Abstract

Extreme Networks, Inc. commissioned The Tolly Group to benchmark the performance of its BlackDiamond 6808 Switch, with 48 fiber Gigabit Ethernet ports. Extreme Networks requested that The Tolly Group measure the throughput of two BlackDiamond 6808 switches when configured for two link aggregation trunk groups consisting of eight ports each, and compare the results with those of a Cisco Systems, Inc. Catalyst 6509 switch with distributed forwarding, in the same testing scenario. Throughput tests were conducted in a partial-mesh configuration across two link aggregation trunks with eight ports per trunk and 16 Gigabit Ethernet input streams B a total of 32 Layer 3 Gigabit Ethernet ports per switch. Extreme Networks also requested that the switches be configured to perform Open Shortest Path First (OSPF) Equal Cost Multipath (ECMP). Tolly engineers conducted tests for 64- and 1,518-byte packets.

Test Highlights: 

Extreme Networks delivered 100% of the theoretical max. throughput across two link aggregation trunks with OSPF ECMP enabled comparted to the Cisco Catalyst 6509 with the Distributed Forwarding Card (DFC) at 64% wire speed in tests of 1,518-byte packets.

Extreme Networks demonstrated an aggregate of 47.6 million PPS in partial-mesh tests of 640byte packets across two link aggregation trunks with OSPF ECMP enabled compared to the Catalyst 6509 with DFC with 30.5 million PPS.

Extreme Networks showed an aggregate of 2.6 million PPS in partial-mesh tests of 1,518-byte packets across two link aggregation trunks with OSPF ECMP enabled compared the Catalyst 6509 with DFC with 2.4 million PPS.