The Cisco S-A9K-MACSEC-400 is an ASR 9000 MACSEC 400G Right-to-Use license designed to enable Media Access Control Security (MACsec) encryption on 400 Gigabit Ethernet ports of the Cisco ASR 9900 Series 5th Generation 10-Port 400 Gigabit Ethernet Line Cards. This license activates advanced security features for high-density, line-rate Ethernet traffic in carrier-grade networks.
Product Overview
The Cisco ASR 9900 Series 5th Generation 10-Port 400 Gigabit Ethernet Line Card delivers industry-leading high density with line-rate 400 Gigabit Ethernet ports to any slot of a Cisco ASR 9900 Series Aggregation Services Router. These high-capacity line cards address bandwidth bottlenecks caused by Video-on-Demand (VoD), IPTV, point-to-point video, internet video, and cloud services traffic. A single 400 Gigabit Ethernet port replaces large 100 Gigabit Ethernet link aggregation bundles to simplify operations. Based on QSFP-DD technology, the line card supports flexible interfaces including 400 Gigabit Ethernet, 100 Gigabit Ethernet, 40 Gigabit Ethernet, 25 Gigabit Ethernet, and 10 Gigabit Ethernet modes, configurable via Command Line Interface (CLI) without resetting or restarting.
Using a green design, unused slices can be placed in power-saving mode to reduce consumption. The line cards and routers provide infrastructure for scalable Carrier Ethernet and IP/Multiprotocol Label Switching (IP/MPLS) networks, supporting profitable business, residential, and mobile services.
Line Card Variants
- Cisco ASR 9900 4T Service Edge Line Card – 5th Generation: Optimized for enhanced service scale.
- Cisco ASR 9900 4T Packet Transport Line Card – 5th Generation: Optimized for basic service scale.
The line card is fully compatible with Cisco ASR 9904 Router, ASR 9906 Router, ASR 9910 Router, ASR 9912 Router, and ASR 9922 Router, potentially requiring hardware updates for fabric cards, RP/RSP cards, and cooling systems due to high-density 400 Gigabit Ethernet throughput. This 4 Terabit line card supports full-line-rate, non-oversubscribed Ethernet traffic.
Key Features and Benefits
- Interface Support: Cisco pluggable interfaces mix and match 10, 25, 40, 100, and 400 Gigabit Ethernet types across a single line card (complete list in Cisco Optics Compatibility Matrix).
- Evolutionary Monitoring: Carrier-class Operations, Administration, and Maintenance (OAM) including NetFlow, IEEE 802.1ag, IEEE 802.3ah, ITU Y.1731, IP Service-Level Agreement (IP SLA), Virtual Circuit Connectivity Verification (VCCV), ping, and trace route.
- Carrier-class OS: Cisco IOS XR Software – modular, patchable, scalable, highly available, carrier core, and edge-proven operating system.
- Cisco QSFP Breakout Option: Increases capability for large-scale aggregation and 10 Gigabit Ethernet Satellite Network Virtualization (nV) System mode on ASR 9000 Series Router.
- Reliability: Line card Online Insertion and Removal (OIR) support without system impact.
Feature licenses like S-A9K-MACSEC-400 turn on advanced capabilities on the line cards, supporting specific hardware and software dependencies with XR 7.3.1 or later.
Technical Capabilities
Ethernet features include 400-Gbps IEEE 802.3bs compliance, 400 Gigabit Ethernet PHY monitoring, IEEE 802.x flow control, full-duplex operation, and per-port counters for policy drops, oversubscription drops, CRC error drops, packet sizes, unicast, multicast, and broadcast packets. Performance delivers 400-Gbps line rate throughput per port.
Environmental and Compliance
Designed for robust operation with operating temperature 41 to 104°F (5 to 40°C), operating humidity 10 to 85%, storage temperature –40 to 158°F (–40 to 70°C), storage humidity 5 to 95% (not exceeding 0.024 kg of water per kg of dry air), and operating altitude –60 to 4000 m.
Meets ETSI/EN standards: EN300 386 Telecommunications Network Equipment (EMC), ETSI 300 019 Storage Class 1.1, ETSI 300 019 Transportation Class 2.3, ETSI 300 019 Stationary Use Class 3.1, EN55022 Information Technology Equipment (Emissions), EN55032 Multimedia Equipment (Emissions), EN55024 Information Technology Equipment (Immunity), EN55035 Multimedia Equipment (Immunity), EN50082-1/EN-61000-6-1 Generic Immunity Standard.
EMC standards: FCC Class A, ICES 003 Class A, AS/NZS CISPR 32 Class A, CISPR 22/CISPR 32 Class A, EN55022/EN55032 Class A, VCCI Class A, CNS-13438 Class A, KN32 Class A, IEC/EN 61000-3-2 Power Line Harmonics, IEC/EN 61000-3-3 Voltage Fluctuations and Flicker, EN50121-4 Railway applications Part 4 Emission and immunity of the signaling and telecommunications apparatus, EN50121-3-2 Railway applications Part 3-2 Rolling stock – Apparatus.
Immunity: IEC/EN-61000-4-2 Electrostatic Discharge Immunity (8kV Contact, 15kV Air), IEC/EN-61000-4-3 Radiated Immunity (10V/m), IEC/EN-61000-4-4 Electrical Fast Transient Immunity (2kV Power, 1kV Signal), IEC/EN-61000-4-5 Surge AC Port (4kV CM, 2kV DM), IEC/EN-61000-4-5 Signal Ports (1kV), IEC/EN-61000-4-5 Surge DC Port (1kV), IEC/EN-61000-4-6 Immunity to Conducted Disturbances (10Vrms), IEC/EN-61000-4-8 Power Frequency Magnetic Field Immunity (30A/m), IEC/EN-61000-4-11 Voltage DIPS Short Interruptions and Voltage Variations, KN35.
Safety: UL/CSA/IEC/EN 60950-1, IEC/EN 60825 Laser Safety, ACA TS001, AS/NZS 60950, FDA Code of Federal Regulations Laser Safety.
NEBS: SR-3580 NEBS Criteria Levels (Level 3), GR-1089-CORE NEBS EMC and Safety, GR-63-CORE NEBS Physical Protection.
Software and Services
Operates with Cisco IOS XR Software, available via Cisco Software Center. Supports lifecycle services for deployment, operation, and optimization of IP Next-Generation Networks.