX 4100i Switch Series Data Sheet (Document ID: a00118793enw.pdf): Page 3

in the "Software-defined

routing" section

lists "Static and OSPFv2/v3 routing

" indicating it lacks the advanced routing protocols of a core switch.

4. Aruba CX 10000 Switch Series Data Sheet (Document ID: DSCX10000R1EN.pdf): Page 1 describes it as "a new category of data center switch that combines best-of-breed Aruba data center L2/3 switching with the industry’s first hardware-accelerated programmable processor (Pensando P4 DPU)." This highlights its primary role as a services switch.