Cisco Catalyst 8500L-8S4X Edge Platform with 8 Ports 1GE SFP & 4 Ports 10GE SFP+
Cisco C8500L-8S4X High-Performance Edge Router | 12 Total Ports (8x1GE + 4x10GE), 19 Gbps IPsec, 1RU, SD-WAN Ready
Product Overview
The Cisco Catalyst C8500L-8S4X is a high-performance cloud edge platform within the Catalyst 8500 Series, designed to deliver accelerated services, multilayer security, cloud-native agility, and edge intelligence . This compact 1RU router is purpose-built for enterprise and service provider edge deployments, offering superior IPsec throughput and SD-WAN capabilities. It is an ideal solution for organizations seeking to securely connect branch offices, data centers, and cloud environments with high performance and reliability .
The C8500L-8S4X runs on Cisco's advanced IOS XE operating system and leverages an Intel x86 CPU with multiple cores, supporting 16 GB of default DRAM (upgradable to 32 GB or 64 GB) and 32 GB of internal boot flash storage . An optional 2 TB M.2 NVMe SSD is also available for additional storage requirements .
Port Configuration and Flexibility
| Port Type | Quantity | Speed | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| SFP Ports | 8 | 1 GE | Bay 0 ports – support 1G SFP modules |
| SFP+ Ports | 4 | 1/10 GE | Bay 1 ports – support 1G SFP or 10G SFP+ modules (dual-rate) |
| Management Ethernet Port | 1 | 10/100/1000 Mbps | RJ-45 dedicated management interface |
| Console Ports | 2 | – | RJ-45 and Micro-USB console ports |
| USB Ports | 2 | USB 3.0 | For file transfer and system upgrades |
All 8 SFP ports and 4 SFP+ ports can be utilized simultaneously, providing up to 12 total ports of flexible high-speed connectivity .
Performance Specifications
| Parameter | Value | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| IPv4 Forwarding Throughput | Up to 39 Gbps | 1400-byte packet size |
| IPsec Throughput | Up to 19 Gbps | 1400-byte, clear text |
| SD-WAN IPsec Throughput | Up to 19 Gbps (1400B) / 10 Gbps (IMIX) | Clear text performance |
| NGFW + UTD Performance | Up to 4 Gbps | DIA w. NAT + NGFW + IPS + URLF + AMP |
| Queues | 16,000 | – |
| NAT Sessions | 2,000,000 | – |
| Firewall Sessions | 2,000,000 | – |
| ACEs per System (IPv4) | 50,000 | – |
| IPv4 Routes | 4,000,000 (default 16GB DRAM) | – |
Scalability & Security Specifications
| Parameter | Specification |
|---|---|
| SD-WAN Overlay Tunnels | Up to 8,000 (IOS XE 17.12.1+) |
| IPsec SVTI Tunnels | 4,000 |
| VRF Entries | 8,000 |
| ACLs per System | 4,000 |
| MACsec | Hardware-based link-layer encryption support |
| Trust Anchor Module | Hardware-anchored Secure Boot and SUDI for identity verification |
Hardware & Physical Specifications
| Parameter | Specification |
|---|---|
| Form Factor | 1RU, 19-inch rack-mountable |
| Dimensions (H x W x D) | 4.39 x 44.5 x 41.3 cm (1.73 x 17.5 x 16.3 in) |
| Weight | 7.7 kg (16.98 lbs) |
| Power Supplies | Dual, field-replaceable, N+1 redundancy support |
| Power Supply Options | 400W AC, 400W DC, or 400W High Voltage AC/DC |
| Operating Temperature | 0°C to 40°C |
| Storage Temperature | -40°C to 70°C |
| Operating Humidity | 10% to 85% (non-condensing) |
| MTBF | 240,200 hours |
| RoHS Compliance | Yes (2011/65/EU, 2015/863) |
Supported Features & Protocols
| Feature Category | Capabilities |
|---|---|
| Routing Protocols | OSPF, IS-IS, RIP, BGP, EIGRP, Static Routing, PIM-SM/SDM, IGMPv3, VRRP, HSRP, GRE, MPLS, BFD, LISP, Policy-based Routing (PBR) |
| VPN & Security | IPsec, DMVPN, FlexVPN, GETVPN, MACsec, TrustSec, AAA (RADIUS/TACACS+), SSHv2, TLS |
| SD-WAN | Catalyst SD-WAN (Viptela) support with Application-Aware Routing (AAR), Zero-Touch Provisioning (ZTP), and vManage integration |
| Management | NETCONF, RESTCONF, SNMP, CLI, SCP, NTP, DHCP, Cisco DNA Center, vManage, Streaming Telemetry |
| High Availability | VRRP, HSRP, BFD, IOS XE software redundancy |
| QoS | CBWFQ, WRED, Class-based policing/shaping, NBAR2, HQoS |
| Multicast | PIM-SM, PIM-SSM, IGMPv3, MSDP |
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